Link Roundup #28: 10 Things to Know This Week

Accelerate your personal finance knowledge with this regular feature on Ringgit Oh Ringgit – the Link Roundup! I promise you’ll find these 10 links informational 🙂

1.
The Real Reason Why You’re Bad With Money
 – VICE

…could be that you’re too, well, nice. According to the article,

“Those with ‘a higher degree of the personality trait known as
agreeableness
, meaning they are more likely to be altruistic, kind, and trustworthy than the rest of us make great friends, but they’re also more likely to be bad with money.”

If a good friend of yours has this personality trait, please look out for them. Their personality literally makes it hard for them to avoid helping others, even if it causes their financial ruin. These are the ones who co-signs a bad loan, lends people money (and never asks or gets it back), and quick to offer to pay for lunches and drinks.

If that describes who you are, don’t change. The world needs kind souls like you. But do learn how to say no, and practice it regularly. If saying ‘no’ is hard, repeat the phrase “Let me think about it” over and over to the requester.

2.
This is how to survive in a toxic workplace: 3 secrets from research

– The Ladders

Most people don’t quit jobs, they quit people who make their workplace topic.

But sometimes you can’t just quit a job. Maybe you can’t afford to. Maybe you’re serving a scholarship bond. Maybe it’s a family business.

So here are the 3 ways to survive a toxic workplace, according to the article:

 Avoid them. As much as possible

Use reappraisal. Reframe it as a challenge

Fight back – carefully. Use tools that you have at your disposal strategically

Read the article for a full explanation for each of the methods.  Hang in there and all the best.

3.
This Young Investor’s Lucrative Passion: Collecting Million-Dollar, One-Person Businesses

– Forbes

What an interesting business model, I’ve never heard anything like it.

Here’s how it works:

He buys high-potential one-person online businesses

He builds a team that supports the operations of these businesses, like marketing, so it can scale much bigger

He collects management fee from the businesses

My brain is… thinking. I like this idea a lot.

4.
The 86 Best Days of the Year to Get a Fresh Start, According to 700 Scientific Papers

– Inc

Oh wow, ‘reset’ opportunities are more abundant than I thought. That’s almost 1 every 4 days.

“Pink identifies 86 days in the year when we can make a fresh start. The most effective include: Mondays (52), the first day of the month (12), and the first day of each season (4).

The list also includes national celebrations, religious holidays, your birthday, the first day of school, the first day of a new job, anniversaries, and the day you finish a big project.”

Daniel H. Pink is a best-selling author and a
very
 popular TED speaker. The video below is well worth 18 mins of your time.

5.
Women are happier without children or a spouse, says happiness expert

– The Guardian

You might have seen this article around. It certainly made its rounds in social media. They compared happiness and misery levels among unmarried, married, divorced, separated and widowed individuals, and the healthiest and happiest population subgroup are women who never married or had children.

To be completely honest, the results gave me mixed feelings. On one hand, I feel like gloating to traditionalists – no, don’t pressure me to get married and have kids! Don’t make me miserable like you!

On the other hand, this study is a generalisation, and extremely happy and fulfilled married women with children DO exist, it’s just they’re not as common. They’re anomalies, outliers, the exception to the rule.

I think at the heart of this study is asking
why
 married women with children are not happy and fulfilled?

Is it because they work too much? Sacrifice too much? Face too much discrimination? Didn’t get enough support?

Maybe we can, as a society, work on those issues so one day they’ll be as happy as their single counterparts.

6.
There Is Too Much Stuff

– The Atlantic

The article talks about the sheer amount of products offered in Amazon, Target and Walmart, but I think we can all relate and agree that yes, there *is* too much stuff.

Ethics and environmental issues aside, the article rightly pointed out that the culture of ‘too much stuff to choose from’ gave us choice anxiety and analysis paralysis, and has led to the rise of

Overstocking solutions – There are businesses where its main objective is to resell excess stuff

Algorithm – Products are recommended to you based on your past internet history

Influencers – Following the recommendations of people and brands you follow

A new type of business model focusing on simplicity – They intentionally limit their choice of products

What a world we live in.

7.
MacKenzie Bezos signed the philanthropic commitment her ex-husband spurned

– Vox

All you need to know is (1) Jeff Bezos refused to sign the Giving Pledge for years, and (2) MacKenzie immediately did, just months after their divorce.

An additional $17 billion (BILLION) to make the world a better place. $500 billion (BILLION) pledged from billionaires so far via the Giving Pledge. I hope it goes far. I hope it’ll make a difference. The world needs it.

8.
Top 10 Most Valuable Types of Collectibles in the World

– MoneyCrashers

The 10 are:

Fine Art

Rare coins

Thoroughbred horses (oh!)

Jewelry and gems

Stamps

Fabergé Eggs (I’ve never heard of this!)

Classic and exotic cars

Fine wines

Chinese porcelain

Timepieces

Read the full article to see how valuable each of them can get, why they are sought after and notable collectors. It’s a well-researched article, really enjoyed reading it.

9.
The Best and Worst Time of Day to Ask for a Raise or to Close a Sale

– Inc

TL;DR – Do the big ones in the early morning, small ones on the late afternoon.

10.
Let Us Pitch Bitcoin Better than Tom Lee Ever Could
– Pelham Blue Asset Management

I don’t know who’s behind Pelham Blue Asset Management, a group of self-described Malaysian traders, and frankly I don’t care. I just really enjoy their blogposts and tweets, detailing their adventures (and misadventures) in warrants trading.

We hate to use gambling terminology… but we hit the jackpot today.

TM call warrants.

60% return on investment (you heard that right).

RM9,000 gross profits.

All in 79 minutes.
#trade

#saham

#bursa

#finance

pic.twitter.com/UKT9mBz7RM

— Pelham Blue Asset Management (@pelhambluefund)
May 30, 2019

This particular post is highly entertaining for me, because it makes fun of people who preach bitcoin for the sake of preaching bitcoin.

Long-time readers know that I have crypto. Some may even know that I was the founding member of ACCESS Blockchain Association Malaysia, before stepping down as Vice President in 2018.

And let me tell you, we as an association freaking hate it when some dude (and it’s always dudes) suddenly appear in the limelight telling others ‘crypto is an investment in a lifetime and if you don’t buy in you’re missing out’.

Eff the right off. How irresponsible.

Fact: No one knows how crypto is going to perform in the future. It’s highly speculative.

Fact: Whoever tells you that ‘CRYPTO PRICES *WILL* SKYROCKET, SECURE YOUR FINANCIAL FUTURE’ is an overconfident bullshitter whose only interest is their own.

Especially if they promote some random crypto project and tell you how it’ll replace money in the future. Hey did you know making a cryptocurrency is easier than you think? Go and read
how I made SurayaCoin
.

That’s it for this round, catch you next time! Want to submit a link you thought was great? Reach out to me on
FB
 or
Twitter
.

To read past link roundups, please click
here
.


Link Roundup #29: 10 Things to Know This Week

Accelerate your personal finance knowledge with this regular feature on Ringgit Oh Ringgit – the Link Roundup! I promise you’ll find these 10 links informational 🙂

1.
The Radical Plan to Save the Planet by Working Less
 – Vice

This is my first time being exposed to the degrowth movement, and while I’m still learning more about it, I have to say… I like it. For far too long, we as a society have measured ‘success’ by how well we’re doing financially and economically, rather than our happiness and well-being.

And it *is* true that the planet can’t sustain our current lifestyle and consumption.

2. Heat map of the rental market in Klang Valley by the Red Angpow team

The
Red Angpow
 team did something really cool. They combined one vertical of high tech, big data, into one vertical of finance, the property market.  With the data, they could generate things like this freaking heat map denoting rental market in Klang Valley.

This the heat map for the rental market in Klang Valley.

KL-PJ corridor commands the highest rental price generally more than 2k per month.

Source: Red Angpow – We painstakingly collected the data from all property websites that covers the whole of Malaysia.

1/n
pic.twitter.com/EMGIv5vaFe

— RED ANGPOW (@red_angpow)
June 10, 2019

I can’t emphasise how cool this is. It’s freaking amazing. I’ll be following this startup’s development for sure.

The Red Angpow team also has nice content over at their
blog section
. I especially liked the article analysing the relationship between a property’s distance to train stations and its price.

3.
Foreclosures on the Rise
– The Star

A must-read article. Did you know that circa 2009/2010, at the height of the property boom in Malaysia, developers used all sorts of tactics to encourage property sales, some of them borderline unethical to buyers?

And now that the property market is not as great, people can neither afford to pay those instalments neither sell off their properties, so the number of foreclosures are on the rise

The article is a bit confusing, so I picked some sentences out that gives you a gist of it.

“People bought properties in droves over the past 10 years, paying minimal downpayment and some made multiple purchases.”

“The purchase of multiple units, prevalent in the years starting 2009/10 was due to developers giving huge rebates, the use of mortgage brokers, investor clubs and the speculative element in society.”

“These mortgage brokers may apply up to six banks for a buyer. When three approve a loan, instead of buying one house which cost RM800,000, the buyer may end up buying three.

“Assuming a 30% rebate, that is RM240,000 per house. So the borrower takes a 90% loan, or RM720,000. The buyer gets a “cash back” of RM160,000. Buyers rationalise he can use the cash back to pay the car loan or use it for one of the three houses on completion and flip the other two.”

“As a result of the excesses of the past years, today, some banks want the unit to be valued independently when the developer sells to buyers. They want to know “the real price” of the house to base their loan approval, and not the SPA price (after ‘cashback’), the source says. “Some banks are more careful and stringent now. They are beginning to realise the negative repercussion of rebates,” the source says.”

What a messy situation.

4.
Why You Should Tell Your Co-Workers How Much Money You Make

– The New York Times

Because no one wins but your employer. And when I say employer, I mean the business entity (ie, Genting Group or something) and not the person (although s/he’d get pretty rich from it too).

a male counterpart told me he was making $10,000 more than me a year for the same job. he then helped me prepare to ask for a salary increase. I got it. had we not discussed our salaries, I would have never known.

not discussing salaries only benefits the employer.
https://t.co/ATYvYccO13

— khaleesiana (@cleopatrasoul6)
June 13, 2019

*Especially* share salaries if you’ve been at your company for a while. Sometimes you might find that the newer employees are paid the same, or even more than you even though they have a lot less experience. At a certain skill level, job-hoppers are compensated better than loyal employees who’ve stuck with the same company for a while.

