Tag: T_zzclCarefree

ZZCL=知足.
In the open blog, this tag also includes ffree items.

exclub: wealthy Chn investors@Jill !!superior #MAPIC

Posted on by tiger40490

 

I met with Dr Soo for a short while, with Jill’s introduction. He described his China clients speaking of investing “至少一个亿 (RMB)”. I felt diminished and disqualified by the exclub (exclusive club).

  • doubt: talking vs investing… Many people talk about $X but when it comes to payment date, only invests $0.05X. I’m one of these “cautious investors”.
  • jolt: an even higher exclub… these same people would feel belittled when they meet a tycoon 10 times richer. Why do we have to feel belittled in the first place?
  • jolt: carefree ezlife .. How many of these people have a carefree easy life like mine at my age?
  • UChicago .. on a minor note, how many of these guys have a reputable degree as a personal achievement?

Q: But why the hell do I care about a f**king $100M when I have enough to spend for my lifetime, as MMM would say?
A: I think this is really exclub for the sake of exclub

Some similar experience:

  • At MAPIC, how did I feel when I heard about the multiple properties those guys own? I guess most of them are leveraged.
  • How did I feel when year ago I heard stock investors talking about the multiple stocks they own?
  • How did I feel about MD job titles my previos peers have earned? Perhaps double my salary, but also lots of stress and job insecurity.
  • How did I feel when decades ago I came across a graduate of an ivy league?

Now I have some insider info, my envy and FOLB (for these exclubs) is undergoing “release and unwind”.

— more important than the exclub of high net worth .. is the exclub of healthy longevity, i.e. the “club” of individuals who get to live a long healthy life.
Q: Who do you envy more? Which exclub do you choose if you can choose only one?

I never thought about these two choices. How obvious is it now !

— more important than the exclub of high net worth .. is the exclub of harmonious family.
Many of those wealthy China clients probably don’t have that. With their fame, riches, power and influence, they suffer.

Now I recall the Church gatherings. Rich families and modest families mingle, but I can’t tell the difference.

 

accept`lower pay as greying SWE

Posted on by tiger40490

k_X_FOMO_v_livelihood .. k_def_of_success

This bpost pulls together a number of related power phrases from the open blog, so I made a bold decision to maintain this bpost in open blog. These phrases are powerful “agents” in my world. They interact with each other, often battling each other. Some kind of harmony and /reconciliation/ is often needed. See also

The trigger: SY.C said a friend in his 50s landed a SWE job at Citadel. I said I won’t aim so high in my 50s, but that’s not passive acceptance, because I still put in some real effort on the job, on active learning, and self-improvement.

— passive acceptance of a bad outcome (i.e. lower pay)? From this point of view, I choose SS more than ZZ
知足常乐 .. I said I’m contended with my dev-till70 plan, even though salary is not so high.
— threat of early involuntary retirement? With dev-till70, I choose ZZ more than SS
— successZ^successE
Harmony? My attitude, my plan ticks both successZ and successE. I think this bpost is a worthwhile illustration of successZ.
— FOMO^livelihood .. I said in my late 50s I would aim at USD 100k/Y pre-tax, in today’s dollars. Much higher than 80% of median household income, therefore sufficient for my family.

Bold and unrealistic lifestyle  for most of my middle-class cohort.
— breakaway, wrong priority,
Q: In my 50s, how important is salary, relative to 1) sexual well-being or 2) chin-up 3) healthy diet for life

I now think successC is really a distraction from those meaningful challenges. Granted that getting a Citadel job at that age is great for learning and self-renewal. However, not everyone is so strong, competitive and capable.

I pointed out to SY.C that Citadel SWE jobs have a tough reputation, and may hurt my successE, so I may not look forward to it.

Those who still focus on exclub in their 50s probably have the wrong priorities.

