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Spencer Li

Dangerous Myths About Trading that Could be Affecting Your Profitability

Beginner's Guide
Dangerous Myths About Trading that Could be Affecting Your Profitability

If you listen frequently to the mainstream media, or take advice from friends and family who are not traders themselves, they might give some good-intentioned but ill-informed advice, which could harm your trading results.

Such dangerous myths about trading might seem to be “common knowledge” because they keep getting repeated frequently, but have you stopped to consider whether they are really true?

Here are some common myths:

  • Trading is very risky because you can lose all your capital
  • Forex is more risky than stocks
  • Leverage increases your risk
  • You need a lot of capital to start trading
  • You need to trade very often if you want to make more money
  • You need to monitor prices and charts 24/7
  • Brokers are out to hunt your stoploss

Do these sound familiar?

Today, I will tackle 3 of the most common myths.

 

MYTH #1: TRADING WITH LEVERAGE INCREASES YOUR RISK

(Reality: Trading with leverage reduces capital required, but risk can be kept the same.)

The media handles the idea of leverage very poorly, because it often sensationalizes the trader who over-leverages and blows everything.

The idea is simple: I have $100, and I leverage so that I can trade $500 or $1000 of stock/forex. I make one bad trade, and I’m wiped out.

This is true for the person without proper risk-management. After all, the temptation of leverage is to dump all your money into one trade, max out the leverage, and hopefully you make 500% on one trade and can call it a day. The truth is, these lucky trades do happen in reality. Eventually though, the trader with his newfound wealth (and greed), piles his money into another trade, and loses everything.

Leverage kills the person who abuses it. It’s like fire; it can cook food for people, or it can kill people.

Leverage, in practice, actually keeps you disciplined. In forex trading, using leverage is actually a standard practice. When you use leverage, you are actually committing less margin to a trade, and you can get comfortable with trading by committing as little margin as possible. Here’s what I mean:

For example, suppose you have a stop loss of -$10 and a target profit of +$30, and you make a trade of unknown size X.

1:100 leverage – Margin committed for X lots = $102.50 (I’m making this up)

1:500 leverage – Margin committed for X lots = $20.50 (five times smaller)

In the case of higher leverage, you stay comfortable because even though the stop loss is -$10, you see that the margin committed on your account is only $20.50. This allows you to not have to see the wild fluctuations in margin requirement, and keep your trading size small.

Also, trading with higher leverage allows you to take multiple positions with little capital. With as little as $500, you can take 3-5 forex positions with leverage, risking anywhere from $5 to $20 or so for each trade. This is a great way to start for aspiring forex traders.

 

MYTH #2: BROKERS ARE OUT TO HIT YOUR STOP LOSSES

(Reality: You get stopped out because of the market, not because of the broker.)

Many people who have been trading for some time get convinced that the broker wants them to be stopped out of their positions. I’ve heard of this and seen it happen: the trade hits your stop loss, then immediately goes in your favour and flies in the direction you want, and then you beat yourself up and say “I was supposed to make $XYZ on this trade but I got stopped out because of the stupid broker!”

The truth is, the broker has better things to do than to keep hunting the stoploss on your account.

At least, this is for brokers who want to remain in business over the long-term. How do brokers make money? They make money only if you keep trading. Why would any broker want you to stop trading? They would actually want you to be profitable, because for every trade you make, they get a small cut from the spread (also known as the bid-ask spread). Essentially, they want you to love trading and trade so much and so often that they get large revenues from spreads.

Why in the world would the broker want to stop you out?The reason why we get stopped out, is because we are bad traders.

Professionals are buying or selling exactly where your stop loss is placed, because they know that the average investor would place their stop loss there.

The solution to not getting stopped out, is to first acknowledge that trading involves some positions getting stopped out. Being right 40-50% of the time is already sufficient for you to be profitable, so don’t be surprised if half your positions get stopped out.

One example is a sideways market. Beginners love to enter on sideways markets because it presents many signals in both directions. However, professionals are buying and selling at the extremes of the sideways markets, causing beginners to get stopped out repeatedly, while professionals make money repeatedly.Remember that there is another trader on the other side who is filling your order; if you are losing money, it is because someone else is taking money from your account, and putting it in their account.

MYTH #3: FOREX IS MORE RISKY THAN STOCKS

(Reality: Risk is independent on the product, and forex actually requires less capital.)

In the forex market, you can ‘get a feel of the game’ by risking a few dollars per trade. By trading the smallest lot size (0.01 lots), you can easily make many trades and rack up trading experience by “trading live” without incurring hefty losses. By learning to make many decisions and experiencing all the different conditions of the market, you would become seasoned enough to trade a bigger size, and fine-tune your own trading strategy to become profitable in the long-run.