Anyone here has had that open, honest discussion with your colleagues? Any tips you can share on opening the topic?

Maybe… sending this article to them with a note like, ‘I’m happy to share if you’re open to it. Lunch?’

5.
5 Steps to Achieve Anything (From One of the Top Marketers in the World)

– Inc

Is not so much as what the top marketer said, it’s
who
 said it. I don’t know who Roland Frasier is, but I think I need to start following this fella because his credentials are amazing. According to the article:

He is the co-founder and/or principal of three current Inc. Magazine fastest growing companies.

He has founded, scaled, or sold 24 different 7 to 9 figure businesses ranging from consumer products to industrial machine manufacturing companies with adjusted sales ranging from $3 million to $337 million.

He is currently growing DigitalMarketer.com, RivalBrands.com, and Plattr.com while advising over 150 other companies on digitally centric customer acquisition, activation, referral, retention, and revenue strategies and plan implementation.

Go read the 5 steps, who knows it will spark something in you.

6.
11 tips for starting a small business with little to no money
– Business Insider

This article is more like a compilation of great Quora answers. Great answers though. Highly suggest you read through if you’re starting a business and don’t have much money to begin with.

7.
These Are The Best Jobs For Work-Life Balance – & How Much They Pay
– Refinery29

Disclaimer: ‘best’ is relative, and the data is from UK not Malaysia. But in any case, if you’re looking for careers in lines that might give you better work-life balance, you might be interested to look up these jobs:

Sales Development Representative

Research Fellow

Customer Success Manager

Marketing Assistant

Engagement Manager

Data Scientist

Recruiter

Copywriter

Web Developer

Audit Manager

Recruiting Manager

Operations Analyst

Executive Assistant

Product Manager

HR Business Partner

8.
PSA: The National Library Has Over 10,000 Free eBooks That You Can Read Online

– Says.com

Why didn’t we know about this amazing and FREE resource sooner! Ah now I ikhlas sikit for paying taxes lol.

Registration is free for Malaysians and PRs, and you can borrow up to 10 books at a time. Click the Says.com for instructions.

I was excited to see that have two REALLY GOOD personal finance books, The Money Game by Adam Smith and Rich Dad, Poor Dad by Robert Kiyosaki!

9.
Getting rich can boil down to 6 ‘wealth factors’ no matter your age or salary

– The Ladders

Many, many,
many
studies have been done to find out the rich are rich. You can read the answers and results in many formats, but I love the wealth factors presented in this article for how succinct they are. The 6 are:

Frugality
, or a commitment to saving, spending less, and sticking to a budget

Confidence
 in financial management, investing, and household leadership

Responsibility
, which involves accepting your role in financial outcomes and believing that luck plays a little role

Planning
, or setting goals for your financial future

Focus
 on seeing tasks through to their completion without getting distractions

Social indifference
, or not succumbing to social pressure to buy the latest thing

10.
Even though I could afford a $2 million home, my house costs a fraction that much because I’ve embraced a truth most people don’t understand

– Business Insider

Holly Johnson has a high net worth, but bought a house costing below $200,000, way less than the $2 million house ‘recommendations’ from mortgage and housing affordability calculators.

She did it because she knew that she doesn’t
have
 to buy a high-priced property, because it doesn’t reflect the life that she wants.

Keep that in mind the next time you use a housing loan calculator. The amount they gave you is the maximum property amount that you can afford. They
want
 you to buy the expensive properties – they earn more that way.
You don’t have to take their recommendation
.

For example, if the calculator said that you can afford a RM600,000 home, maybe consider a RM300-400,000 one instead.

Plus there are so many hidden fees, direct and indirect, when it comes to properties. Ask any of your friends who bought a house.

That’s it for this round, catch you next time! Want to submit a link you thought was great? Reach out to me on
FB
 or
Twitter
.

To read past link roundups, please click
here
.


Link Roundup #3: 10 Things to Know This Week

Accelerate your personal finance knowledge with this new regular feature on Ringgit Oh Ringgit – the Link Roundup! I promise you’ll find these 10 articles informational 🙂

1.
7 work-from-home jobs that pay over $100,000
 – CNBC

Because chances are you have dreamt about working from home, and making bank at the same time. Any of these job titles sound appealing to you? Work towards it. The article includes each of the job descriptions.

UX Designer

Front-End Developer

Project Manager

Senior Software Engineer

Senior Manager, Global IT Security

Director, pharmacy – financial plan and analysis

Chief Marketing Officer

2.
10 New Services That’ll Make You Say, ‘Why Didn’t I Think of That?’
 – Entrepreneur

Problem-solvers of the world have always struck me as creative types. The beauty of their ‘art’ is measured in their solution’s real-life practicality and ease of use.

Highly enjoyed this article which showcased 10 different variations of this kind of creativity. I am especially floored by
Kairos
, which ‘builds and funds companies that tackle problems worth solving’, problems like student loans, housing costs, childcare, the future of work and costs of senior care. That AI-powered personal assistant sounds pretty damn cool, too.

3.
It Costs $2.50 to Make Lipstick — Here’s Why You’re Charged So Much More
 – Racked.com

TL;DR – The company wants as much profit it can squeeze out of you. They increase the perception of ‘worth’ by applying marketing and branding strategies.

Great article, full of examples of actual costs of makeup production, from raw materials (apparently some pigments cost more than others, interesting) to packaging to distribution. Fun read if you’re interested in the business and logistics side of makeup.

4.
Malaysia Asks $8.3 Billion Question on 1MDB. Here’s What We Know
 – Bloomberg

Lim Guan Eng (our Finance Minister) asked these three questions about 1MDB:

Where has the $1.83 billion invested with PetroSaudi International Limited between 2009 and 2011 gone to?

Where has the $3.5 billion raised in 2012 for the purposes of acquiring power plants in Malaysia gone to?

Where has the $3 billion raised in 2013 for the purposes of investing in TRX gone to?

This article doesn’t have all the answers (not comprehensively, at least), but it’s easy to read and easy to understand. A feat, since the whole 1MDB saga is very,
very
complicated.

5.
8 reasons first-class airfare is so expensive
 – Business Insider

Why are first-class airfares expensive? Lots of reasons, but this line pretty much sums it up: “At a certain level of wealth, price doesn’t make much difference”.

Company-sponsored tickets aside, can you imagine being so rich that you go like, eh, might as well take first class, it’s only RM8000 more? I’m frugal and can’t imagine ever saying this myself, but the
thought
 of it is still nice.

6.
Meet the Woman Disrupting 88 Years of the Tampon Industry
 – MyDomaine

Sharing this because I bet you, too, know very little about the female hygiene industry. Like, did you know the tampon was invented by a man?

I enjoyed reading this article for the brilliant insight into product creation. Question: What would happen if a woman design menstrual products? The answer: something a lot more comfortable! Read more about menstrual discs in the article, an alternative to tampons and menstrual cups. Apparently you can even have sex while wearing it, which is like, woah.

7.
A Former Googler Shares His Decision-Making Process to Move Back to India
 – Quartz India

When you are deciding between two or more options, how do you pick the best choice? That’s a hard question for anyone to answer.

This article doesn’t have the answer, but it does show one type of decision-making process I rarely, if ever, came across. He used, I kid you not, charts, growth parameters, weighted average and opportunity evaluation matrix framework (??!) to decide if and when he should move back to India.

I may not understand exactly what he’s talking about, but I love knowing there are people who think like this. Humans are SO interesting.

8.
Generation Z is already moving away from Facebook, and 6 more industries could be next
 – Business Insider

Retail trends reflect the personality of a generation. Check out what kind of personality the world might morph into in the next decade.

9.
AirPods are what the Apple Watch should’ve been
 – Quartz

I don’t use Apple products anymore (used to have an iPod, but sold it off), and I don’t think I will go back, but Apple products fascinate the hell out of me. It’s the application of ‘it just works’ mindset and how it influences the whole design process.

I remember when AirPods first came out. So many people made fun of it, said they look stupid. Yet it became a bestseller, people love it. That kind of negative-to-positive shift in consumer mindset is rarer than you think. Can you think of another example?

10.
My Love Affair With Comfort and Why I Had to End It
 – Entrepreneur

Many of us want a drama-free career, one that naturally progresses as you level up in skills and experience. That’s completely fine.

However, if there is one thing we Malaysians should learn from the GE14 elections, is the fact that circumstances can change quite rapidly. People who are ‘too big to fail’ have lost their jobs.

Even if you feel super comfortable with where you are now, it’s worth thinking about your next move, in case you ever lose your job and/or stable income. It’s like insurance; best case scenario is you’ll never use it. What would you do if you know your days at your company is numbered? Automation
is
 coming, you know.

That’s it for this week, catch you next time! Want to submit a link you thought was great? Reach out to me on
FB
 or
Twitter
.

To read past link roundups, please click
here
.


Link Roundup #30: 10 Things to Know This Week

Accelerate your personal finance knowledge with this regular feature on Ringgit Oh Ringgit – the Link Roundup! I promise you’ll find these 10 links informational 🙂

1.
20 Professional Skills You Can Learn for $30 or Less

– Entrepreneur

What
can’t
 you learn online? Seriously, what an amazing world we live in.

You already know that, of course. But the sheer number of options available can also be crippling sometimes. I certainly get my fair share of analysis paralysis whenever I want to decide what to learn next.

If you’re feeling professionally stagnant, check out this article for 20 new skill ideas. It ranges from digital marketing, communications, technical, investing and more.

2.
How a Trivial Cell Phone Hack is Ruining Lives
 – Engadget

This article is a MUST READ. What a scary scam. It’s not just losing money. It’s also losing access to your online identities, and being made helpless trying to regain it all back (if you regain it back).

According to the article, SIM-swap attacks is:

…where someone uses pieces of personal information to convince your cell service provider to transfer (port) your number and associated phone account to a device in the attacker’s possession.

With control of your phone number and account, they proceed to break into all connected accounts, usually beginning with email. The attacker changes info in your accounts so you can’t get them back, sets up email forwarding in case you regain control of your email, and goes through all your cloud-stored documents looking for things of value.

Read all the way until the end for tips to
avoid
 reduce the chance of this scam happening to you. Hint: Use offline password managers, and
don’t
 sign in with Facebook/Google etc for new website and app logins.

3.
7 career tips for when you aren’t sure what position is for you
 –
 The Ladder

Some people are lucky enough to know their ‘passion’. They’re automatically drawn to those careers then stick in that line their whole lives.