 

Quiet_Boredom: coblood waste@@

Posted on by tiger40490

k_quietime  k_X_power_descriptor

In my 30s I first read an English essay about loafing in the woods, without understanding anything. In my 40s I read a short article in a China newspaper endorsing 发呆，头脑放假. I re-read later because it was contrarian and intriguing. Now in my late 40s I still struggle to get it, but am warming up and feeling somehow /enlightened/. I think this is a lifestyle improvement, mellowing up, personal growth

Q: At my age and my level of ffree, why do I still worry about coblood waste, and too much idle time?
A: Well, successE is not “complete” success as it captures one dimension of success. SuccessZ is another crucial dimension of success
A: spare time not really enough:
* piano
* AMB
* yoga classes
* daily sessions with kids

Quiet idle time is also known as quiet downtime, quiet boredom (neutral connotation). Mostly we mean planned boredom.  To me, (planned/unplanned) quiet idle time is defined as a prolonged period of doing nothing, therefore completely unproductive, free of extraneous stimulations, similar to meditation. I guess quiet idle time could be a deeper recharge for some individuals, but today I will assume this deeper recharge doesn’t work for most of us.

Unplanned Boredom can be good, as a BBC program reported. Planned downtime/boredom can be free of pain.

I guess LKY in his twilight years decided to learn meditation, perhaps to reduce physical suffering.

I think quiet idle time is not bad for some retirees and some younger people. So far, I have limited appreciation for quiet idle time. Jacob of ERE pointed out the “freedom TO” challenge. 90% of the time, I still have goals, and purposes and I still push myself towards them. One growing purpose is the need to live longer for my kids. (Longevity requires long-term effort, practice and time.) I feel I can add value to their lives. If I live longer, I can better control my surplus assets and decide how to use it to help my children and possibly their children.

— Time wastage .. may not be quiet. Conversely, quiet idle time is often considered time well spent, not wasted.
Time wasted in pain, or other unintended wastes of time are always regrettable and should be minimized. Time wasted due to inefficiency is questionable.
— Healthy longevity may benefit from quiet idle time, which is not 100% same as traditional meditation. Meditation has a more strict /prescription/.
Even though quiet boredom is unproductive, it could restore harmony and health !
— harmony .. the boredom, idleness and “coblood waste” often leave me /restless/, but I can learn to live with them in harmony.
— A quiet quasi-idle time is a more broad category including musical instrument, calligraphy, painting/drawing, gardening, baking, wife’s handcrafting, knitting,,,
— planned quiet idle time can become a pastime, with a growing importance in my carefree ezlife. See 4 def@success 

def[ focusing_effect ] ≠ focus_illusion #BGC

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k_X_focusing_illusion .. k_my_adapted_jargon

Focusing_effect tends to exaggerate the importance/impact/influence of whatever comes under the /magnifying_glass/. The above description of focusing_effect is 80% similar to the Focusing_illusion defined in [[thinking, fast and slow]]. Due to the subtle differences, I don’t want to be shackled by the existing definition. However, the header keyword will continue to use the well-known focusing_illusion

The commonplace advice “focus on the positive” .. often works exactly due to the focusing_effect

— special vocab .. In many cases, without focus we simply don’t recognize something subtle, something vague.

In my blogg experience, I often needed a vocabulary [including power phrases] as a focus lens to recognize a pattern. The best-known example might be the vocab in [[thinking, fast and slow]] — rmSelf^xpSelf, System1^2. I also created my own vocab (see also blogg→ life evaluation →more satisfactionS)

