Hi, I am Mr 15HWW and I am in my mid-thirties.
Very happily married (very strong emphasis here), I am the co-writer behind this blog. The other permanent writer is my wife who has written three blog post so far (good luck searching for it here). But well, her contribution goes far and deep since she thinks she is actually the mastermind behind the rest of the other posts…
Instead of declaring that I am a value investor or income investor and offending hordes of people who go by those aliases, let’s just say that I am a Personal Finance Geek (PFG). Yeah, The PFG*.
Nah Warren… I dare not…
Here’s a list of my …ahem… achievements?:
- At 16, I started devouring the “Ask Dr Money” column in this local tabloid, The New Paper
- At 20, I was the cheapskate prowling around the Investing & Personal Finance sections of KinoKuniya
- At 24, I had accumulated $50,000 from part-time work, bursaries and scholarships
- By 27, I got married, held “the wedding banquet“, got the keys to my BTO, spent an astronomical sum on the renovation, had set aside $100,000 and most importantly, started this blog.
- At 29, I shamelessly and unabashedly declared my wife and I quarter-retired
Thanks Rose, but you forgot that milestones consist of moments too!
So there you go. With a decade of experience gobbling up information on personal finance and investments and 3 years working in a social security organisation (there’s just 1 in Singapore), I might be somewhat disillusioned in thinking that I have something extra to offer on the subject of personal finance.
But what’s indisputable are the benefits I have received after writing this blog. Over the past 7 years, I actually gained the courage and conviction to:
- Take a 6 month sabbatical in my late 20s
- Transition from an employee to a self-employed
- Roped in the Mrs to become a self-employed too
I really believe all the above would not have materialised without this blog.
The lion within me…RRarrr!
I really enjoy my work these days and my 25 hour work week has been ramped up so much that it’s hovering nearer to 35 hours these days. I am always glad to be able to help more students.
So yes, I am no longer so hung up about reducing my work hours to a 15 Hour Work Week as compared to the start.
All right… I exaggerate…
Don’t get me wrong. Habits would retain, saving rates would be maintained and investing would still continue. However, achieving financial independence is more about having the option to wind down than actually doing it.
Afterall, if Douglas Rushkoff is right, a shorter work week could soon be imposed on us. Yeah, even in my new roles as a tutor and writer, I could become obsolete within a decade. Although I really really really really hope not.
Thanks for reading all the way till the end. I hope you have both enjoyed and benefited from this introduction. As you have most probably observed, I became more and more serious as the introduction went on but really, you shouldn’t be taking my writing too seriously (pls read Disclaimer).
Hello 🙂
You have a very smart wife! LOL!
I started my 16 hour work week last week. Work 2 x 8 hours shift on the weekends.
At the pace you are going, you would start your own 15 hour work week in your 30s. Have fun!
I learned a new euphemism today – chatting with wife… It puts new meaning to “let’s chat” 😉
Cheers!
SMOL
Hi SMOL,
First of all, a warm welcome and I do read your amazing blog too.
What you have there is a really nice work week. To be honest, I prefer to have two weekdays free instead of the weekends. And it’s really a no-brainer to trade the weekend for 5 weekdays. Hopefully, I will be able to do something similar by 35.
Glad that you managed to learn something new from my blog. My wife and I understand that good communication is the foundation of a strong marriage. 😉
Hello!
I lost count of how much I work, because I teach tuition full time now at my centre 🙂
You are married early! I’m only getting married next year, 31 by then 😡
Hi momoeagle,
Thanks for dropping by. I have a lot to learn from you as seen from many of your ambitious goals in the past. =)
Coincidentally, after having a long break from giving tuition, I just started some lessons for my wife’s nephew last week. The time passed so fast, especially when we were going through math problem sums. Guess you need not count how much you work when you are building your own business and enjoying the work.
And congrats on your marriage/wedding next year! If I am not wrong, your place should be ready soon too!
Hi there,
Quite an inspirational intro; I remember how I used to work hard and save up in order to invest as well. Giving tuition part time was also something I did for about ten years in a row. Now that I’ve built up some passive income from my portfolio, it does free up my time for other pursuits.
Just curious though – why would you want to buy a car? Seeing how expensive prices are currently, perhaps sticking to public transport for now would help you to save more?
Thanks,
Musicwhiz
Hi Musicwhiz,
Thanks for dropping by. I really learnt a lot from your articles over the past few years and you are the true inspiration!
After stopping tuition for almost 2 years, I realised that I actually enjoyed doing it. Previously, I was harping on the 20% that was unpleasant (i.e. overdemanding parents, students with very very bad attitude, the travelling). Now, I am reminiscing the 80% which includes job satisfaction, smile on students’ faces when their marks improve and flexible work hours.
Perhaps I didn’t make it clear enough in the page but buying a car was a thought I had more than 5 years ago. COE was low, I had some good income and most importantly, I also didn’t had a girlfriend then. Get it? LOL.
Previously, besides delaying gratification (the good), I was also looking at amplifying gratification (the bad) from the savings and investments I had. However, my philosophy has changed drastically since then. If I were to strike Toto tomorrow (not that I buy any), I would still likely not buy a car because I really see little value in it at this point in time.