Others are not. Some people have no idea what they want to do, work-wise. Some of you may even want a career change, after discovering the industry you worked in all this while is unfortunately and sadly, no longer what you want.

Relatable? Then click on the article – I thought the tips were solid. All the best.

4.
Asian firms with female leaders deliver better financial results

– Free Malaysia Today

$$$ tip – buy stocks from companies that have a higher ratio of female leaders.

5.
Firefox Will Give You a Fake Browsing History to Fool Advertisers

– VICE

This is amazing, I can’t help but laugh oh my God. They’re right. Why fight a losing battle against privacy when you can fool them instead?

6.
This is the most impressive resume I’ve ever seen—based on my 20 years of hiring and interviewing

– CNBC Make It

GREAT article. Twitter thought so too. When I shared, it got 1.8k RTs and 5.5k likes, as of time of writing.

This is the most impressive resume I’ve ever seen—based on my 20 years of hiring and interviewing
https://t.co/F58b6fq3Xr

pic.twitter.com/C7Wf1U9hUe

— Suraya Zainudin (@surayaror)
June 27, 2019

Point #6 was divisive. Some took the opportunity to complain. All I can say is, complaining isn’t going to do much. If you *are* at a disadvantage, what are *you* going to do about it?

7.
 Sorry, Being Born Rich Still Leads to Success More Than Working Hard in School
–  VICE

Reality is reality. Being born rich does make life a whole lot easier.

But worth repeating:

Complaining isn’t going to do much. What are you going to do about it?

8.
What counts as a “green” investment, anyway?

– Quartz

I’m leaving a lot of details out, but environmentally-sustainable investments are:

Activities that are already low carbon and therefore compatible with plans for a net-zero carbon economy by 2050, zero-emissions transport;

Activities that are clearly contributing to a net-zero carbon economy, such as low-emissions cars; and

Activities that enable the previous two, such as the manufacturing of wind turbines

I hope one day Malaysians will be able to choose investments based on its social or environmental impact. Those options are already available in developed countries.  I wonder when’s our turn.

9.
Meet the New York couple donating millions to the anti-vax movemen
t

– The Washington Post

How the Selzes came to support anti-vaccine ideas is unknown, but their financial impact has been enormous. Their money has gone to a handful of determined individuals who have played an outsize role in spreading doubt and
misinformation about vaccines
and the diseases they prevent.

The groups’ false claims linking vaccines to autism and other ailments, while downplaying the
risks of measles
, have led growing numbers of parents to shun the shots. As a result, health officials have said, the potentially deadly disease has surged to at least 1,044 cases this year, the highest number
in nearly three decades
.

Imagine having all that money and making the world worse. Sigh.

10.
How to Make Yourself Work When You Just Don’t Feel Like It

– Inc

Because all of us have those days. We’re not robots. Still, there are ways to overcome or work around it.

Honestly, I deeply admire people who can still show up and work even when they don’t feel like it. On the flip side, people who rely on ‘motivation’ and only work when they feel like it are… unreliable.

I said what I said.

That’s it for this round, catch you next time! Want to submit a link you thought was great? Reach out to me on
FB
 or
Twitter
.

To read past link roundups, please click
here
.


Link Roundup #31: 10 Things to Know This Week

Accelerate your personal finance knowledge with this regular feature on Ringgit Oh Ringgit – the Link Roundup! I promise you’ll find these 10 links informational 🙂

1.
How to Sell Absolutely Anything to Absolutely Anybody, According to Scientists and Sales Gurus

– Inc

The ‘the single most essential insight culled from over 15 years of interviews with over 100 experts with thousands of years of cumulative experience’ boils down to:

Create trust

Link what you’re selling to the customer’s desires

Ask for a decision

How you put these three steps into action varies according to industry and medium and so many other factors, but there you go.

2.
This woman retired as a millionaire at age 31. She says anyone can do it
 – The Lily

Kristy is part of the FI/RE – financial independence, retire early – movement. Note: anyone = anyone who earns a high income AND lives a very frugal lifestyle

I’m sharing this article because it explains the ‘4% rule’:

It comes down to the 4 percent rule: You can safely withdraw 4 percent out of your accumulated money each year, if it’s invested through index funds, and have that money last for the rest of your life.

To figure out your “FI number,” or how much money you need to accumulate before you can achieve financial independence, use the 4 percent rule of thumb: You take your yearly expenses then multiply by 25. My yearly expense is $40,000. That means my FI number is 40,000 x 25 = $1 million.

I’ve tried to
calculate my FI/RE number before and found it hard
. The 4% rule’s calculation is a heck of a lot more easier.

I also liked the part where she explains POT scores – Pay Over Tuition. It pretty much boils down to ‘pick jobs that pays well in relation to its learning cost’. Based on this, a doctor has a low POT score, while a plumber has a high POT score. Interesting way to look at it.

3.
Single
&
 Child-Free: Who’s Going To Take Care Of Me When I’m Old?
 –
 Refinery29

“First of fucking all, partnering and choosing to raise children (or not) are not decisions to be made with a focus of any kind on the availability of late-in-life services.”

OMG YES

The swearing aside, this article penned down a lot of my own emotions when it comes to children. Should I have them just so I have ‘family’ taking care of me in old age? That doesn’t seem right. Yet that’s pretty much expected in our culture, no?

So what do we do? “Maybe the real difference in being single is that I’m just going to have to put things in place for myself in advance, and I’m cool with that.”

Any of you are child-free, either by choice or otherwise? What are your plans? How early is too early to pick which nursing home I want?

4.
How I am side hustling my way to financial independence
– The Ladders

I thought her side hustle idea and execution is genius. She made $40,000 for selling temporary tattooes for bachelorette parties on the internet.

In the article, she outlined what she did to boost sales. Ecommerce sellers targeting the female audience should give this one a read.

5.
‘I Have Zero Motivation to Do My Job’
 – The Cut

Can relate to the sentiment above? Read this advice column for tips.

6.
Top freelance sites for finding paid work online

– Android Authorities

You might have heard of Upwork, PeoplePerHour, Fiverr and Freelancer.com

But the rest is new to me. Who knew there are specific freelance sites for programming and 3D modelling work??!

7.
I’ve Picked My Job Over My Kids
–  The New York Times

What a thought-provoking opinion piece. The author argues that by prioritising her (fulfilling and well-paying) work, she sets a good example for her children. Rather than being resentful of ‘sacrificing it all’ for them.

And the decision was made not without guilt. She does her best to balance it all but still misses some key events.

Working mothers. I salute you. You make hard decisions every day. Society judges you a lot. And your only crime is that you don’t have unlimited time.

8.
4 Tested and Failed Side Hustles

– The Money Geek

This is a good article! Failure is common yet it’s very rare to read about them.

The author tried and failed 4 types of side hustles:

Transcribing audio files at Rev.com

Selling on Amazon

Direct Sales

Selling baked goods

Find out why each of those side hustles didn’t work for her.

9.
How Scammers Trick People Into Thinking They’re Wealthy

– The Cut

Protect yourself against con artists!

10.
The purpose of life is to be a nobody

– Design Luck

Can I be honest for a sec?

Sometimes, when I think of my ability to inform and influence others through the RoR platform, my ego swells.

And I don’t like it. I feel this inflated sense of self-worth. I think I’m important. I get arrogant. I become a bitch.

I don’t want to be a bitch.

You have to know that what I’m feeling now is absolutely human. Everyone who has ever been complimented feels this. I’m reminded of that story of a great Islamic scholar who was found scrubbing toilets despite being well-respected figure.

Someone asked him why. He replied, “I was sitting in the masjid and I started to think I’m this great Qur’anic scholar. So I wanted to kill this arrogance.”

What are some other ‘toilet cleaning’ equivalents to practice humility?

What are some ways to be a nobody?

That’s it for this round, catch you next time! Want to submit a link you thought was great? Reach out to me on
FB
 or
Twitter
.

To read past link roundups, please click
here
.


Link Roundup #32: 10 Things to Know This Week

Accelerate your personal finance knowledge with this regular feature on Ringgit Oh Ringgit – the Link Roundup! I promise you’ll find these 10 links informational 🙂

1.
Entrepreneurs don’t have a special gene for risk—they come from families with money
– Quartz

You know what’s the best predictor of success?
Being born by wealthy parents
.

Usually, when I post things like this, some joker will be like, ‘yeah but not all. Look at [rich and successful person from modest backgrounds]’

Yes, true, but those are
exceptions
 to the rule.

2.
Asset Allocation for Malaysians: What is The Best Portfolio Mix for You?

– I’m Funemployed

Love this article! My favourite part of Nicole’s article is her sharing (1) her own asset allocation breakdown and (2) what stocks are in her portfolio.

Always nice to see how other people diversify their investment 🙂 Great content.

3.
‘I don’t want to lose everything’: Why more women are keeping their money separate from their partners
 –
 iNews UK

The first paragraph hooked me right in:

An increasing number of women are choosing to remain financially independent of their partner.
In a study of 4,000 women conducted by Netwealth
, around 45 per cent said it was to maintain their own autonomy, and 23 per cent said that they viewed ownership over their own money as freedom.

Yes! That’s exactly how I feel. I don’t ever want to financially depend on my partner if I can help it! One, because I’ve heard enough horror stories. Two, because I never want my partner to think they are mere cash cows.

The three women have varied backgrounds. One is a single mum who is used to be self-reliant. Another saw her mother financially abused and later fell to the same situation herself. The last one enjoys being in a relationship where they could each buy what they want without checking with the other. Great read.

4.
Your commute is making you miserable. Here’s how to make it more enjoyable
 – Fast Company

You’ve probably heard how commutes are generally bad for your mental health. The article lists some helpful suggestions so you can make the best out of the situation.

I find the last suggestion hilarious. ‘If you can’t improve it, abandon it. Find a job where you can work from home.’

5.
Our lives have been co-opted by the Convenience Industrial Complex

– Treehugger

This is a painful article to read. Fact is I love convenience in my life.

My first reaction is defensiveness. I tell myself that I don’t use as much disposable items as other people. I tell myself that my lifestyle is greener than others.

Then there it comes, the realisation that yes while I may not be the worst, I am not the best either.

6.
On Male Vs. Female Financial Literacy & Feeling “Stupid” When It Comes To Money

– The Financial Diet

Generally speaking, women underestimate their abilities, including in the area of money. Personally, I’ve heard many women tell me how they’re bad with money. Not once have I heard the same sentence from a guy.

Sis, don’t say that anymore. The more you say it, the more you’ll believe it. Literally no one knows everything there is to know about personal finance. We’re all learning as we go along.