Many traders discover they have certain characteristics about themselves that hinder success. In trading a ‘live’ account with a small sum of money, they are putting in some skin in the game, and getting used to the ups and downs of their account. The best part about forex is that there are no fixed commission charges (stocks tend to have a fixed minimum fee regardless of trade size), making the ‘tuition’ fees a lot less than trading in stocks.

Another great thing about forex is that thee market is open 24/7 on weekdays, so you can decide when to trade based on your schedule. That helps people who have busy working schedules: trading in the middle of the night, or during lunch, on a daily basis, works out to a trading schedule that accommodates your lifestyle needs.

Lastly, with regards to price movements, stocks tend to see bigger gaps between days. Here’s what I mean:

 

forexForex pairs/currency futures tend to have less gaps between bars; bars close and open at roughly the same price.

 

stockMost stocks have gaps between the candlesticks/bars, due to the opening and closing of the market every day.

 

Gaps make the analysis a little more complex, because you have to take into account the size of the gap along with the actual candlestick printed on the chart. Forex allows you to employ technical analysis more simply, and learn how to read price action without the distraction of having to figure out what the gap means.

 

thumbnail beginner guide to trading and TA

If you would like to learn how to get started in trading, also check out: “The Beginner’s Guide to Trading & Technical Analysis”

0 Comments/by Spencer Li
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Spencer Li

FREE Market Outlook Seminar in Penang: What are the Best Investment Opportunities for 2017?

News & Events
penang market outlook

This coming Saturday (25 Feb 2017), I have been once again invited to speak in Malaysia about the market outlook, and this time I will be speaking in Penang! [Scroll all the way down to register.]
 

Thanks for the full-house turnout during my speaking slot! It was really exciting to share the stage with so many other prominent speakers, such as Hu Liyang, Kathlyn Toh, David Kuo, Dr Thiti Tharasuk, etc ??? #investfair #guestspeaker #fullhouse

A post shared by Spencer Li ?? Synapse Trading (@iamrecneps) on Jul 4, 2016 at 12:19am PDT


 
For those of you (outside Singapore) who don’t know me, I am a professional trader with over 10 years of market experience, and have been featured more than 20 times in various media. I hold double degrees in accounting & finance (dean’s list), and I’m also a globally accredited CFTe, and one of the few official trainers for the Singapore Stock Exchange (SGX).


I was thrust into the media limelight when I retired at 27 (in 2013) and spent the next few years travelling around the world (50+ countries) while trading just 15 minutes a day.

Since this is my first time in Penang, I will be conducting an exclusive FREE workshop to share the 4 strategies that my students and I use to make 20-40% annual returns consistently. These strategies work for stocks, forex, CFDs, etc.

In addition, I will be logging into my live trading account to show my all my trades and also the records of my students.

Workshop details:

  • Date: 25 February 2017
  • Time: 9.00 am to 12.00 pm
  • Venue: YMCA Penang

To register, please whatsapp +65-9772-4280 or email info@synapsetrading.com with the following details:

  • Full name
  • Email address
  • Contact number
  • Number of tickets

Seats are very limited for this one-time event, so it will be based on a first-come, first-serve basis.

Good luck, and see you there! 😀

0 Comments/by Spencer Li
https://synapsetrading.com/wp-content/uploads/2017/02/penang-market-outlook.png 533 1029 Spencer Li https://synapsetrading.com/wp-content/uploads/2019/10/logo.jpg Spencer Li2017-02-21 00:20:042018-09-05 03:02:10FREE Market Outlook Seminar in Penang: What are the Best Investment Opportunities for 2017?
Spencer Li

6 Little-Known Things Rich People Do Differently that Give Them an Advantage

Living Your Best Life
Title card: 6 little-known things rich people do differently, Synapse Trading

Many people do not realise that small things add up. Like how a small river can cut through rock and form grand canyons, small habits can add up over time to produce vastly different results. This means that quite often, a small change in the way we do certain things can result in huge leaps in improvement. So here are some things that rich people do differently:

1. MAKE MANY SMALL & FREQUENT WINS, NOT A FEW BIG WINS

1

Trading is boring. Ask any seasoned trader in a proprietary fund, and they will tell you the same thing. It’s all about doing the same thing over and over again, and it is surprisingly difficult to do something simple over a very long period of time.

Some of the richest people I know own very humble businesses. One example is the typical food hawker; it’s unexciting, it’s repetitive, but hey, it gives a very stable source of income, week in, week out. It is virtually impossible for good food to become irrelevant to the typical consumer, and hence this source of income is one that will last a long time.

In trading, it’s the same. Small wins add up over time, and instead of being diligent, many aspiring traders choose to take the easy way and just look for that one quick way to make money. Although the news always glorifies the one-hit wonders, like Zuckerberg and other billionaire tech founders, the majority of the rich are not overnight successes, and they know this rule best: small wins add up over time.