— eg: the BGC title delay is no big deal until we focus on it.
eg: comparable example is Jill’s cases. Simpler because no “next step”.
In both examples, I enjoyed a carefree comfort zone until I focused on “it”.
— eg: until I became fixated on college ranking, I didn’t care so much about _MY_ UChicago/NUS branding. Now I feel this obsession is not healthy, but it has some positive effects [satisfaction, self-esteem]
— eg: self-discipline .. in kids and adults. My dad and I have superior SD. My sis had less SD. Therefore, I tend to exaggerate SD, even though SD is actually rather important to my son.
Personal initiative .. a similar story. I tend to exaggerate its importance in my son.
— eg: youth addictions … I tend to focus on tobacco, alcohol and drug. I think many Chinese parents agree on the impact, but still we tend to exaggerate the impact to some extent.
— eg: yoga .. focus on and exaggerating the importance of flexibility
— eg: (one of the earliest examples) Mark deMunk said that when he lost his front teeth, he would focus on other people’s front teeth and notice many minor defects (exaggerating)
(An even earlier example) one of my Catcha colleagues (Indonesian) experienced early hair loss in his 20s, and he joked that he now tended to focus on other men’s hair (exaggerating)

==== The opposite effect is crucial though there is no catchy phrase for it. When we don’t focus enough on something, we fail to realize how important it actually is, until much later. One example is healthy longevity. A smaller example is career longevity.

eg: perfect life.. I used this phrase at the 92S27 reunion. In 2018, I started feeling very comfortable with my carefree ezlife. Until I focused on it, I didn’t feel /blessed/. Grandpa called it 知足, a rare state of mind.

 

I thought: medical professionals confined to SG market

Posted on by tiger40490

background: I am now feeling blessed to enjoy the low-cost carefree comfortable[1] life in Singapore. However, for decades I felt superior to doctors who can’t make a living outside the tiny city of Singapore. Here’s my reconciliation, mostly related to livelihood:

  • both doctors and people like I can aim lower and choose stable income, not rising income
  • I no longer seek career growth or leadership
  • brbr, Fuller wealth .. are the foundations of my carefree ezlife. Inflation is addressed by my “portfolio”.

[1] I didn’t write “low-cost good life” because of conflicting connotations

— what if Singapore declines?
I’m not 30 any more, so if this starts to happen in my 50’s I can cope even without leaving Singapore.

 

carefree≅plenty @ t$buffer #harbor required !

Posted on by tiger40490

k_soul_search ,,, k_office_sanctuary

To most people, “carefree” depends primarily on BRBR (buffer in terms of $) but a second factor is a buffer of spare time

  • Long commute eats into this buffer.
  • Noisy home also eats into this buffer because the most precious time is private time.

— harbor in office .. I didn’t really know how carefree I would feel without the harbor of the office, but if I recall the lockdown period I think my carefree life was messed up.

SGrn workers]40s: all-the-way despite low pay #w1r3

Posted on by tiger40490

“Most of them in the 40s are already stable and don’t want to quit. Even though the pay may not be so good, they’re willing to work all the way[1]. It’s an easy-going life.”

[1] I interpret “all the way” as all the way to retirement age or beyond, no change of direction, not giving in to boredom or stagnation, sticking to the chosen career despite occasional challenges (FOLB, pains, disappointments, setbacks).

I feel in this one-line description the stereotypical wage earner is not ambitious, often non-aggressive (even passive), often not so expensive. As such, this guy is often retained for his loyalty, value-for-money. This is by no means a general rule, not even the dominant pattern. Just look at Jack Zhang.

The observer was comparing SG (white or blue collar) employees across 3 or 4 age bands, and this is his/her brief observation of the cohort of 40-something. This observation is becoming increasingly descriptive of me… Semi-retired on the back of my passive income streams. Actually, my style of easy life is a common aspiration, even among my friends in a various age band:

  • Kun.Hu .. gave up on trader or desk quant domains. He gave many incisive explanations
  • XH.Fu .. really treasures his free time
  • H.Yi .. didn’t feel the need to earn higher and higher
  • Kam of RTS .. went to Swift

 

 

[20]G6 PERSONAL traits4carefree feat #ffree++

Posted on by tiger40490

k_tectonic

For a background on my current carefree status, see

see also ##lifelong Habits i wish to pass to next generation

In contrast to G4 PERSONAL advantages: Revealed over15Y #byHalf, this current blogpost explores a (hopefully) diverse range of “traits”.

