k_not_only_luck   k_x_mellow_up  k_tectonic

Genesis: After the Sep 2023 PEK trip (aging parents), I realized something that I ignored for decades. Many endeavors are ineffective — either underwhelming, unrewarding or basically fruitless. Their effectiveness can be short-lived, or hard to maintain.

The more we recognize, respect and remember this human reality, the better we would be able to appreciate those effective endeavors, however small.

A Big-scale illustration .. TeamSG [more than PAP gov].. progressively moved up the global city ranking, on many fronts/indicators, and not by luck or historical advantage. Many countries and cities try to copy Singapore’s formula and often fail to get ahead. SG is exceptional. This bpost goes beyond competition or mindshare.

• [u=not a foregone conclusion, perhaps unexpected]
• [u] Covid19 .. SG coped better than many cities. I tend to take it for granted, but in 2020 it was by no means a foregone conclusion. SG system’s reputation is always at stake, and risk of missteps is always clear and present.
• Traffic jams are less severe than many big cities.
• Housing affordability for young couples and low-income families is better than most comparable rich cities.
  graduate unemployment rate is well-managed even during a down turn.
• [U] The rise of NUS/NTU ranking is faster than I thought.
• [u] From nowhere, SG rose steadily as a regional and now global financial center, overtaking Tokyo and HK in many competitions. Not easy at all. Which city can emulate SG?
• [U] Many China (and India) immigrants have decided to take root here (not “stepping stone”) … much more than I expected years ago. These immigrants could have chosen N.America, Europe, Australia or HK.

Similarly, it’s no mean achievement of me to avoid falling behind on any front, and to get ahead in a few races. Here are some effective multi-year endeavors .

— half ranked by … the most “unexpected” to the least unexpected within each domain. I prefer fresh, specific items. Do not include “effective solutions that aren’t endeavors”

• [v=vague]
• [u|U=unexpected, Unbelieveable success]
• [b=good battery, relatively easy to maintain]
• [======== battery (hard) to maintain]
• [] reducing academic expectation placed on my kids.. decade-long struggle, still working on it.
• [b] my DIYHI learning journey since I bought my first home in Blk 177 #4-116 .. effective by my standard. I’m improving and learning. I don’t compare with the pros.
• [u] books .. a headache for future relocations .. I have /adapted/ an effective solution
• [] solo flight [search, prep,,,] .. Over the decades I developed home-grown solutions. Cost-effective.
• [v] Spouse relationship, intimacy and communications .. requires continuous adjustment and effort
• —- personal tech # usuallly not arduous “endeavors”
• [] my home printer and multi-laptop set-up .. effective research and experiment. Cost-effective solutions, much needed in my low burn rate lifestyle.
• ~~ blogg technique/infrastructure
• [b] my git-blog and wpress customizations meet real personal needs .. effectively. minor tweaks: gd2, commit hooks, and
• .. minimize count of “open editors”
• [b] personal blog _review_ .. Most journal writers don’t re-read earlier writings. We lack an effective system to get anything useful out of earlier writings. My blog has some useful content for the future me. An effective review system is challenging. Am working on it.
• .. extensive x-ref system based on tags and categories
• .. short titles
• .. print out to review en-route
• —- wellness
• [U] The 2018/2019 BMI improvement was unprecedented and unimaginable .. effective for 2 years.
• [u] 2023 JPM5.6k .. my timing was no mean achievement. My workout regime was proven effective in this decisive test.
• [bU] liking my own appearance .. to my surprise, i have grown to like my own appearance [face, body shape,hair,,]. Not luck. More like mellow-up
• [u] my multi-year focus on chin-up among all muscle workouts .. effective monitoring of weight. Builds my confidence
• [bU] 5/wk (beyond chin-up) .. rare among my cohort. For years, it has helped my self-esteem, BMI motivation/self-assessment
• [u] small belly .. not common among my cohort. My lifestyle has been effective in this respect. Important for t2dm prevention
• [b] lotus ] mrt .. for years, it has improved my self-esteem, helped my git-blogg on MRT
• [u] stretching 1 minute/D (about half the days).. since 2019 (before Covid), I have followed an effective [sustainable, pragmatic] regime
• [] left hand practice with mouse/toothbrush/basketball .. I believe this is effective in brain training
• [u] standing desk at home .. I do stand average 30 min a day at home, sometimes 5H
• therapeutic blogg as mult-decade endeavor… is effective? See ##[23]coping solutions #R.Teo困扰
• some of those “faking” efforts are effective self-persuasions practiced over the years
• car ownership as a wellness issue .. see below
• —- pff
• [b] exp recon .. highly effective and fairly efficient
• [b] deposit-interest optimization using EGA etc and RBBT .. effective, as Linna pointed out.
• [bu] Over decades, my burn rate is effectively maintained around 5k/M, below half my income
• [b] insurance .. For decades (since my 20s) I thought insurance was ineffective for my needs, but now I feel my suit of (10?) protections fit my family needs, cost-effectively. My effort? Mostly analysis and experiment.
• [b] IRS annual legwork .. since 2018, I have effectively adapted and /streamlined/ my process.
• [v] retirement plann .. (comparable to devTill70) It is a concrete plan based on real evidence + personal research, and an effective road map
• car ownership as a pff issue .. see below
• —- gz + xx
• [bU] Chinese composition ..
• [bu] English .. overcoming my handicap from 1991 to 1993, and turning a weakness into a strength over the subsequent 10 years.
• .. English vocab blog
• MSFM study method .. adapted over 3Y based on results + my limitations
• [bu] professional trec since Verizon .. effective in personal branding.
• [bU] branded degree .. i was effective to enroll then excel in MSFM after giving up on “branded degree” in 1994
• [bu] i am still able to help friends with CIV in my late 40s, though I’m slower than before. No mean achievement. It is not an automatic result of some external “system”. I had to work on it and I will need to continue working on it.
• [bu] bonus satisfactions in recent years… foregone conclusion after some good years? Not at all. Luck is one minor factor. I’m effective in managing my own expectations.
• [b] devTill70 plan… Many people dismiss it as a mere plan, but I take my plan seriously. It is a concrete plan based on real evidence + personal research, and an effective road map
• [U] Unbelievably, no operational error committed by me so far. It’s impossibly hard ot keep 100% record.
• [uv] My Java (c++ to a lesser extent) knowledge retention is robust
• —- disqualified items .. not really multi-year endeavors
• diversification in investment .. despite concentration in rEstate (diversified properties) I score high on asset-class and currency diversification. Effective by common standard