 

2. THINK IN % ROI, NOT DOLLARS OF INCOME

Compounding is the way to go. Although you might be nauseating because this is probably the 100th article on the power of compounding, it really works. Just take a moment and think with me:

Nobody would learn trading if you claim to make $10 a day. They want $100 a day, $1000 a day, but forget that it starts with $10 a day.

That’s why most people fail to achieve financial success. They measure monetary success in dollar terms, and fail to consider that ROI is what brings true riches over the long-run.

Thinking in ROI is a very huge barrier for many people, and it actually benefits you because when you finally do make a substantial sum of money, you will still be thinking in terms of ROI and not be overwhelmed by the huge amount of funds on your plate.

I’ve seen many traders do well on small accounts, only to blow up with larger accounts because they have not drilled the ROI concept deep into their minds.

If you can make 3% a month, that’s $30 for a $1000 account, $300 for a $10,000 account, and $3,000 for a $100,000 account. Go figure. If your focus is on % ROI, you will not have an issue growing your wealth quickly.

 

3. STAY AWAY FROM ALL FORMS OF GAMBLING

This point is probably the easiest to write about:

Gambling = negative expectation

Investing/trading = positive expectation

“I bet I can stop gambling!”

Gambling gives you hope, which is false and always gets dashed.

Investing gives you certainty, which is true and rewards the skillful.

I think that’s enough said. If you’re gambling for the thrill, treat it as expenses. As a trader I always think in probabilities, so since the expected return from gambling is negative, the rational decision is to not participate at all.

In addition, 1 in 5 gambling addicts attempt suicide. It destroys your family, your friendships, your sense of sanity, and your work ethic. I think it’s enough to let you realize it won’t get you rich; even the seemingly innocent TOTO or 4D that you buy is not a rational attempt for someone to earn big money.

 

4. TIME IS WORTH MORE THAN MONEY

Quite often, people will go to great lengths to save money, for example spending hours hunting around for cheap shopping deals, when all you save for your hours of effort is a mere $10-20. Rich people know the value of their time.

One important question to ask yourself is, “what is the $ value of 1 hour of your time?” If 1 hour of your time is only worth $2, then spending an hour queueing up for free ice-cream might make sense. However, if one hour of your time is worth $200, then taking a $20 cab ride to save an hour of transport will make a lot of sense. You get the idea.

At this point, you might have realised that one if the key ways to increase your net worth is to gradually work your way up by increasing the value of your time. After all, everyone has 24 hours in a day, but the more value you can create in one hour of your time, the higher you will be paid for it, and the higher the value of that hour will be.

 

5. DON’T WASTE MONEY ON CHEAP STUFF – ONLY BUY QUALITY GOODS

It’s sad that most people are thrifty in things that do not matter, but silly when it comes to investments of thousands or hundreds of thousands of dollars. I’ve seen people scrimp on their daily meals, yet when it comes to investments, blow $50,000 on an investment fund they do not understand, or buy into a multi-currency deposit that doesn’t even make sense.

Home purchases, which make up the bulk of most people’s expenditures, tend to be bad decisions. People buy houses that they cannot afford, spend money on renovations that don’t matter, and waste money where it doesn’t bring returns.

1Most people are smart with small sums of money, but unwise on big decisions

Rich people buy things that appreciate in value, while poor people don’t. Electronics generally don’t appreciate in value. If you consider buying electronics, buy quality electronics, and keep them in tip-top condition so that you can resell them at a decent price. And… just because it’s the latest gadget doesn’t mean it’s quality. You’ve got to do your research and think about your purchases if you are serious about your money.

Wine does appreciate in value, and so do quality branded goods. Some Louis Vuitton bags appreciate in value, and it would do you well to consult experts if you are intending to use these products.

Other things that are not worth spending on include:

  • fast food
  • low-quality makeup
  • gifts that don’t really matter
  • alcohol
  • bottled water
  • cheap shoes/clothing that you throw away within 6 months

Yes. It might hurt to read this, but if you need a total personal finance audit, then it helps to do a reality check on yourself.

 

6. LASTLY, RECOGNIZE THAT PERSONAL DEBT IS A SHACKLE

Personal debt chains you from spending on what really matters. In the U.S, many undergraduates end their college years with US$100,000 and above in personal debt. How in the world would they be able to start a family, much less get a home to live in?

In my opinion, the only useful loan is the humble HOME LOAN. Yes, a loan for the house you actually live in, not the house that you would not live in. It is essential to have a roof over your head that you own, because when your business fails, when you lose your job, you still have somewhere to rest and find solace while you sort things out. The worst thing you can find yourself in is having no house, no money, and no one to support you at your lowest moment. Using debt to buy additional houses is a bad idea unless you are a real estate investor by profession and you know what you are doing.