7.
9 skills you should learn that pay dividends forever
–  The Ladders

I enjoy this article because the skills were not what I expected:

Emotional intelligence (EQ)

Time management

Listening

Saying no

Asking for help

Getting high-quality sleep

Know when to shut up

Taking initiative

Staying positive

Although you can argue that except for getting high-quality sleep, everything else is EQ…

8.
90% of high performers at work are emotionally intelligent. Here are 14 signs you are too

– Business Insider

Speaking of emotional intelligence! There’s a high correlation with high performers with high EQ. I gotta admit, I originally clicked the article to see which of the 14 signs of high-EQ people that I can relate with. I wanted to see if I am considered a ‘high performer at work’.

The 14 signs are:

You have a robust emotional vocabulary

You’re curious about people

You know your strengths and weaknesses

You’re a good judge of character

You are difficult to offend

You let go of mistakes

You don’t hold grudges

You neutralize toxic people

You don’t seek perfection

You disconnect

You limit your caffeine intake

You get enough sleep

You stop negative self-talk in its tracks

You won’t let anyone limit your joy

…I have areas to improve, definitely…

9.

I Changed the Way I Think About Dining Out — And It’s Helping More than Just My Budget
– Kitchn

The author argues that dining out would be a less frequent if its only done for celebration purposes. It makes it more special, too, since it’s a rarer occasion.

But – and I find this weird – she also mentions how her family now looks for things to celebrate (like finally reorganising a room???) so they can justify eating out? That I don’t really get. It’s nice to have to family moment, yes, but also… where do you draw the line when it comes to celebrations? I can understand promotions or birthdays but after cleaning out the garage??

10.
These Are The Diversity Initiatives Your Employees Actually Want
– Forbes

Moral argument: equal opportunities for all. Capitalist argument: Diversity is good for business. Pick one or both, then implement these initiatives:

Female employees
 want visible role models (in upper management levels) and flexible-work programmes.

Employees of colour
 want employers to recruit a diverse workforce (via blind resume test, for example) and desires bias-free day-to-day experience.

LGBTIQ employees
 want their organizations to participate in LGBTIQ-friendly external events, wants appropriate healthcare and desires bias-free day-to-day experience.

—

That’s it for this round, catch you next time! Want to submit a link you thought was great? Reach out to me on
FB
 or
Twitter
.

To read past link roundups, please click
here
.


Link Roundup #33: 10 Things to Know This Week

Accelerate your personal finance knowledge with this regular feature on Ringgit Oh Ringgit – the Link Roundup! I promise you’ll find these 10 links informational 🙂

1.
This Is What People Think of You When You Wear Headphones at Work (According to an 800 Person Study)
 – Inc

Do you wear headphones at work? I did. I never really thought of how others would think of me (I just wanna get work done okay), but apparently here’s the breakdown of this study’s responses:

Want to be left alone — 27 percent

Focused — 22 percent

Busy — 17 percent

Love music/music quality — 16 percent

Rude/Pretentious — 9 percent

This sentence made me laugh: “Interestingly, the perception of being pretentious tripled when co-workers were wearing in-ear headphones (like AirPods)”.

If you still get interrupted for wearing headphones, or can’t for whatever reason, then click on the article to find other ways to minimise disctractions at work.

2. ‘Ringgit Oh Ringgit’ on Savings, Tracking Expenses and Money Stories from Malaysians
– BFM Radio

Guess who finally appeared on BFM Radio???

View this post on Instagram

Thanks @roshankanesan for having me! Catch us at @bfmradio Ringgit and Sense show this Thursday, 15 Aug! 📻 #bfm899 #bfm #personalfinancemalaysia #ringgitandsense

A post shared by
 Suraya Zainudin
 (@surayaror) on
Aug 12, 2019 at 10:41pm PDT

You can  listen to the podcast on the
BFM page
, or at Spotify at
this link
.

3.
Grow Your Audience Guide
 –
 ClickWP

I co-wrote a digital marketing guide with ClickWP 🙂 We covered topics such as:

If you struggle with getting more audience for your business or website, give it a read okay? All the best!

4.
How to Trick Yourself into Shopping Less
 – The Cut

TL;DR – companies made the shopping process too easy, so you have to make it harder for yourself.

How can you do that? Some tips from the article:

Disconnect all payment methods from your phone (if you buy online too often)

Use cash instead of credit card or other cashless methods (more ‘pain’ when handing it over)

Find your shopping triggers then do something about it

Thanks
@adella
 for sharing this article with us 🙂

5.
How To Fix Procrastination With Psychological Tricks, According To Experts
– Bustle

Amazing article which addresses the root causes of procastination and what you can do about it.

If you think you’re a chronic procastinator and procastinate on reading this article, I can’t help you no more buddy.

6.
11 signs you’re not ready to buy a house, even if you think you are

– Business Insider

House purchase is no joke. We throw around phrases like ’30-year mortgage’ like it’s nothing, but oh my God that’s an absurdly long time to commit to something. Read the article so you are ABSOLUTELY SURE.

This is also a good slot to share this twitter thread:

1. First of all, aku dah ada 2 rumah sebelum umur 30. Rumah pertama semi D 2 tingkat di Kedah dibeli hasil perniagaan pada tahun 2014.

Tapi dah jual baru ni sebab aku tersiksa dengan rumah ni. Nanti aku story.

— Iffatsalleh (@iffatsalleh)
August 20, 2019

3. Beli rumah masa muda, nampak gah. Is it?

Actually ianya tak gah. Anda rasa nak beli rumah sendiri bukan atas sebab keperluan tapi terikut dengan orang lain.

It is not your priority if you are under 30 & not married yet!

— Iffatsalleh (@iffatsalleh)
August 20, 2019

5. Jadi kalau gaji anda layak bayar rumah bulanan Rm1500. At least kena tambah Rm1000 untuk bil lain.

Kalau gaji cukup2 bayar Rm1500, hold dulu. Bukan masanya lagi untuk beli rumah

Rileks, naikkan gaji dulu

— Iffatsalleh (@iffatsalleh)
August 20, 2019

(go read the rest on Twitter I’m lazy to embed all the tweets)

7.
Better Work-Life Balance Starts with Managers
–  Harvard Business Review

You know that quote? ‘Employees don’t leave companies. They leave managers’.

Yeah.

8.
Are you adding your soft skills to your resume? Here’s how

– The Ladders

If your current resume isn’t getting you any interviews, perhaps adding soft skills might help?

Read the article to find out exactly how you can do that. The article included top soft skills that employers look for, how to identify your top soft skills, and how to insert it into your resume, cover letter and LinkedIn profile.

9.
I Made $50,000 from Android Apps and You Can Too

– Android Authority

A self-introspective post and a brilliant case study written by a programmer who analysed how the app he created to fix his own problem end up selling well in the Play Store. Love the humility within the post.

10. Free Lectures on Islamic Banking
– Safdar Alam

Safdar Alam is an Islamic banker, Author, and the former Global Head of Islamic Structuring at JPMorgan. An expert, basically.

Aside from writing articles at
SafdarAlam.co.uk
, he recently started to produce free lectures on Islamic Banking. I think it’s a great resource if you’re interested in the topic. I’ve embedded the first lecture below:

As of time of writing, Safdar have uploaded up until Introduction to Islamic Banking: Lecture 5. Watch the rest at his
Youtube page
.

—

That’s it for this round, catch you next time! Want to submit a link you thought was great? Reach out to me on
FB
 or
Twitter
.

To read past link roundups, please click
here
.


Link Roundup #34: 10 Things to Know This Week

Accelerate your personal finance knowledge with this regular feature on Ringgit Oh Ringgit – the Link Roundup! I promise you’ll find these 10 links informational 🙂

1.
Experience Doesn’t Predict a New Hire’s Success

– Harvard Business Review

Say whatttttt. But doesn’t the whole job hiring process center around experience??

So if not experience, what does predict new hire’s success in their new role? The professor recommends ‘focusing on the knowledge, skills, and traits directly rather than using experience or even education as a proxy.’

However, there are certain scenarios where experience matters, like task-based performance (like driving or operating machines).

Read the article to know more about this fascinating study.

2. The chart that predicts recessions
– Vox

When it comes to economic predictions, I care less about what ‘experts’ say and more to what the charts say.

It turns out there is a chart pattern which predicts recessions – it’s called the inverted yield pattern. And it appeared in August 2019.

This will be my (our?) first recession as an adult. I hope we Malaysians will get out of it okay.

3.
Investor Education: Encouraging minority shareholder activism

–
 Tan Zhai Yun of The Edge Malaysia

I learned a new term  – shareholder activism.

“Shareholder activism has been on the rise in Malaysia, especially in relation to issues such as directors’ pay and corporate governance.”

“In July last year, the EPF strongly opposed the re-election of Sapura Energy Bhd’s directors, including its group CEO, due to the latter’s “excessive” annual take-home pay. During the AGM, shareholders also raised concerns about this matter.”

RoR readers who are also shareholders – what concerns have you always wanted to raise?

4.
From sex to money: the eight deep discussions that can save a dying relationship
 – The Guardian

This part surprised me:

According to a
study
 at the University of California, Los Angeles, couples with small children, and who both have careers, talk for just 35 minutes a week, and mainly about errands.

Healthy relationships is a core component to a happy life and something I’m happy to invest time, energy and money in. And I’d like to have a healthier, more nourishing relationship than 35-minutes-a-week conversation.

The article promotes a book called
Eight Dates: Essential Conversations for a Lifetime of Love
by John and Julie Gottman, and I like that one of the essential conversations to have with your partner is about money. The idea is both of you dedicate time to go on dates and ask questions about your relationship and inluence of money behaviour, so you understand each other more.

5.
How to Love Your Job Even When You Hate Your Job

– The Ladders

LOVE this article. Finding things you like from a situation you hate, making the best of what you have – that’s a worthwhile lifeskill to develop.

If you don’t particularly like your job, then definitely read this. Actually, read it even if you like your job. Amazing perspective.

6.
I interviewed over 200 millionaires, and about half of them followed the same straightforward path to wealth

– Business Insider

100 millionaires interviewed said that the got wealthy from
living below their means, saving consistently, investing those savings, and giving them time to grow.

The author called it the Saver-Investor path, and it’s fairly simple. These millionaires are ‘ordinary people who did not have any special advantages in life’. They didn’t grow up rich, or earn high salaries, or inherit money, or have any special knowledge. They just made sure that their home, cars, clothes and possessions were modest.