Q: The attachment question — am I holding on to these “things” too tight?
A: yes to financial assets, health

If I must name top 3 (personal/non-personal) factors for my ffree relative to my peers, then 1) citizenship 2) burn 3) credit risk taking. However, this blogpost is more about personal traits for my self-made carefree status (I didn’t say “ffree”). In other words,

Q: Look at my (no-mean) achievements over the last 20Y in terms of “carefree”, what personal qualities, not external factors, do I attribute them to?

Shorter and specific answers best. Roughly ranked

  • [bp] 1) absorbency — joy of learning + body-building, esp. valuable in U.S. and c++/java market , not support or sys-admin or web dev.
    • [b] body-building success
  • [p] 4) self discipline, self-improvement, motivation (not “ambition”), focus on my priorities and giving up many battles.
  • [p] 6) focus on spare time — I got so much achieved in my spare time
  • —- the big, familiar items
  • [p] 2) wellness habits — confidence to keep working productively till old age
    • [bd] wellness condition
  • [bp] 3) burn rate — a frugal wife was my blessing
    • Avoid debt. Live within my means
  • [dp] 5) steadfast focus on non-work income, rather than windfall. My non-work income is key to my bare-bones ffree
    • calculated risk-taking, esp. credit risk
  • — other interesting traits
  • [p] resilience — (not “optimism” exactly) I have had my share of setbacks, adversities,,,
  • [p] reflective blogging habit — as a coping method. Self-knowledge
  • boycott to FOMO — see separate blogpost

Now, below are some of the personal qualities that I would not include in the heavy-hitter list. Some don’t contribute to ‘carefree‘ exactly. Some don’t qualify as ‘personal‘ qualities.

  • [p] careful planning of career and cash flow — to be elaborated
  • [bd] Singapore citizenship — (not so personal) esp. housing, CPF-life, resilient currency,, Some would name this as the #1 “carefree” factor but vast majority of Singapore citizens are not carefree.
  • [bd] stable marriage — my dumb luck or my karma? Doesn’t sound like a personal quality
  • [!d] credentials — UChicago and NUS, reputable ibanks. No attachment 🙂
  • [d] hand-picked collection of bx plans — (not a personal quality) medishield, eldershileld,,,
  • —
  • [b=a blessing]
  • [p=personality attribute]
  • [d=holding too tight, so detachment needed]

##[19]living%%dream life #wide-rang`

Posted on by tiger40490

k_bedBug_wisdom  .. k_tectonic .. k_detach

See also

The shorter the better.. preferably the heavy hitters Only — the elements of the dream life I envisioned 10..20 years ago.

Note this blogpost, published in 2019 in the New York, is about dream life, something similar to ‘carefree life’.

Q: Can we feel satisfied yet reasonably detached? I think it’s beneficial to consciously strive for Deeper detachment.

