Retirement Guru (2025)

09/10/2025

Retire When You’re Ready, Not When You’re Told.

Over kopi last night, a friend asked if I really planned to retire in 3 years - before 60.

He looked shocked. “Retire before 65? But that’s the official age!”

I laughed. “65 is just a number. One chosen by the system, not by people who’ve spent decades working, raising families, and chasing dreams.”

It reminded me of how, growing up, the “right” time to marry, buy a home, or even take a break always seemed decided by someone else.

But here’s the truth. Retirement isn’t a date printed on your IC. It’s when you’ve built enough passive income, found enough purpose, and feel ready to design life on your own terms.

So if you’re planning, saving, or just daydreaming about early retirement, remember this: the freedom to retire isn’t about age. It’s about readiness.

Retire when you decide. Not when you’re told.

07/10/2025

Just received a rather unusual but super thoughtful corporate gift today - a hidden camera detector!

Some might wonder why this matters, but if you’ve been following travel safety news, you’ll know that hidden cameras can show up where you least expect them like hotel rooms and Airbnbs. It’s not about paranoia, it’s about protecting your privacy.

This little gadget instantly boosts my peace of mind when I travel. A quick scan before settling in means I can rest easy, knowing my space is truly mine.

If you travel often, you might want to add one of these to your packing list.

07/10/2025

The Cost of Waiting Too Long

Ben, a good friend of mine, always said he’d “start investing once things are more stable.” He’s smart, earns well, and lives decently. But life happened - wedding, new home, kids, car loan. He finally started investing seriously at 38.

Last week, over coffee, we ran the numbers together. If he had started just 10 years earlier with the same amount and same returns, he will be able to retire 7 years sooner. Seven years!

That’s not just a number. That’s seven more years of watching sunsets instead of spreadsheets. Seven more years of doing things because he wants to, not because he has to.

This is what I call compound freedom, the time and choices that grow when your money starts working early. The longer you wait, the harder it has to work to buy back the same amount of freedom later.

So don’t just invest for wealth. Invest for options. Invest for time. Invest for freedom and and let it compound.

06/10/2025

At a farewell lunch for a colleague, I was reminded of a simple truth - nothing in life is permanent. Roles change, priorities shift, and what feels central to us today can quickly become irrelevant tomorrow.

Careers, titles, and paychecks are all temporary. That is why relying on a single job for security is risky, especially as we grow older. Success should be met with humility, failure with courage. Most importantly both must also prompt us to prepare.

Financial independence is about building income streams that last beyond any job. Dividends, rental income, side gigs, or digital ventures, these are what give us options when change comes, as it inevitably will.

The measure of a secure retirement is not in the titles we once held, but in whether we’ve built resilience and freedom to live life on our own terms.

Something to think about this week

05/10/2025

"Finish everything on your plate." It sounds polite, but is it really healthy?

The truth is, restaurant portions are not designed for your body; they are shaped by culture, business, or a chef's idea of "enough." Clearing your plate could mean eating way more than your body actually needs.

That is why the Japanese principle of eating until 80% full is so powerful. Instead of letting the plate decide for you, you let your body guide you. You stop when you are satisfied, not when you are stuffed. In the long run, respecting your own limits matters more than respecting the plate, because it is your health and longevity at stake.

So the next time you eat out, ask yourself, "Are you eating to nourish your body or just to satisfy your plate?"

03/10/2025

One of my goals in retirement isn’t to relax … it’s to pay it forward.

After years of planning, saving, investing (and learning a few hard lessons), I realised that retiring well isn’t just about money. Retiring successfully is about having enough, knowing what’s enough, and designing a life that feels right.

That’s why I created Retire Smartly, a GPT to help others on this journey too. It’s a virtual coach that helps you retire earlier, with purpose, income, and joy by:

✅ building cash flow through dividends & FIRE strategies
✅ making smarter lifestyle and spending choices
✅ planning for a retirement that’s full of health, meaning, and freedom

Whether you’re just starting or already eyeing your "retire by X" date, I hope this tool gives you clarity and confidence.

Try it here - https://chatgpt.com/g/g-68b10a4e468881919bc5a857e3a7c4b1-retire-smartly

Because everyone deserves a retirement they don’t want to escape from.

03/10/2025

Love my pink mug! :)

I used to struggle with drinking enough water every day. The 2-liter goal felt like a chore, always having to remind myself, carrying bulky bottles, and forcing those gulps in between a busy schedule. But things changed for me since I got this tumbler with nice cold water always within a sip’s reach. Now, meeting my daily hydration target feels effortless and natural.

Did you know that health experts generally recommend about 2 to 2.7 liters (or around 8 to 11 cups) of fluids daily for women, and up to 3.7 liters for men?

This includes water from all drinks and even food. Staying hydrated is crucial for so many aspects of health. From regulating body temperature and promoting digestion, to keeping skin radiant and helping cognitive function.