Doable, right? You can be wealthy via this method too.

7.
Why you should never, ever hire a friend or family member
–  The Ladders

The author’s stance is too binary; I’m more of a ‘never say never’ person. That said, I do kinda agree.

How about you? What’s your stance in this topic? Would you hire a friend or amily member in your company?

8.
6 futuristic jobs that will soon exist in the financial industry
 –
 The Next Web

How will jobs in the future look like? No one can say for sure, but I love this article for its predictions, based on current trends.

The jobs are:

Fintech headhunter/liaison

Self-driving finance engineer

Sustainable wealth manager

 Cryptoforecaster

 Trust officer

Cross-company cybersecurity liaison

Interesting titles, no? Click the article to read what their roles might entail.

9.
How Women Can Escape the Likability Trap
– New York Times

You want to know something? I like using my femininity to my advantage. I don’t want or need to be ‘like a man’ to succeed. I can just be, well, me.

Learning about behaviorial research in gender dynamics was a gamechanger. I had no idea women have distinct disadvantages (and advantages!) in the working life. Many of the career advice out there were given by men and can only work for men, in the same way that medical research used the adult male body as de-facto standard human specimen. Some of the tips they gave did not work for me.

Women with a career mindsets reading this, I highly recommend reading this NYT article. It’ll give you some tips that will help you get ahead in the workplace. Go crush it.

10.
The most effective way to implement a behavior change

– Fast Company

The article is a bit of a clickbait, since it eventually promotes a tool called RescueTime, which alerts you when you spend too much time dicking around.

Nonetheless, I’m sharing it anyway because the tool does look interesting to try out. In a study they conducted, using RescueTime to limit then block distracting websites worked well – ‘this group received higher grades, experienced a 24% increase in time spent working, and was 40% more likely to finish the (online) course (which usually have a high drop-off rate).’

Have you tried to block distracting websites so you’ll be more productive? I haven’t, but I’m curious enough to try and see if it works.

—

That’s it for this round, catch you next time! Want to submit a link you thought was great? Reach out to me on
FB
 or
Twitter
.

To read past link roundups, please click
here
.


Link Roundup #35: 10 Things to Know This Week

Accelerate your personal finance knowledge with this regular feature on Ringgit Oh Ringgit – the Link Roundup! I promise you’ll find these 10 links informational 🙂

1.
If You Suck as an Employee, You Will Probably Suck as an Entrepreneur

– Entrepreneur

“Of course there are exceptions and extenuating circumstances that make someone a better entrepreneur than an employee, but generally, you need to build the work ethic to thrive in any environment first.”

How’s this for real talk?

2.
Researchers say there’s a simple way to reduce suicides: Increase the minimum wage
– The Washington Post

“Researchers have found that when the minimum wage in a state increased, or when states boosted a tax credit for working families, the suicide rate decreased.”

That’s the first direct link between suicide and income level that I’ve come across. It’s something to keep in mind, knowing that
suicide cases in Malaysia have been on the rise
.

Employers and upper management staff members reading this, please take care of your employees, including your contract employees. I heard that re-hiring contract staff at a lower pay to increase company’s profit margins is a thing, and that’s really sad.

3.
Research: When Women Are on Boards, Male CEOs Are Less Overconfident

–
 Harvard Business Review

“Having women on the board results better
acquisition and investment
 decisions and in
less aggressive risk-taking
, yielding benefits for shareholders.”

I have not invested in the stock markets yet, but I know I will pay attention to board member announcements.

4.
Self-made millionaire: The simple strategy that helped increase my odds of success by 42%
 – CNBC

The simple strategy is goal-writing and the self-made millionaire is my latest role model obsession, Marie Forleo.

Goal-writing is not a secret or anything, but I love how Marie broke down her goal-writing process into actionable steps, which you can read in the article.

Marie released a book recently called ‘Everything Is Figureoutable’ and I can’t wait to get my hands on a copy.

View this post on Instagram

A post shared by Marie Forleo • Entrepreneur (@marieforleo)
 on
Aug 21, 2019 at 3:17am PDT

5.
This Tiny Change to Your Morning Routine Will Supercharge Your Productivity All Day, New Study Says

– Inc

The tiny change mentioned is something called ‘work reattachment process’, and it’s pretty cool. Basically, you ask yourself three questions every day, before you start your work:

Why does the work I do matter to me? How does my work impact the lives of others?

Who are the people–both at work and in my personal life–who support me and my professional success?

What would I like to focus on today?

Engaged employees are “more satisfied with work, more committed to work, enjoy work tasks more, perform better and help out more with extra tasks,” study
co-author Charlotte Fritz comments
.

6.
 Awkward silences are the trick to getting more money in a salary negotiation. Here’s how to use them without coming off as nervous or unprepared.

– Ladders

Recently, I wrote an article about
ways to earn a high salary in Malaysia
. One of the ways is negotiation. Maybe you’ll want to embrace awkward silences during the process – try it, it may work in your favour.

7.

6 Simple Ways to Use a Bullet Journal to Manage Your Money
–  The Penny Hoarder

Journaling enthusiasts, definitely check out this article. They included many pictures (and a video) of pretty and practical personal finance-related layouts.

I’m a big fan of using notebooks as a tool myself. Check out my
17 Things to Include in Your Money Journal
 article.

8.
How to Work for a Boss Who Has Unrealistic Expectations

–
 Harvard Business Review

Are you doing work that’s meant for two (or more) people? If yes, your boss has unrealistic expectations. Often, they’re not doing it out of malice – they’re simply unaware of the work burden or too optimistic.

(But if they do it because they’re too stingy to hire another staff, then jump that ship. It’s not going to get better)

So what’s a person to do? Find out in the article.

9.
Winners of the 10th Annual Plutus Awards
 – The Plutus Foundation

Ok this is really cool. As some of you may know, I started RoR out of sheer frustration that there was lack of personal finance content that I could read as a Malaysian. Everything seemed to be geared towards the US/Canadian/Western audience.

The situation is much better now, and we have so much more
Malaysia-based personal finance content creators
. HOWEVER, it’s a whole other ball game for them. The have AWARDS for personal finance content creators. In multiple categories, too!

Check out all the winners from the 10th Annual Plutus Awards, as awarded by the Plutus Foundation, which was set up to ‘celebrate excellence in financial media’.

Best Investing Blog
Winner:
Wallet Hacks

Best Investing Podcast
Winner:
Afford Anything

Best New Personal Finance Book
Winner:
Work Optional: Retire Early the Non-Penny-Pinching Way
 by Tanja Hester

Biggest Impact
Winner: Sandy Smith

Best Personal Finance Blog for Women
Winner:
Her First $100K

Best Personal Finance Podcast for Women
Winner:
The Fairer Cents

Best Canadian Personal Finance Blog
Winner:
Mixed Up Money

Community Builder Award
Winner: Tanja Hester

Best Debt Freedom Blog
Winner:
The $76K Project

Best Entrepreneurship/Side Hustle Blog
Winner:
Do You Even Blog

Best Entrepreneurship/Side Hustle Podcast
Winner:
Side Hustle School

Best Family Finance Blog
Winner:
Marriage, Kids and Money

Best Financial Planner Blog
Winner:
Roger Whitney

Best Financial Independence/Early Retirement Blog
Winner:
Tread Lightly, Retire Early

Best Financial Independence/Early Retirement Podcast
Winner:
ChooseFI

Best Personal Finance Freelancer or Contributor
Winner: Sarah Li-Cain

Best Generation X/Baby Boomer Blog
Winner:
Women Who Money

Best Millennial or Generation Z Blog
Winner:
Paychecks & Balances

Best International Personal Finance Blog
Winner:
Ms ZiYou

Finalits: Cash Flow Cop | Go Curry Cracker | JordonCox.com | The Poor Swiss

Best New Personal Finance Blog
Winner:
The Fioneers

Best New Personal Finance Podcast
Winner:
What’s Up Next?

Best Real Estate Blog
Winner:
Coach Carson

Best Retirement Blog
Winner:
Can I Retire Yet?

Best Series: Blog, Podcast, or Video
Winner:
Breadwinning, Six Figure, Millionaire Women (Chief Mom Officer)

Best Personal Finance Article
Winner:
How To Negotiate With A Spendy Partner Or Family Member
 by a Purple Life

Best Use of Social Media
Winner:
Dumpster Doggy

Best Student Loan/Student Debt Blog
Winner:
The College Investor

Best Video Blogger or YouTube Channel
Winner:
The Financial Diet

Lifetime Achievement
Winner: Sandy Smith

Blog of the Year
Winner:
Rich and Regular

Podcast of the Year
Winner:
ChooseFI

People’s Choice
Winner:
Yes, I Am Cheap

There were also awards given out for best financial products, ‘selected by a representative panel of the independent financial media’, in the following categories:

(I took out the majority of them out because they are mostly products for Americans)

Best Checking/Transaction Account

Best Savings/Money Market Account

Best CD Offering

Best Overall Bank

Best Alternative Banking/Payment Offering

Best Robo-Advisor

Best Online Broker

Best Overall Investing Company

Best Tax Prep Software

Best Debt Management Software/App

Best Financial Planning Tool

Best Overall Budgeting Software/App

Best Small Business Credit Card

Best Travel Rewards Credit Card

Best Cash Back Credit Card

Best Secured Credit Card

Best Overall Credit Card

Best Software/App for Content Creators
WordPress

Best Advertising or Affiliate Network
MediaVine

Wouldn’t it be cool if we have the same awards for Malaysia or for Asia? Oooh the wheels in my brain are turning…

10.
I’m a financial adviser to 6-figure earners, and my clients have proven 5 habits keep them wealthy
– Business Insider

The article is more like a PR and exposure for the author, who is a financial advisor (presumedly looking for more clients) and a blogger as well, but it’s still worth a read. The 5 habits are:

They refuse to settle for jobs with limited income potential

They have a morning routine

They create short-term and long-term goals

They are always learning

They don’t let failure knock their goals off track

Everything is common sense, except for the first one. I think some of you might go ‘duh’, but being in ‘earning money’ mode (as opposed to my natural state, ‘saving money’ mode) is still not intuitive for me. This article is a good reminder – I need to always improve my present earning and look for more ways to make money.

—

That’s it for this round, catch you next time! Want to submit a link you thought was great? Reach out to me on
FB
 or
Twitter
.

To read past link roundups, please click
here
.