Hi 15HWW,
Recently stumbled onto your blog and I think it is worth reading. I can see you put a lot of effort in writing the articles. I particularly like your articles on savings. Saving has been my preferred way of managing money compared to investing. Saving a dollar is equivalent to earning a dollar without incurring risks, unlike investing.
I see you are using John Maynard Keynes as your Avatar? Are you an Economics student?
Hi hyom,
Thanks for dropping by and I really do appreciate your commendations. It’s true that I do spend quite a bit of time on this blog. Not reaching anywhere near 10,000 hours yet but already well past 100?
I agree with your views on saving money. One has more control over his/her own expenditure compared to investments.
Yes, I was an Econs student and it’s true I am more of a Keynesian. But he’s the avatar because he predicted that we should all be working 15 hour work weeks by now!
Hi,
I really like your story! It’s really relatable and rather encouraging for a fellow “young” person like myself. Attaining financial freedom where we can work less e.g. 15HWW is really a goal many are striking towards including myself in this very materialistic world we live in.Sometimes I wonder why I can’t go hunting for a living like a caveman did in the past…
Oh well
That was a good read!
Thanks
Pok Chow
Hi Pok Chow,
Thanks for dropping by and wow, you are really young!
Considering my current fitness and abilities, I would probably not last long as a hunter…oops. So I am still quite far away from being able to denounce our materialistic world. But I do believe that it isn’t that hard to just use 30-40% of our monies to purchase those goods that provide us with the most value? Pareto’s Principle, anyone?
Hi
Just chanced upon your blog, so are you a full time tutor who only teaches 15 hours per week?
What is your average income and expenditure per month if you don’t mind sharing?
Thanks
Hi John,
I am not a full-time tutor, at least not yet. So no income on that to share with you.
The 15 hour work week remains a goal (hopefully not too long away).
As for my expenses, they are well-documented throughout the blog since I have monthly expenditure updates. =)
hi 15ww, i just stumbled on your blog today. your background and forward-looking philosophy really resonate with me, and i appreciate a good many of the articles from you i’ve managed to read.
keep up the good fight, and i look forward to reading more articles from you in the days to come.
cheers.
Hi georgecloney,
Thanks for your encouragement and I hope I won’t disappoint both you and myself in the coming months. =)
reading your blog makes me happpppy! why so? coz reading how young people like yourself are working hard, saving well, investing smart and all gives me hope about the future of singapore…. coz there’s so much bad news these days, and the stuff on stomp and some other (feels almost like anti-singapore) sites are making me lose hope sometimes.
and i like your writing style! will be back often! keep bloggin’!
Hi bb,
Thanks for the kind comment. Didn’t know this humble blog can make someone happy but your comment did make my day. =p
Regarding those negative stuff, I guess there’s just too many complaints out there nowadays. Most of these epople just need to learn to be more grateful of what they have and leverage on their strengths for a better future.
And don’t lose hope because I am sure there are many others like me (or even better and younger).
Wow, I wonder how you managed to accumulate so much within such a short period of time. Do you actually save aggressively?
livingafreelifetoday.com
Hi Living Free,
I really don’t know whether we can be considered a couple who “saves aggressively”. Probably yes if you compare us with the average Singaporean but no in the financial blogosphere.
We don’t actively save, it’s more a result of certain ingrained habits that makes sure we don’t wantonly splurge on our earnings.
A combination of factors such as a decent starting income, working during our undergrad years and purchasing a BTO helps a lot!
A very down to earth feel about your writing, I love it! Inspired that you are living a life of design, which is something close to our hearts. New to the blogging space with a 1 month old blog to document our journey to financial independence!
So pleased to have chanced upon your blog, will definitely be a frequent visitor.
Hi Ms.K,
I think if you read the first few posts, I actually might come across as “irritating” and “arrogant”. Or that’s what many readers told me. =p
You have a very interesting blog going over there and keep it up!
Nice blog; easily “digestable”. Tutoring was what got me to saving enough to leave for an overseas edu ions ago. If you enjoy what you do, it really doesn’t matter if it’s 15, 25 or 35 hrs work week. Very impressive portfolio. Definitely going to steal your ideas!
Tutoring helped me to earn enough to finance my own overseas edu. But I was working like 50-60+ hrs 24/7. nothing like u.
What you have managed to achieve at such a young age is amazing. I’m 39 now and only really starting to ramp up on my personal finances, though I have a rather ambitious timeline of looking to get to semi-retirement with enough FU money by 2024.
Wish me luck!
Hi Thomas,
My friends and I are doing a beta website merchant search engine, http://www.whatcard.sg. The site is completely free for users, and is supposed to help users optimize their credit card rewards by doing a quick due diligence on the best rewards card for their particular merchant spending.
Would you like to consider for us to work together, empowering your readers with the knowledge of how http://www.whatcard.sg can optimize their rewards for a better management of their personal finances? I hope to hear from you soon!
Warmest regards,
Dexter
Great writings Thomas and what an inspiring journey towards financial freedom!