Update about myself

This week has been a hectic week. School work is starting to pile up with lots of materials to read. There have been some problems in school, which I feel is insignificant and not worth mentioning.

I have been monitoring the markets more and reading economic data extensively to get a general feel of the market, this has caused me to have insufficient sleep for the past 1 month. Made a few good buys and sells which I will not reveal now. Wait for end of the year to see my new portfolio allocation. :)

I have realised that there are so many things to do in life and I need to refocus. All these experiences costs money and the 2.5K salary that I'm going to bring home in the future is not going to get me anywhere. Anyway, I'm not in this profession for the money. I need to find ways to earn more, so that I can afford to spend more. I reiterate the word "afford" again, a prudent investor needs to spend within his means.

The compounding effect of money is simply too powerful to ignore. Having a capital of 100k and compounding it at 20% per year can be easily an average person's annual salary. If I can compound it 20% consistently for 5 years, I would have easily 248K. To the average person, it is a significant amount. To the one who has made it, it is just merely numbers.

I have stopped trading forex on paper months ago because there is not enough time to monitor while I'm in school. However I still believe that over time, I will be profitable. If anyone wants to pick up trading, forex is the way to go. Tough, brutal, challenging and it takes lots of discipline to control emotions. I don't like the idea of having rollover fees if I were to keep my trade the next day. Pitting your skills against the market is tough enough and yet as a retail trader, one has to pit their skills against the brokerage too. There are many wide swings and false breakouts to lookout for.

I need to refocus on what is important to me. Over the years, I've narrowed down and filtered out those that are not and kept those that are very important to me. I'm glad that time has made me realise this.

My focus now would be school work, trading/investments and the occasional drinks with my best pals. Life just keeps getting better. :D

Anyway

Was at a hospital attachment and found this meaningful quote. Found online that it is a quote from Mother Theresa edited from Kent Keith's quote. Pardon my lousy photo taking skills, I will upload it anyway. =D

Warren Buffett on Life

My all time favourite video. After 2.40min is his topic on life.

An update of myself

I have to apologise for the lack of updates to dear readers who have benefited from reading this blog (although it is not much, these are just the basic foundations of value investing). Busy with school work was the primary reason and laziness being the secondary reason. I've actually cut down on a lot of activities and allocate more time to school. Most of my brain cells are now directed towards Anatomy and Physiology. I'm studying Physiotherapy at NYP if you are wondering. It is a 3yrs Diploma and 1yr Degree overseas course. Currently Universities in Singapore don't have this course. Yep! I'm climbing towards the plan that I set up for myself. Graduate with a degree and set up a healthcare business. With the accumulated profits, I can further invest in businesses.

Recent portfolio changes and updates

I will be doing a mid-year review of my portfolio at the end of June. My mom has decided to invest her savings with me and it will be officially called The Chan Partnership. I've sold off my losses in ChinaACorp. A loss of ~$1400, about 10% of my previous portfolio not including injected funds from Mom. This will be my last and final attempt on speculation and deeply regreted it. With the extra funds, I bought SBSTransit giving close to 7% annual dividends at 13X PER. Although crude oil prices will continue to rise but I foresee that the public transport pie will get bigger in Singapore. Margins will be offset by growing commuters as more people realise the high cost of maintaining a car in Singapore. It is not a fantastic investment but it is a safe one with an adequate margin of safety. Mom, your son will be extra careful with your hard earned money! d:D

Kingsmen continues to do well and I'm positive about their business prospect with more IR projects coming in. Much more emphasis is also placed on the designs of retail outlets to attract more customers. I think Warren Buffett said this before 'a business that helps other businesses make more money is a great business'.

The focus now is not really on the sub-prime issue but on inflation which affects everyone globally. It is increasingly challenging for value investors to deal with inflation as we need to adjust our calculations on the value of businesses accordingly. Time may actually be our foe if the price of the business remains stagnant for years even though we know the value of the business should be worth a lot more. Inflation eats into our profits as buying power of money decreases.

Conversations

Dear All,

This is an unusual conversation... interesting and very true..

