Live Cheap in Singapore! (part 1)
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Originally posted by viciouskitty74:
You should also consider the following:
Bring your own water bottle and water. drink copious amount of it before you eat. The water will fill you up and thus you wont eat a lot, plus it helps with slimming you down.
also make your own iced green tea. brew them and store in the fridge for whenever you are thirsty.
You can also buy those Redoxon Orange fizz tablets. For when you want to drink fizzy drinks, the redoxon tablets in your normal orange juice will give u a buzz, yet is healthy enough to keep you free from cold/flu.
Bring home cooked food, tell mummy to cook more rice and dish for dinner, and you pack the rice and dishes into your microwavable container. Put into fridge and bring to school in the morning.
Buy bigger loaf of wholemeal bread. Buy cheese slices and make your own toaster baked cheese on bread.
And boil about a half dozen eggs when you buy them. Make mashed egg sandwich fillings.
Buy $10 jeans from Ck dept stalls and your bags from army market. they are lightweight and made of canvas where you can sew in stuffs you like. The army kit bags was great as luggage and I got a few more for my travelling.
Great ideas; I actually practise some of them, especially the water tip. We can all share ideas on how to minimise our expenses during bad times like this. Anyone has other ideas? -
Originally posted by Rock^Star:
This is the typical Singaporean mentality here, of which I'm guilty of too ha.
Save and save becos we only have that amount of salary. Indo chinese think differently. Due to their business background, they may probably think along the line of "How can I make more money to cover this extra expense?"
No wonder Singaporeans never move out of the study hard and get a good job mentality.
well.. when all you have is a hammer, every problem will look like a nail
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Originally posted by RETARDED_MORON:
1. Income: scholarship allowance
I was receiving S$4,300 per annum, but recently, it has been increased dramatically (good for me).2. Income: freelance work
I write legal term sheets, proposals and do some web programming for a company that I have developed a good relationship with during my months after A Levels. I'm paid $30 per page of document I write, and I don't even have any formal qualifications. This job earns me a high three-figure sum every month.3. Income: parent allowance
I've somehow managed to negotiate a 5-figure annual allowance from my parents (citing expensive books).Good right! With the extra S$750 per sem (new total S$5800 per annum) for scholarship and the five-figure allowance you have, why not spend more to help the economy? saving 10 cents when ur income is 5-figure....lol
I can't even afford to buy those expensive books. I just depend on lecture notes...and die.......
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Originally posted by Meat Pao:
Very innovative and observant tips indeed.
But perhaps you have other such food-related tips..? Like what time to eat, or how long you should sleep, or maybe even more innovative tips.
When going to economy rice stall (mixed rice stall), go AFTER the peak hour, when the vendors are more anxious to clear their food, thereby giving you greater portions. AVOID PEAK HOURS, when they tend to 'conserve' their portion giveaways.Some shops sell off unwanted food just before closing at a discount so you may want to check out these shops.
And Cook your own meal of course.
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Originally posted by RETARDED_MORON:
5. If you have decided to eat meat, pick it first
Have you ever realised that the vendors give a lot of the first dish, less of the second dish and even less of subsequent dishes? They do it most of the time, so learn to adapt!1. Cheapest places to shop
Contrary to popular belief, Fairprice really isn't the cheapest place to shop for your snacks. Try Sheng Shiong, heartland supermarkets and dollar stores instead.
I should mention that the better and more popular meat dishes tend to be located away to the end...so in the direction of crowd queue, the nicer dishes upfront would be vegetables and closer to the end would be nicer meats. So, naturally u wuld select a good dish closest to u as ur first dish (i.e. veg) end up with more veg and less meat :(Fairprice isn't necessarily more expensive. House brands can be cheaper and there is also the house brand discount. If you want common and popular brands, FairPrice would be good. But if you really want to save and don't mind cheaper Ah Tiong brands (if you have that amount of trust), go for heartland shops.
For meat and vege, don't shop in supermarkets. Go to wet markets.
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Originally posted by kench-an:
And Cook your own meal of course.
