Wow!
I didn’t expect my post to “blow up” in r/singaporeFI. It has since became the all time top post - Hurray for internet points! What surprised me more was how much the post resonated to folks who are still working and folks who have retired. I received hundreds of DMs from well-meaning folks reaching out to connect, share experiences and seek advice on next steps. I am super grateful for the many thoughtful replies, questions and also additional considerations that made me pause and think deeper in my FIRE experience. You all truly warmed the cockles of my heart, and I might add, my balls too!
This is a quick and dirty QnA to the most commonly asked questions from the thread and DMs I have received.
General FIRE-related questions
How old are you when you FIRED?
39.
What is your net worth when you FIRED?
$1.5m SGD.
What are your annual expenses like?
Budgeted for $72k SGD. Works out to $6k a month. High level breakdown:
Car (includes monthly payments, carparking, road tax, maintenance, insurance, car wash, fines, inspections) ~ $2k,
Childcare $1k.
Household expenses (wifi, phone, gas, water, electricity, town council charges, property taxes, general maintenance) ~ $500.
Food (groceries, eating out) ~$1.5k.
Travel/entertainment/others $1k.
Mortgage (fully serviced by CPF and does not impact liquid cashflow - $1.5k per month split between me and my wife CPF).
Where do you live?
A 4 room resale HDB, bought at just under $500k.
How did your net worth grow when you did not work for a year?
It grew due to income from wealth and my trading activities.
Does your wife work?
Yes, she still does! She loves her work and the money that comes with it. She is also on her way to her first million and I am super proud of her! Not that any of that money comes to me though =)
How did your family dynamics change?
In terms of finances, nothing changed. I am still pulling in equal or if not, more than I made in my job on an averaged monthly basis. I still pay for all of the household bills, groceries, car related expenses, just the same as I did before I FIRED.
In terms of roles, I took on more domestic duties - cooking especially. I wash more dishes, do more laundry and try as much as I can, keep my house clean.
Have you considered heading back to work?
Only with the right opportunity and people. It will all just be fun money, but I’ll have to seriously consider the tradeoffs vs the experience that I’ll be gaining. Again, this question warrants a deeper introspection as it is more complex that I can explain in a short Q&A.
How do you manage the shift/loss/change of identify?
I don’t think I managed it well. I learnt as I FIREd. FIREing is not static journey where there is a defined start, stop and end point. It is also a progressive learning journey over time that helped me craft and learn about this new identify. Only advice I could give is to lean into it, give it time, let doubts surface and spend more time reflecting and thinking about it.
Investment/Trading/Markets related questions
A good chunk of DMs were directed on my income generating approach. I totally understand why - we Singaporeans are highly pragmatic creatures. We would learn and we would copy! Unfortunately, I’d have to disappoint in the sense that I can’t give specifics, as these pertain to my trading edge.
The best analogy I could give is this - if a golden goose came to your house and started laying golden eggs, what would you do? Shout for the police? Call a press conference?
You would keep quiet.
Now I don’t think my trading method is a huge-ass golden goose. It just had a slight edge and it worked for me. What I can share though are general principles and guidelines that I believe should be evergreen concepts.
Do you teach option trading?
No. See above. Unless you make me an offer I can’t refuse.
What assets do you buy?
In this climate, protect your purchasing power through assets that do well in inflationary environments. You can work backwards to understand what this means.
How did you make money in the current climate?
My view of the markets were probabilistically right 2 years ago and the view remains unchanged. The assets that I traded with were positioned accordingly to my view and they did alright.
How much time do you spend everyday trading?
30 minutes max after every NYSE open. I don’t trade everyday. Somedays I open and close positions. Somedays I don’t do anything if I like my positions. Somedays I just skip trading all together. I would say I am more active on Monday and Friday nights. It really depends on the markets. Volatility is trader’s gold. April 2025 has been exciting to say the least.
What is your view on diversification, VWRA, buying global/country specific indexes?
I derive the same view from Warren Buffett and Charlie Munger. Investing in broad based index is probably best for those who do not spend time studying the markets. You will get an average return, and have your assets relatively protected due to the nature of diversification.
If you want to build wealth, concentrate. The assets that I trade are highly concentrated.
What resources would you recommend?
Start with the basics - any books that Warren Buffett, Charlie Munger recommend. Why? Because understanding what makes a good business (vs a bad one) is the fundamental driver in selecting your asset to trade. Then you get into the rabbit hole of the maths (accounting, valuation), corporate management and governance, psychology of the markets and people. A good understanding of basics Macroeconomics helps.
Option tactics wise - any options related subreddits - options, thetagang, vegagang, PMtraders etc.
Beginner traders are often doing it the other way round - focusing on the tactics, the how. They should be focused on the basics of business.
How did you find your trading edge?
Learn, do, fail, repeat. I experimented a hell lot and found what worked for me.
Apologies if I missed your comments and/or questions - I did not forecast that I would spend so much time replying to internet strangers in my FIRE plan. This is something for me to think about in terms of future approach.
Many of them are great content and stories I would love to write in greater detail in the future. So stay tuned!
Thanks a million again, it’s been a pleasure reading all your responses.