— car ownership .. (multi-year endeavor)

Throughout my career and family-building in Sg and U.S., my personal strategy [decisions, plann/executions, adjustments] about car ownership is .. surprisingly effective. Effective in terms of burn rate, physical/mental wellness, dependency reduction, minimalist living,,,

Most of my peers “need” a car. They give various explanations of personal needs. It sounds like “so hard to cope without a car in this (part of) country”, but I think what they mean is “Since I can afford [1] (to lease) a car, it is proving extremely convenient.”

Many point to their own work/home locations, but hey, look at my choice of locations. I chose them to minimize car dependency.

[1] Affordability is personal. I can afford so I do fly up to 4/year for family reunion. Not essential, but a personal priority.

I did spend about USD 1k twice learning to drive. In 2018/19 I also practiced with zipcar. That’s part of my effective endeavor.

— Q: What strategic progresses are relatively easy to maintain? A similar theme and related to [b]
As stated in the Genesis section, many tough progresses are easy to lose and hard to maintain, and require continuous effort. See bpost on battery.

• [] diet experiment, learning .. I think the self-knowledge (and to a lesser extent, the scientific knowledge) is a battery I can build up.
• [] yoga self-practice .. I wrote many bposts and practiced many times. Hard to maintain
• [] coding drill .. battery holding OK
• div stock picking
• [] rental property … maintenance effort
• ? r-ikigai planning and research
• ? parenting .. experiment and discussion. So far, this is not an effective, strategic effort
• — disqualified items

— unbroken suprisingly.. a related but loose concept. I feel lucky to find many things unbroken. Some of the “unbroken” are excluded from the “effective endeavor” list and “exiled” here.

• — gz
• no major compliance issue
• — parenting and family
• Boy is showing some control on diet, not getting out of control
• Kids’ television time is not growing worse
• — devices
• pad lock
• home routers and printers
• Laptops (Lenovo$399, Dell$250, HP…) + phone no major issue after so long. A95 is slowing down esp. during restarts but fine.
• — pff
• HDB home few issues. I had more issues in the past but no details needed
• BGC rental
• Energy12 reliable monthly income
• USD and SGD both staying strong
• — wellness
• boy’s myopia
• ED pills .. continues to be effective
• eyesight, hearing still holding up
• blood pressure, and blood sugar …
• cholesterol, myopia stablized ..
• my health condition during long flights
• Dental condition
• Health of everyone in the family