Link Roundup #36: 10 Things to Know This Week

Accelerate your personal finance knowledge with this regular feature on Ringgit Oh Ringgit – the Link Roundup! I promise you’ll find these 10 links informational 🙂

1.
How to Start a Business With No Money
– The Street

Note: you can start a business with no money but there’s no such thing as starting a business with no effort.

Here are 8 methods listed:

Start a service or consultation business

Crowdfunding

Incubators

Angel investors

Line of credit

Small Business Administration (I’m not sure we have an equivalent for Malaysia – let me know if we do)

Small business grants

Friends and family

This is just me, but I consider people who like to fund their business ventures with mostly OPM (other people’s money) as somewhat entitled. I stay far away from them.

2.
4 Simple Techniques to Remember Everything You Learn
– Enterpreneur

Learning is one of the greatest joy in life. The fact that we can learn almost anything we want through the internet is nothing short of amazing.

Remembering what you learn is another matter, though.

This article does a good job in explaining tecniques you could do to remember what you’ve learned. I’m happy to note that I’m already doing some of them in practice. For example, I love doing reflections. In a way, doing these link roundup series is also a way I use to remember things.

I’m very grateful that sharing what I love to do (learning about personal finance) helps others. It’s very fulfilling.

3.
Malaysians Set for 26% Pay Hike If Women Get Fair Access to Work

–
 Bloomberg

And that’s according to a report by the World Bank.

The same report also said:

Malaysia should expand child care coverage until up to 17 years of age, from as old as 6 currently,

Improve access to affordable child and elderly care especially for the urban poor, and

More than half of women cite housework as their reason for not joining the labor force

4.
Financial Independence Will Not Set You Free
 – The Ladders

“Once you no longer have to worry about paying the bills, the more money you earn will not make you feel any different. Sure, you won’t have money problems anymore, but you will still have human problems.”

That’s a really good quote and reminder for myself. Money can’t fix everything.

5.
What if nearly everything we thought we knew about poverty was wrong?

– World Economic Forum

This article made me think. The author, Martin Burt, who wrote a memoir about his work to eradicate multidimensional poverty through the
 Poverty Stoplight
 initiative
 –
is completely right to point out that solutions to poverty have been been designed by people who are
not
 in poverty.

Instead, he challenged the reader to think about:

What would happen if we gave poverty back to poor people?

What would happen if we could find a way for poor people to ask their own questions and create their own poverty indicators?

What if we could collect poverty information in a way that put relevant data into the hands of families, so they could be the ones planning and implementing their own family poverty-elimination program?

And what if we allowed poor people to define what success looks like?

Food for thought. Too many people want to ‘save’ the poor, and while the effort is commendable, it is also true that sometimes we can be ignorant and make things worse by using the wrong approach.

6.
19 Clever Money Hacks That Will Make You Say, “Why Didn’t I Do This Earlier?”

– Buzzfeed

I really like #14 – If you’re prone to impulse purchases, only carry cash when you’re out and about.
Cashless payment methods promotes overspending
.

In practice, I probably won’t stop carrying my phone (for the ewallets) and my credit cards (in my purse), but I think I’ll do my best to only pay for impulse purchases with cash to induce ‘the pain of paying’. That negative feeling will hopefully reduce my impulse spending tendencies.

7.
The Sneaky Marketing Tactic That Always Makes You Spend More Than You Want, & How To Avoid It

–  The Financial Diet

!! Amazing article, a must-read! It is in your advantage to know and recognice the practice of
cross-selling.

Cross-selling isn’t just the ‘Users who purchased this item also bought X, Y and Z’ section. It is also:

Clothing that requires special accessories, storage, or cleaning

Beauty products – like the ones that require special brushes

Home organisation tools – before you buy containers, do some decluttering first. You may not need them after all

Technology upgrades – Apple is famous for this. There are so many upsells in the iOS ecosystem

The author ended the article with the call-to-action ‘stop buying stuff that requires you to buy more stuff’. LOVE IT.

8.
2 Easy Ways to Help Build Your Employees’ Confidence at Work
–
 Inc

Is your manager doing a good job in encouraging and instilling your confidence? Especially for female staff members?

“Without confidence, high growth isn’t possible. And confidence is experienced differently between men and women at work. A Hewlett-Packard internal study found men applied for promotions when they met
60 percent
 of the requirements;
women only did when they met 100 percent of the posted qualifications
.”

9.
Why I Don’t Budget
 – Wanderlust Wendy

As I shared in my
How Expense Tracking Looks Like (As Someone Who Doesn’t Budget)
 article, I don’t particularly like budgeting in the truest sense of the word too. Glad to know I’m not alone in this mindset.

Its not that I’m against budgeting. If it works, it works, but I don’t like the constraint. I like how Wendy likened budgeting to dieting, and expense tracking to mindful eating.

Haha isn’t it funny how you can use diet analogies to personal finance? There are also concepts like spending fast and things like that.

10. Til Debt Do Us Part episodes on YouTube

Til Debt Do Us Part is a US TV series where financial advisors give reality checks to people who are really, really bad with money. Many episodes are available on YouTube.

Embedding one of the top-viewed episodes here – a couple which somehow did not realise they are spending 3 times their income every month. Seeing their positive attitude towards fixing their money issues is very satisfying.

—

That’s it for this round, catch you next time! Want to submit a link you thought was great? Reach out to me on
FB
 or
Twitter
.

To read past link roundups, please click
here
.


Link Roundup #37: 10 Things to Know This Week

Accelerate your personal finance knowledge with this regular feature on Ringgit Oh Ringgit – the Link Roundup! I promise you’ll find these 10 links informational 🙂

1.
Half of millennials and 75% of Gen-Zers have quit jobs for mental health reasons

– CNBC

The data came from US demographics, but mental health is universal and this discussion is applicable to us Malaysians as well.

I don’t have solutions, but I agree with this gentleman’s sentiment:

I’ll say it again: If you hate your job stop blowing the money that they’re paying you. Stack that money so you can put it into things so you eventually won’t need that job anymore. Spending recklessly while working a job you hate is STUPID. Stop bullshitting.

— Zigg ♻ (@XaviercMiller)
October 6, 2019

But of course I admit that’s a priviledged way of looking at it. Some people truly can’t afford to quit their jobs because non-negotiable commitments are too high.

So here I want to say… employers, take care of your employees. I can give many reasons why you should – happier employees are more productive, etc – but at the end of the day… the reason you should take their wellbeing into consideration is because they’re fellow human beings.

2.
Budget 2020: 16 Things That Might Affect YOU, Financially
 – LoanStreet

So… Budget 2020 or Belanjawan 2020 happened, didn’t it? Many news outlets covered it. This article from LoanStreet is the funnest one to read out of them all, very clear and concise and edutaining.

Definitely click on the article to have a read. I have my favs too:

3.
How to make yourself work when you’re not feeling it
 – The Ladders

Sharing for this brilliant infographic!

4.
5 Brilliant Productivity Hacks You’ll Wish You Learned Sooner

– MyDomaine

The productivity tips are truly brilliant and something everyone should know! They are:

The Pomodoro Technique

The Top 3 Rule

The Pareto Principle

Plain Boxing

Saying No

Click the article to learn more about each of them 🙂

5.
Typical Meal For KL’s Poor: Rice, Fried Eggs, Soy Sauce
 – Galen Centre

This is an article about
child nutrition
. That’s what they eat on a daily basis. Malnutrition shouldn’t happen in our country – we throw out a LOT of food – yet it does. ‘According to the United Nations agency’s
State of the World’s Children 2019: Children, Food and Nutrition
 report
, 20.7% of children under five in Malaysia suffer from stunting, 11.5% from wasting, while 12.7% of children (aged 5 to 19 years) are obese.

6.
Why Budget Cooking Tips Are Useless For Low-Income Families
 – HuffPost

And no, low-income mothers can’t just ‘spend more time to prep food for their children’. As much as they want to, they can’t, they tend to also be poor in another resource – time.

“The most time poor people are the poor. They have longer commute time, longer hours at work but cannot outsource it. This adds to their material poverty”
@Jayati1609

#MYTimeUse

— Khazanah Research Institute (@KRInstitute)
October 3, 2019

7.
A trio of economists have won the Nobel Prize for their work in fighting global poverty

– World Economic Forum

Which makes this news extra timely. I’m exceptionally happy hearing about the 2019 Nobel Economics prize not just because its work in the field of global poverty, but also one of the winners is Dr Esther Duflo, ‘only the second female economics winner in the prize’s 50-year history, as well as the youngest at 46’.

Hear her talk about social experiments they conducted in the below TED Talk, recorded 9 years ago. It’s fascinating how heavy subsidies in preventative healthcare, such as vaccination and providing nutritious foodsource – work in alleviating poverty.

(Therefore, I’m a big supporter of gov’s decision to provide meals to schoolchildren)

8.
The Myth of the Frivolous Female Spender
–
 The New York Times

This article struck a chord because it’s so true – shopping are viewed as ‘women’s activity’. In popular culture, many consumables like fashion and beauty products are marketed as justifiable ‘just because’ spending, something to take the stress off daily life. At the same time, grooming products for men are marketed as power and status symbols.

You can make the argument that the difference is due to psychology between genders, but I’d argue back: which perpetuates which? Does media/marketing not influence behaviours and expectations?

I’m not saying marketing for women should be more like marketing for men. We’re different, after all. I’m just saying, frugal people like me can’t relate.

9.
Malaysia’s Halal Crisis
– Asia Sentinel

“SME proprietors and F&B managers told Asia Sentinel that JAKIM officials routinely request cash payments above the statutory fees in order to guarantee registration.”

“A Muslim Lebanese butcher from Australia was setting up a halal choice meat cut butchery in Kuala Lumpur for retail and distribution. A JAKIM official requested a RM50,000 payment for registration. Due to the company’s policy of not paying bribes due to the firm’s religious moral philosophy, investment in Malaysia was immediately aborted. ”

“Companies have found
bucking the system by complaining only leads to drastic consequences
, like have their operating licenses suspended and being put out of business. ”

… Doesn’t that anger you? What the hell, JAKIM?

(I’m even angrier knowing that JAKIM will receive RM1.3 BILLION allocation from Budget 2020. Please report corrupt practices, that’s the Islamic way.)

10.
The Millennial Urban Lifestyle Is About to Get More Expensive

–  The Atlantic

If you are a tech-savvy Millennial especially living in urban areas, your lifestyle have been subsidised by big tech investors. You and I know this, and we LOVE it.