  1. — G9 heavy hitters
  2. [A] beautiful wife — #1 part of my lifelong dream. In contrast, kids are not part of my original dream life
  3. [fa] cash flow high ground (brbr, FullerWealth) though salary lower than FTE, and no bonus prospect (at peace)
  4. [gA] convincing trec in a elite profession with growth and more importantly…. market depth. Note market depth also means large number of decent choices, something not available in Singapore or China !
  5. [gA] compared to China and Singapore, WallSt contract market is age-friendly to older guys like me, providing a real prospect of dev-till-70
  6. [ga] robust career longevity in a stable domain, arguably higher security than the FTE. See G5 Shields@family_livelihood #workout #600w for more details.
  7. [wa] vitality — sleep, appetite, bmi, belly, fitness ..
  8. [fa] Singapore’s affordable healthcare + medi-shield
  9. [f] debt-free + passive incomes on appreciating assets. Personal balance sheet projected till retirement
  10. [f] concrete, spacious, well-located, low-maintenance home, paid off
  • —- the most fundamental parts of a person’s dream life are often “freedom from unwanted …”:
  • [w] no bulging belly, no other weight problem
  • [w] freedom from physical or emotional pains such as sleep, tooth, neck, plantar fasciitis
  • [wa] freedom from no-pain-but-worrisome health conditions
  • [f] freedom from mortgage + other debts #overlap with another item but a different angle
  • [f] freedom from cash-flow strain #overlap OK
  • [f] freedom from worry about retirement, medical, college funding
  • [g] freedom from immigration concerns … complex unknowns. I can Feel the collective pains of thousands of immigrants from China, India, East Europe, …
  • freedom from two long commutes each weekday eating into my precious spare time and rest time. A huge pain for me.
  • [g] freedom from PIP, damaged goods…
  • [w] freedom from unsustainable work stress #not strictly [w] or [g]
  • [g] freedom from monotonous yet tiring job
  • freedom from conflicts with wife, in-laws, or kids
  • no criminal record
  • [wa] no sexual difficulty
  • [wa] no deteriorating eyesight or stiff joints which are common at my age.
  • —- short-term (and specific) factors of my current dream life
  • [w] no stigma (deadliest pain) due to PIP, bonus, boss pressure
  • no tough decision
  • carefree ≅ plenty @ t$buffer
  • —- other specific Details of my dream life
  • no bedbug
  • no green card worries
  • no credit report anxiety
  • [w] diet and weight under control. No craving for starch or fat or sugar
  • [w] affordable yoga + exercise classes
  • [w] cheap fruits and raw veg
  • [w] living close to exercise park
  • —- factors NOT part of my current “dream life”
  • [a] ? promotion?  isn’t part of my current dream life.
  • [A] ? keeping-up-with-the-Joneses? isn’t part of my current dream life.
  • [a|A = too much attachment ]
  • [w = wellness]
  • [f =financial health, over long term]
  • [g =gz i.e. robust career, over long term]

##[24]livelihood shield won’t fend off these”pains”

Posted on by tiger40490

k_rmSelf_vs_xpSelf

When we Struggle against or Cope with multiple /issueuns/, we often envy the affluent. We imagine their lives are less stressful, less frustrating, less /burdened/. Actually, “carefree bubble” depends on many factors such as number of dependents, amount of belongings (baggage), support network (citizenship?). However, this bpost is focused on the factors of livelihood, such as affluence,,,

Even if well-provided-for and without livelihood hardships, some people (including my family-n-fiends) can feel real pains due to

  • physical pains and psychological pains .. phobia, anxiety, depression…
  • serious lack of self-discipline, or substance abuse, or addiction, in the self or a family member. Remember Biden’s son.
  • wasted personal potential? If livelihood fine, then the “waste” is tolerable?
  • failure in love relationships (incl. non-starter)… “Affluence” doesn’t meet this need.
  • chronic family conflicts .. eg: me vs in-laws; between grandparents; sis vs grandpa
  • injustice .. eg: MajesticVillage and https://tanbinvest.dreamhosters.com/wp-admin/post.php?post=24197&action=edit
  • gross unfair treatment … eg? Not winning a promotion or recognition for your contribution; Losing a /rewarding/ job for a bitter reason like personality, or unfair dismissal (K.Hu?)

Bias of hindsight and rmSelf.. I would say a lot of times such an “event” does cause livelihood issues “for a while”. Could be a few days to a few years. I guess many (rmSelf) dismiss the livelihood “stress” in hind sight, but in the midst of it the stress our xpSelf does feel non-trivial and permanent pains (just as covid19 threat felt like in 2020).

— Q: How about during the retirement phase .. will livelihood shield fend off these pains?

  • physical declines … are likely.
  • I may be more dependent on others
  • work headaches reduced, but we may miss the engagement, the purpose, the F2F interaction. I would rather stay employed in a light-duty job, and endure some non-trivial stress
  • Parenting pains reduced
  • family conflict may reduce due to smaller family
  • no more personal potential to waste