That is a matter of opportunity cost really. -
Originally posted by RETARDED_MORON:
Like I said in my original post, the optimum strategy is a two-pronged one: earn more, spend less. It's a good habit to cultivate and will serve you better than either of them alone.This is a potent strategy, mind you. Just about a year ago, I had only one stream of income: scholarship allowance. I've decided to basically do something, and now I have 3 streams of income and am working on 3 potential sources of great net worth:
1. Income: scholarship allowance
I was receiving S$4,300 per annum, but recently, it has been increased dramatically (good for me).2. Income: freelance work
I write legal term sheets, proposals and do some web programming for a company that I have developed a good relationship with during my months after A Levels. I'm paid $30 per page of document I write, and I don't even have any formal qualifications. This job earns me a high three-figure sum every month.3. Income: parent allowance
I've somehow managed to negotiate a 5-figure annual allowance from my parents (citing expensive books).4. Source of net worth: education
The biggest investment in my life. I'm doing my best to excel in law school.5. Source of net worth: business
I'm currently building my business too. Hoping to get it running before my 20th birthday.6. Source of net worth: financial investment
I've already invested more than S$20,000 in foreign currency fixed deposit, unit trust and the stock market, and I'm looking forward to investing much more. Yes, this money is my own, saved from my three streams of income and invested prudently. I'm hoping to achieve a net worth of S$100,000 by the time I graduate.The abovementioned would be the first prong. The second prong is to curtail my spending, which I'm advocating to people because it's more doable. This is my strategy anyway, and anyone with comments or ideas is welcome to share.
wow u save more than 20k under 20 that is cool create mulitple stream of income using your passion and talent and save and invest regualrly plus if u are healthy and strong create jobs start a business etc then u will be VERY VERY rich then.
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Drink from water cooler and buy 2nd hand cheapo handphones.
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Just a bump for those who still buy cai png without a clear strategy!
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don't buy things.. rob them
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don't buy things.. rob them
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Originally posted by limywv:
This is a really good read, the tips are golden.
You, sir, had just motivated the hell out of me. I really shouldn't slack so much anymore.
1 more year to A levels. After which I will pick up a job. Move on to NS, then go to University. Maybe work part time as a tuition teacher if I continue to pump out straight As from PSLE to A levels. Alright dude, I got my entire future planned out for real!
It's good that you have plans and the will to make them happen.
I always admire people who have ambition and are willing to make the necessary sacrifices to achieve them.
I wish you all the best! -
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Save a dollar or more every meal by not buying drinks. They contain too much refined sugar anyway, especially the canned and bottled ones.
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Originally posted by limywv:
I have this feeling that you will be a rising star...
I have this feeling he is a retarded moron, oh wait, he already calls himself that.
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Good for TS, your money habits are very good. Most important is to earn money and enjoy life. Good luck in your investments.
I usually spend more on food, cause I love food haha...eat mixed-rice every day is quite sian. In life as long as you dont make any major financial mistakes you should be fine to live comfortably.
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For the big loaf of bread, which most of us cannot consume in one seating.
Buy the load, have cellapane or ziplock bag available, break the loaf up, like maybe 4 slices of bread into idividual ziplock bag. freeze them in the freezer. When you need to eat bread, take it out of the freezer, put into a microwave and there you have at least 4 slices of bread to make toast, sandwicch or pack for school.
I believe school and canteen compunds now has microwaves for the staff and students?
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Instead of wasting time chit chatting with classmates.
Rip your lecture recordings into your mp3. when you take buses or walk to classes, plug in to your mp3.
Invest in a few pairs of decent sports walking shoes and walk! After class, goiing home. Singapore is not that big that you cannot walk from any mrt station.
In the morning, yes, take bus, take train go class. But your evenings are free. So walk home, work out a sweat, have a good shower and sit down for dinner.
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Originally posted by viciouskitty74:
Rip your lecture recordings into your mp3. when you take buses or walk to classes, plug in to your mp3.
Invest in a few pairs of decent sports walking shoes and walk! After class, goiing home. Singapore is not that big that you cannot walk from any mrt station.
In the morning, yes, take bus, take train go class. But your evenings are free. So walk home, work out a sweat, have a good shower and sit down for dinner.
it'll take me at least 7hours to walk home from school.
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Originally posted by sinicker:
it'll take me at least 7hours to walk home from school.
Depends on school and home lah.
I know buses are the slowest transport to go home from School. Take a mrt, then change to walking home lah.
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Originally posted by viciouskitty74:
Depends on school and home lah.
I know buses are the slowest transport to go home from School. Take a mrt, then change to walking home lah.
okay i will. home is 3mins walk from MRT station.
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and Oh....one more. Sleep Early.
learn to turn off your messenger or chat programs before 10.30pm.
You sleep early, you wake up early, you have a good breakfast, have plenty of leisure time before you go work or school, take a early early bus and enjoy the cool weather & your mp3 music/fm radio.
I believe in starting a morning where you get to take your slow time to plan your day. which means you are not in a hassle, and rush, and you wont be hankering after breaktimes to eat a lot or buy a lot.