Unfortunately, you and I also know that good times are not going to last. Already, some types of cash incentives are a thing of the past.

I miss Grab rides discount codes 🙁

— Suraya Zainudin (@surayaror)
October 10, 2019

So… grab what you can, while you can. Here are some of my
referral links
 to services Millennials like 😛

—

That’s it for this round, catch you next time! Want to submit a link you thought was great? Reach out to me on
FB
 or
Twitter
.

To read past link roundups, please click
here
.


Link Roundup #38: 10 Things to Know This Week

Accelerate your personal finance knowledge with this regular feature on Ringgit Oh Ringgit – the Link Roundup! I promise you’ll find these 10 links informational 🙂

1.
Malaysian Salaries Are Insufficient
 – The Star

Finally, we as a nation are focusing on low salaries. Before this the narrative seems to be more to blaming – as if we’re struggling solely because we’re simply poor savers and budgeters.

The Star’s editorial team rightfully pointed out that even EPF (aka KWSP)’s Belanjawanku guide lacks so many necessary expenses, like insurance, phone bill, PTPTN and contribution to parents.

2.
I thought becoming a landlord would bring in $400 a month, but it ended up costing me. There are 6 things I wish I’d known before I rented out my house
 – Business Insider

Buying property with the intent of renting it out is a popular passive income strategy. Theoritically, if you can get someone to rent your place more than the mortgage amount, you’ll get the property for effectively free, by the end of it all.

Well that’s the plan anyway. Things don’t always go as planned. Read the article for some really good insight on things that might not go well.

Personally, this article pretty much convinced me to always hire a property management company (if I ever plan to buy/rent out property) because the author ‘learned the hard way that if you’re not direct and confrontational, or you would rather avoid awkward situations involving finances and your personal assets, being a landlord isn’t the best idea.’

3.
Quitting Your Job? How to Tell Your Boss You’re Leaving Brilliantly and Authentically
 – Inc

This is a great article to bookmark for those of you who are planning to put in your one/two/three-months’ notice. How amazing is this template though?:

I Have Another Opportunity: I’ve really enjoyed the opportunity to work with you, but I have another opportunity that I just can’t say no to. It’s exactly what I’ve been seeking for my next career move. At this time, I don’t believe this kind of opportunity exists here, but I’d love to keep in touch and explore ways to work together down the road.

There are 5 more templates you can choose from, depending on your situation.

4.
Reality-TV Show Tries Financial Makeovers for Those With Student Debt

– The Wall Street Journal

The show is called “Going from Broke”, produced by Ashton Kutcher and will be streamed at Chicken Soup for the Soul Entertainment (first time I’ve heard of this media also). It’s going to be an entertaining and educational show about debt reduction. The fact that we have content like this… what a world we live in.

Here’s the trailer:

5.
The real cost of not wearing makeup at the office
 – The Fast Company

Look at these two studies:

A 2016 study by sociologists Jaclyn S. Wong and Andrew M. Penner found that
attractive individuals outearned their peers by about 20%
. When researchers started factoring in “grooming” (which for women included whether or not they wore makeup), the gap narrowed.

But being considered too attractive can also hurt women. Another study,
published in 2019
, found that “attractive businesswomen are judged as being less truthful than less attractive women.”

Ah, makeup. Damned if you do, damned if you don’t.

Also, this part is so true:

“The whole ‘Don’t wear makeup if you want to save money’ is not an option for a lot of people. It’s also demeaning. It pits this sort of ‘I’m the smart cool girl who doesn’t wear makeup’ to ‘Well, you’re the brainwashed girl who does wear makeup.’”

6.
ASNB – Getting Fixed-Priced ASM Units

– DividendMagic

DividendMagic got his hands on some ASM funds and wrote about it, since it’s pretty hard to get for nonBumis because of, um, *shifts uncomfortably* racial politics.

The sales charge wasn’t cheap, though:

ASNB – Getting Fixed-Priced ASM Units. How I got RM17,500 worth of ASM funds. At a cost of RM1,300. Effectively, a 7% sales charge on it.
https://t.co/CreO5t2END

pic.twitter.com/B8zdzswFk3

— Dividend Magic (@DividendMagic)
October 29, 2019

7.
Ask the Bitches: My Dad Sucks with Money. How Do I Make Him Change?
– Bitches Get Riches

… I didn’t expect ‘don’t’, but the reasoning makes sense.

How about when your parents get sucked into some MLM or Ponzi scheme, though? Or if they excitedly tell you about some random ‘business’ or ‘investment’ opportunities which don’t make sense? How then?

Still figuring it out :/ I’m torn between being protective of my parents and understanding I don’t need to control their money behaviour.

8.
4 rules of success I learned from working in Hollywood for 10 years
 –
 The Ladders

The industry may be Hollywood, but the rules apply everywhere. I especially liked Rules #1 and #2: always talk to the decision-maker (can confirm; if not have fun not getting things done); and learn to sift through the BS (need to detect people who like attaching themselves to projects they know nothing about).

9.
How meritocracy harms everyone — even the winners

– Vox

Pure meritocracy doesn’t exist because privilege is real.

But this I think you know already. What’s surprising (to me at least) is how the ‘winners’ (ie the rich/elites) will lose too. Click on the link to read the article.

10. Study by Sisters in Islam

And finally. A fact that just needs to be known by everyone.

70% lelaki yang berpoligami mengakui berpendapatan kurang RM3000. Pendek kata kalau tak mampu berlaku adil dari segi masa, nafkah dan lain2 jangan berangan nak kahwin lebih.
pic.twitter.com/XnSgsQXmvw

— Hakim Rahman (@HakimAWANI)
October 17, 2019

—

That’s it for this round, catch you next time! Want to submit a link you thought was great? Reach out to me on
FB
 or
Twitter
.

To read past link roundups, please click
here
.


Link Roundup #39: 10 Things to Know This Week

Accelerate your personal finance knowledge with this regular feature on Ringgit Oh Ringgit – the Link Roundup! I promise you’ll find these 10 links informational 🙂

1.
Microsoft Japan’s 4-day workweek experiment sees productivity jump 40%
– CNBC

This article went VIRAL in social media, for good reason – who doesn’t want an extra day off per week?

So I thought I’d use this space to dig a little bit behind the headline. Here’s what I found:

‘Productivity’ was measured in sales per employee, and 40% increase in sales is no joke

They capped in-person meetings to 30 minutes

They reduced operations cost: ‘23.1% less electricity used and 58.7% fewer pages printed over the period’

The experiment ‘also incorporated self-development and family wellness schemes’

Would this work in Malaysia, you think? I don’t know. Obviously Japan and Malaysia’s working culture is different – we work hard of course but they literally
invented a word which describes dying by working hard
 (‘karoshi’).

However, common sense tells me that it wouldn’t hurt to at least try to reduce our meeting time, no?

2.
CEOs Who Cheat in Bedroom Will Cheat in Boardroom, Study Shows

– Bloomberg

Not just CEOs. Also corporate executives, financial advisers and brokers. When their position is that high up the career ladder, their integrity matters more than we think.

Don’t give leaders a pass for the choices they make outside work.

Evidence: people who cheat on their spouses are twice as likely to cheat on their finances.

Integrity is not a 9-to-5 job. Character counts in every realm of life.
#SundayThoughts

https://t.co/Tfrpra2J2L

— Adam Grant (@AdamMGrant)
November 17, 2019

3.
Commentary: Are you better off working from home than in the office?
 – Channel News Asia

Answer: yes it’s better to work from home if the office is an open plan office. ‘A number of studies have found that employees working in modern open-plan offices are so easily distracted and constantly interrupted, they cannot concentrate on their tasks.’

4.
Facebook’s new payment service will let you send money without fees across Facebook, Instagram, WhatsApp, and Messenger (FB)
– Business Insider

I am both excited and scared of this development. Giving Facebook access to my payments data will allow them to deliver better-targeted ads to me. I’m still on the fence whether that’ll be a good or a bad thing.

Worth knowing – this payments system is seperate from Libra, Facebook’s planned cryptocurrency. Although I suppose they will integrate it in due time. Also not sure how to feel about that.

5.
America’s 1% Borrow Money, Too. Here’s What the Rich Are Paying for With Loans.
 – Barron’s

TL;DR –

‘The rich don’t fund consumption with debt and they don’t borrow to buy depreciating assets. (They) seem to borrow only to fund tax-advantaged, appreciating assets. And over the long run, housing prices have increased.

Poorer households, on the other hand, rely on debt to pay for post-high school education and transportation, while carrying credit-card balances. Unlike housing, cars aren’t an appreciating asset.”

6.
In Her New MasterClass, Self-Made Billionaire Sara Blakely Shares 7 Remarkable Tips for Turning Any Idea Into a Successful Company
–
Inc

Sara Blakely – the founder of Spanx – has great perspectives on entrepreneurship mindset. I highly recommend you to read this article and at least read #5 – understanding the four types of customers.

But beyond that, Sara Blakely is just someone amazing to follow in general. She has GREAT personal branding, and amazing in making sales pitches (the non-sleazy kind).

I’m really tempted now to shell $90 to enrol in her Masterclass hmm

7.
101 Ways to Live Sustainably
– Curbed

It’s obvious they put a lot of effort behind this listicle – the graphics, the flow, the copywriting – everything works.

For me, striving to be a more ethical consumer is not just better for my personal finance, but also for my conscience.

I want to be more mindful with my purchases, and stop the process of accumulation for the sake of accumulation. I want to be happy with what I have, instead of always feeling like I don’t have enough. Capitalism does that to you.

8.
5 Key Steps to Build Your Side Hustle
 –
 Enterpreneur

Some people planned their side hustles. Others are really lucky with theirs – they were just doing passion projects, then get job requests from people who love what they do. They may even do the steps (outlined in the article) backwards.

Both types can benefit from this article. You may learn what you don’t know you don’t know.

9.
We bought a $1 house in Italy. Here’s what happened next
 – CNN

They spent money on renovations, but it’s still *super* cheap.

*cries in severely unaffordable Malaysian homes*

10. The Laundromat – streaming on Netflix

Want to learn how the super-rich and corrupt hide their money, through a
very
 entertaining movie?

Look no further than The Laundromat, inspired by the Panama Papers scandal and stars Meryl Streep, Gary Oldman, Antonio Banderas, Jeffrey Wright, David Schwimmer, Matthias Schoenaerts, James Cromwell, and Sharon Stone.

It reminds me of The Big Short, another good movie explaining another financial scandal, the 2008 financial crisis.