This is an excellent conversation between 'God' and
> > an unknown ' - 'Me'. I don't know as to who has been
> > the composer of such an interesting and captivating
> > conversation ; but has he/she has definitely put in
> > good amount of thought into crafting the same. *
> >
> > Those who don't believe in God, may also find it
> > worth reading once. Enjoy and Think ! *
> >
> >
> > God: Hello. Did you call me?
> > Me: Called you? No.. Who is this?
> >
> > God: This is GOD. I heard your prayers. So I thought
> > I will chat.
> > Me: I do pray. Just makes me feel good. I am
> > actually busy now. I am in
> > the midst of something.
> >
> > God: What are you busy at? Ants are busy too.
> > Me: Don't know. But I can't find free time. Life has
> > become hectic. It's rush hour all the time.
> >
> > God: Sure. Activity gets you busy. But productivity
> > gets you results. Activity consumes time.
> > Productivity frees it.
> > Me: I understand. But I still can't figure out. By
> > the way, I was not expecting YOU to buzz me on
> > instant messaging chat.
> >
> > God: Well I wanted to resolve your fight for time,
> > by giving you some. In this net era, I wanted to
> > reach you through the medium you
> > are comfortable with.
> > Me: Tell me, why has life become complicated now?
> >
> > God: Stop analyzing life. Just live it. Analysis is
> > what makes it complicated.
> > Me: why are we then constantly unhappy?
> >
> > God: Your today is the tomorrow that you worried
> > about yesterday. You are worrying because you are
> > analyzing. Worrying has become your habit.
> > That's why you are not happy.
> > Me: But how can we not worry when there is so much
> > uncertainty?
> >
> > God: Uncertainty is inevitable, but worrying is
> > optional.
> > Me: But then, there is so much pain due to
> > uncertainty.
> >
> > God: Pain is inevitable, but suffering is optional.
> > Me: If suffering is optional, why do good people
> > always suffer?
> >
> > God: Diamond cannot be polished without friction.
> > Gold cannot be purified without fire. Good people go
> > through trials, but don't suffer. With that
> > experience their life become better not bitter.
> > Me: You mean to say such experience is useful?
> >
> > God: Yes. In every term, Experience is a hard
> > teacher. She gives the test first and the lessons
> > afterwards.
> > Me: But still, why should we go through such tests?
> > Why can't we be free from problems?
> >
> > God: Problems are Purposeful Roadblocks Offering
> > Beneficial Lessons (to) Enhance Mental Strength.
> > Inner strength comes from struggle and
> > endurance, not when you are free from problems.
> >
> > Me: Frankly in the midst of so many problems, we
> > don't know where we are heading..
> >
> > God: If you look outside you will not know where you
> > are heading. Look inside. Looking outside, you
> > dream. Looking inside, you awaken. Eyes
> > provide sight. Heart provides insight.
> >
> > Me: Sometimes not succeeding fast seems to hurt more
> > than moving in the right direction.. What should I
> > do?
> >
> > God: Success is a measure as decided by others.
> > Satisfaction is a measure as decided by you. Knowing
> > the road ahead is more satisfying than knowing you
> > road ahead. You work with the compass. Let others
> > work with the clock.
> > Me: In tough times, how do you stay motivated?
> >
> > God: Always look at how far you have come rather
> > than how far you have to go. Always count your
> > blessing, not what you are missing.
> > Me: What surprises you about people?
> >
> > God: When they suffer they ask, 'why me?' When they
> > prosper, they never ask 'Why me'. Everyone wishes to
> > have truth on their side, but few want to be on the
> > side of the truth.
> > Me: Sometimes I ask, who am I, why am I here. I
> > can't get the answer.
> >
> > God: Seek not to find who you are, but to determine
> > who you want to be. Stop looking for a purpose as to
> > why you are here. Create it. Life is not
> > merely a process of discovery but a process of
> > co-creation. You are my co-creator.
> > Me: How can I get the best out of life?
> >
> > God: Face your past without regret. Handle your
> > present with confidence. Prepare for the future
> > without fear.
> > Me: One last question. Sometimes I feel my prayers
> > are not answered.
> >
> > God: There are no unanswered prayers. At times the
> > answer is NO.
> > Me: Thank you for this wonderful chat.
> >
> > God: Well. Keep the faith and drop the fear.. Don't
> > believe your doubts and doubt your beliefs. Life is
> > a mystery to solve not a problem to resolve.
> > Trust me. Life is wonderful if you know how to live.
> > 'Life is not measured by the number of breaths we
> > take but by the moments that took our breath away!

Rgds