Having cold, fresh water handy makes all the difference. If staying hydrated feels like a challenge, maybe all it takes is the right tumbler ....

02/10/2025

I asked Retire Smartly if Day Trading is a good source of retirement income. Here is what it told me ....

Day trading is generally a poor choice for retirement income compared to other strategies. Let’s run it through the framework:

1. Deconstruct for Simplicity
If your goal is steady retirement income, the ridiculously easy version is to build income streams that flow without your daily attention ie. dividends, rental income, annuities, part-time consulting. Day trading is the opposite: high effort, high risk, unpredictable results.

2. 80/20: High-Leverage Actions
The 20% of retirement strategies that deliver 80% of the results are:

- Paying off housing (removes a huge monthly expense)
- Healthcare planning (avoids financial shocks)
- Income-producing assets (dividends, rentals, consulting)

Day trading doesn’t show up here. It requires constant reinvestment of time and attention with no guarantee of consistent income.

3. Radical Prioritization
If you could only do ONE thing to secure retirement income, it wouldn’t be trading.
It would be ensuring reliable cash flow (e.g., dividends, CPF LIFE, rental income, or part-time semi-retirement work).

4. Urgency: 30-Day Test
If you had to create $2,000/month of retirement income in 30 days, would you:

a. Trust your future on unpredictable daily trades?
b. Or lock in dividend ETFs, rent out a property, or do part-time consulting in your field?

The second path gives certainty. The first path gives gambling.

5. Challenge Hidden Beliefs
Assumption: “I can out-trade the market for income.”
Reality: Most professional traders don’t beat the market over time. Retirement security is about dependable inflows, not speculation.

6. Winning Identity
If you were already world-class at retirement planning, you’d build systems, not bets. That means designing a portfolio that generates cash flow “on autopilot” — not one that requires you to guess right every day.

✅ Hyper-Optimized Strategy:
Use day trading (if you truly enjoy it) only as a hobby with money you can afford to lose. For reliable retirement income, prioritize cash flow investments (dividends, rentals, annuities) and semi-retirement side projects.

Realistic Adaptation
Many retirees enjoy stock market involvement, but treat it like entertainment — not a paycheck. If you like the mental stimulation of trading, allocate a small fun account (

02/10/2025

Passion X Income

Getting paid to share my thoughts about retirement .... thank you for your support.

01/10/2025

Are You Ready?

The is that as we get older, the workplace doesn’t get kinder. In fact, it gets riskier.

When companies cut costs, who do you think they look at first? Often, it’s the older staff. Not because we’re less capable, but because our salaries are higher. In the eyes of the balance sheet, we become “expensive.” Add in AI and automation taking over tasks, and the danger becomes very real.

This is why depending on a single paycheck is no longer enough. For those of us in our 40s, 50s, and beyond, the need to build an alternative income engine is urgent. Dividends, rental income, side gigs, or digital ventures, it’s about creating a safety net that pays you even if your job disappears.

The reality is that the older we are, the less time we have to bounce back if retrenchment hits. But with steady income streams outside of employment, we have choices. We can weather disruption without panic. We can step into retirement on our own terms.

The Great Flattening isn’t just a headline, it’s a wake-up call.

29/09/2025

FIRE (Financial Independence, Retire Early) actually has 4 levels.

Most people think FIRE just means “quit job, sit on the beach.” But it’s actually a spectrum and understanding which level you’re aiming for will help you plan smarter.

Level 1: Lean FIRE. Living minimally with strict budgeting. You need less, so you can retire earlier — but luxuries are limited. Think: $1 rice and kopi C kosong lifestyle.

Level 2: Barista FIRE. You’re financially independent for basic needs, but still work part-time (maybe passion projects or light jobs) to cover extras like travel or hobbies.

Level 3: Coast FIRE. You’ve saved and invested enough early that your money can grow without additional contributions. You still work, but only to cover today’s expenses, not for retirement.

Level 4: Fat FIRE. The ultimate “comfort FIRE.” You’ve built enough to sustain a higher standard of living — nice meals, regular holidays, even some luxuries — without financial stress.

The question isn’t “Can you retire early?” The better question is: “Which type of FIRE do you want, and what will it take to get you there."

28/09/2025

Retirement isn’t the end of the journey, it’s the beginning of a new chapter filled with freedom, exploration, and experiences. Many retirees dream of traveling more, but the hidden truth is this .... it doesn’t have to be expensive to be enjoyable.

Smart travel is about planning wisely, packing light, and choosing tools that make the journey smoother. And thanks to Shopee, you can grab affordable travel essentials that save money and make your trips stress-free.

https://medium.com//travel-smart-in-retirement-5-shopee-finds-under-50-ac2c79e803ef

Retirement Guru

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