—

That’s it for this round, catch you next time! Want to submit a link you thought was great? Reach out to me on
FB
 or
Twitter
.

To read past link roundups, please click
here
.


Link Roundup #4: 10 Things to Know This Week

Accelerate your personal finance knowledge with this new regular feature on Ringgit Oh Ringgit – the Link Roundup! I promise you’ll find these 10 articles informational 🙂

1.
The-Fuck-Over-Ability Index
 – Millennial Revolution

This content is so good I’m breaking my personal ‘no f word in the blog’ rule. The Fuck-Over-Ability Index is
 an actual calculator
 they invented to measure how ‘fucked over’ you are in your life. Said situation is calculated based on how much you need your job because you need to pay your monthly commitments, like mortgages and car payments. The higher your score, the more likely you will put up with your crappiest bosses.

The author admitted they were drunk when they discussed and created this lovely thing. This article is definitely in the category of dark humour.

2.
Price’s Law: Why only a few people generate half of the results
 – Darius Foroux

Turned out to be a motivational article for people who may feel discouraged because they are not among the top performers. Not the angle I expected, so I thought the writing was cool.

3.
9 Daily Extravagance Habits Frugal People Don’t Have
 – Wallet Hacks

I love it when good storytelling is weaved into personal finance articles, it makes them very enjoyable to read. Here are the points:

Allowing Others to Dictate Your Spending

Forgetting to Comparison Shop

Overpaying for Convenience

Ignoring Stock Up Opportunities

Wasting Food

Paying for Services You No Longer Use

Buying Cheap All The Time

Turning Special Treats into Common Events

Preventing the Diderot Effect

Yeah, it was my first time finding out about Diderot Effect too. It’s ‘a social phenomenon where people buy things that are complementary and when they buy something that isn’t complementary, they feel a need to buy more things to make the whole universe of possessions complimentary’.

4.
Meghan Markle Worked Side Hustles. Now She’s the First Gig Economy Royal
 – Inc

After reading this, my awe for this woman increased significantly. I didn’t know she was beyond ‘actress’, which is what the media use to describe her. Among the gigs she worked aside from acting:

Calligrapher

Restaurant hostess

TV show extra

Founder of a lifestyle website

Damn. Now I’m inspired to look for gigs outside what I already do (writing for businesses) so I can earn more.

5.
6 Ways to Learn How to Become a Scopist
 – World of Scopists

Apparently scopists make good money turning documents from court reporters into final transcripts. I was surprised to find it’s a location-independent-type job!

Tbh I have no idea if this job market exists in Malaysia but we do have courts, so chances are there are professional Malaysian scopists out there. Perhaps. If not, lovely. A nice gap in the market is good for the pocket.

To be a high-demand scopist, you need to be dependable and have good listening/transcribing/technical or legal knowledge. If that sounds like you, check out how to be one in the article.

6.
The 4 Kinds of Side Businesses You Can Start
 – Justin Mare

Bloody good read for those of you wanting to start side businesses as a way to bring in extra income. According to Justin, the four kinds are:

Buy an existing asset

Launch a product on a marketplace with existing demand

Launch a unique, one of a kind product in a new space where you can buy demand (adwords, facebook, etc.)

Arbitrage (craigslist, airbnb, trading, uber)

So which ones are you doing? I’m leaning towards #1 and #3.

7.
Why I Moved Closer To Work, And Why You Should Too
 – Elizabeth Tai

Malaysian blogger! Elizabeth shared her personal upsides after moving closer to her workplace. Those of you with long commutes, I imagine you’ve always wanted to know what it’s like to have short commutes instead. Don’t be too sad reading this okay? Everyone makes sacrifices towards financial freedom. Yours will be worth it someday!

8.
New Malaysian Kitchen’s Budget Category

Sara
knows
 her food – she’s the cookbook author behind One Pot Wonders, Malaysian Meals in 30 Minutes and 3 Ingredient Recipes. I like how Sara makes cooking sound non-threatening to people like me, people who just want fast, easy and nutritional meals! Check out her website’s Budget Section for meal ideas. She has a free e-book on the website, too 🙂

9.
Forget early retirement — people who saved enough money to travel for weeks or years say a ‘mini-retirement’ is just as rewarding
 – Business Insider

Who here is planning a mini-retirement? Who here didn’t know you wanted a mini-retirement until now? Lol.

10.
Why Workplaces Need to be Fairer to Working Dads
 – Harvard Business Review

I’m a feminist, and
that’s why
 I’m sharing this and advocating for fairer workplaces for working dads. In the US, almost 3 out of 4 dads say their workplaces are not supportive of their needs as a father. I’d imagine the same survey would get worse results here in Malaysia!

Paternity leaves will go a long way towards more balanced parental responsibilities. Happier employees = more productive employees. But it’s not about just offering them, it’s also about the culture of
taking
them. Does any of you work in an environment where they’re encouraged? Please comment if yes, would love to know (and support) those companies.

That’s it for this week, catch you next time! Want to submit a link you thought was great? Reach out to me on
FB
 or
Twitter
.

To read past link roundups, please click
here
.


Link Roundup #40: 10 Things to Know This Week

Accelerate your personal finance knowledge with this regular feature on Ringgit Oh Ringgit – the Link Roundup! I promise you’ll find these 10 links informational 🙂

1.
How to Improve Your Resume According to Science
 – The Ladders

Amazing infographic. I particularly liked this one – ‘Don’t include a photo unless requested. Candidates (are
perceived as unprofessional
 and) face 88% rejection rate if they do’.

2.
11 Productivity Tips for Remote Workers

– PR Daily

Remote working is not just for the self-employed anymore. Quite a few workplaces now implement optional office days between Mon-Fri – a best-of-both-worlds solution for those preferring paid employment too. If you’re new to it and struggling to be productive, recommend you to read the article for some solid tips.

For me, my best productivity tip is still the to-do list system in my notebook. That plus looming datelines and pressure to earn as much as I can while I can in this unpredictable field.

3.
Learn About Kakeibo: The Japanese Art of Saving Money
 – Refinery29

The Kakeibo is a ‘budgeting journal’,  invented back in 1904 by Hani Motoko, Japan’s first female journalist, and was designed to help busy women keep on top of their finances.

Honestly it looks like just another ‘write down your budget’-type advice, but I have to remind myself not to dismiss it too easily. Thre is value in added insight into the Japanese psyche. We all know how systematic and efficient the Japanese is. I want *that* in my budgeting methodology.

They just released the English-language version of the book. I’m going to look for it.

4.
4 incredibly simple things happiness scientists say you should do instead of buying things

– Fast Company

The four things are:

Spend time in nature

Meet a friend

Do something creative

Exercise

Simple in theory, need the reminder for the actual execution. Don’t forget that we all live in a world where we are constantly bombarded with messages that basically say we’ll only be happy if we bought X, Y and Z; and *of course* shopping is a legit stress-busting activity.

Unlearning that is an ongoing process.

5.
How to Set Boundaries When Your Family Is Bad With Money

–
Lifehacker

MUST-READ for anyone who is frugal but have spendthrift parents, siblings and even close friends!! Money topics can be tricky to navigate while maintaining good relationships with them.

I quite like this one: ‘..a lot of clients had to pull back on their relationships with their siblings because of their financial choices. If you get to this point, it’s important
not to shame the person
 for their financial choices. (Instead,) “Lead by example”’

6.
T
his striking percentage of couples regret combining their finances – especially the higher-earning partner
–
Ladders

TL;DR – 1 out of 5 couples regret combining their finances, and the higher-earning partner regret it 29% of the time.

But that also means 4 out of 5 couples DID NOT regret combining their finances, and the higher-earning partner DID NOT regret it 71% of the time. You can play around the statistics to make it fit your narrative :/

I’m actually on the ‘let’s not merge’ camp, but I can see how a joint account would be handy for shared expenses and expense-tracking purposes.

7.
Your Face Alone Tells People Whether You’re Rich or Not, Research Shows

– Inc

“..the subjects were able to sort them into rich and poor with 68 percent accuracy–much more than can be accounted for by random chance.”

Then,

“Although subjects could always make the most accurate determinations from entire faces, the researchers found that mouths, and to a lesser extent eyes, gave participants the greatest ability to correctly categorize people in the photos as rich or poor.”

The mouth area, huh? Why is that? Is perhaps a full set of teeth (though hidden) is an indicator of diet and health? The study also mentioned how ‘people were (guessed to be) wealthy when their neutral faces seemed to subtly reflect happiness and well-being.’

I like how the article ended with a call to recognise this as a possible bias, which has real-life consequences – ‘it means people who start out without a lot of money will have a harder time landing a well-paying job, and if they’re entrepreneurs, perhaps a harder time getting financing as well.’

Let’s be aware of it. It’s another layer of addressing wealth inequality.

8.
A Cheapskate’s Guide to Building Your Own Peloton Bike for a Fraction of the Price
–
 MEL Magazine

Two reasons why you should read this article:

I love a good ‘how to get the experience from this expensive item for cheaper’ tutorial, and

The writer is hilarious

For context, a Peloton – that’s the fancy exercise bicycle with attached screens – retails at $1900 (!!). His hacked version of a Peloton costs $150. Lol.

9.
If You Can’t Find a Spouse Who Supports Your Career, Stay Single

– Harvard Business Review

Obviously this topic struck a chord with Twitterjaya – it got 1.3k RTs at time of writing.

And for good reason. Take a look at the findings of the study:

“It’s not that these husbands don’t see themselves as progressive and supportive.. But often caught by trade-offs they were not expecting. They are happy to have successful, high-earning wives. They applaud and support them — until it starts to interfere with their own careers.”

— Suraya Zainudin (@surayaror)
November 28, 2019

“As one woman put it, “He has always said to me, ‘You can do whatever you want to do.’ But he’s not there to pick up any load.”

— Suraya Zainudin (@surayaror)
November 28, 2019

A commentor said, relationship is all about give and take. You’re right. Me and other women are ready for the taking part, finally.

10.
The StockMonger’s Nov 2019 Update

I enjoy reading other Malaysian personal finance bloggers’ monthly budget and self-reflection reviews. So it saddens me to share that The StockMonger have decided to discontinue his posts. The last one will be a review of his 2019 Resolutions in the first week of 2020.

Will look forward to that. I’m sure he took a lot of time to decide so will respect his decision. Let’s wish him all the best going forward.

—

That’s it for this round, catch you next time! Want to submit a link you thought was great? Reach out to me on
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