Car loans are unnecessary. Unless you have a dire need for a car, buy the car in cash as much as possible, or just take a taxi everywhere since you can afford it anyway. Credit card loans are the jaws of death for many; stay away from them, and just follow the simple mantra of  “spending below your means”. 

Spend below your means, but also look to expand your means.

Too many people get stuck in the “spending below your means” mentality, and fail to consider how they can acquire more sources of income. In fact, having no personal debt frees you to make decisions that allow you to work towards financial freedom, which may require you to have no income for months or years in a row.

 

WHAT SHOULD I DO?

I hope that these 6 tips will get you toward your goal of financial freedom. Keep at it! Remember, if you change your habits, you will change your outcomes. Live like the rich do, and you’ll soon be living the life that the rich do.

Reading this article without putting the tips into practice is like looking into a mirror and forgetting what you look like. It might hurt at the start, but changing the way you live could very well change your destiny!

Wishing you all the best in your journey!

 

RESEARCH SOURCES & REFERENCES

sbr.com.sg/commercial-property/commentary/state-industry-rise-self-storage-in-singapore
businesstimes.com.sg/hub/property-2016/self-storage-industrial-space-poised-to-expand
nreionline.com/self-storage/self-storage-sector-maintains-steady-growth
alternet.org/how-gambling-can-kill-you-faster-drug-abuse-or-alcoholism
wondergressive.com/20-biggest-wastes-money/

 

thumbnail an unofficial guide to living our best life beyond financial freedom

If you are excited to get more life hacks, also check out: “Beyond Financial Freedom: An Unofficial Guide to Living Your Best Life”

 

0 Comments/by Spencer Li
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Spencer Li

Guest Speaker at Singapore Stock Exchange (SGX)

News & Events
sgx live trading stage photo

Last Monday, I was invited as an SGX trainer to speak at “Live Trading Mondays”, to share my views on the general market outlook, and more specifically on O&M (offshore and marine) counters.

Guest Speaker at Singapore Stock Exchange (SGX)

I also took the chance to do a full analysis of various major market themes, as well as my predictions for major markets like stock indices, Gold, Oil, etc.

Guest Speaker at Singapore Stock Exchange (SGX) 2

Guest Speaker at Singapore Stock Exchange (SGX) 3

It was a great sharing session, and we managed to identify several good trading opportunities.

Guest Speaker at Singapore Stock Exchange (SGX) 4

Although the focus was on O&M stocks, there were a lot of bullish property counters which were flagged out by our “Synapse Stock Screener”, which we use to flag out the best stock trading opportunities daily.

Great start for the year with my first talk at SGX, as a guest speaker on “Live Trading Mondays”! ??? Will also holding the first “Trading Foundation Workshop” for 2017 tomorrow evening, so I’m looking forward to meeting all those to are attending tmr! ? #sgx #livetrading #foundationworkshop

A photo posted by Spencer Li ?? Synapse Trading (@iamrecneps) on Feb 5, 2017 at 11:03pm PST

For those who are keen to start trading in stocks (or any other markets), or would like to know which are the best “hot” counters to be looking at now, do join us for our “Trading Foundation Workshop” this coming Wednesday on 15 February. See you there! 😀

Check availability: http://wp.me/P1riws-6gw

0 Comments/by Spencer Li
https://synapsetrading.com/wp-content/uploads/2017/02/sgx-live-trading-stage-photo.png 951 1841 Spencer Li https://synapsetrading.com/wp-content/uploads/2019/10/logo.jpg Spencer Li2017-02-13 03:45:112022-03-08 14:55:40Guest Speaker at Singapore Stock Exchange (SGX)
Spencer Li

The 10 Financial Milestones that Everyone Needs to Aim For

Investing & Portfolio Management
beginners guide to trading and technical analysis

The 10 Financial Milestones Every Singaporean Should Aim For

Last updated: 3 July 2026 · By Spencer Li, CFTe


The 10 financial milestones every Singaporean should aim for are: a clean credit history, the skill of budgeting, becoming a “time-investor” who builds skills before chasing returns, full financial independence from your parents, adequate insurance coverage, an active plan to stay physically fit, owning the roof over your head, tracking your active and passive income, holding six months of expenses in cash, and meeting real investors regularly. Notice that only a few of these are about making money. The rest are about preserving it and protecting it, because amassing wealth and keeping wealth are two different skills. Most people obsess over the first and skip the second.

Here is the honest part. You do not need all ten before you start. But the more of them you have in place, the stronger your financial house stands when a storm comes. So treat the list below as an audit. Read each one, and quietly tick off how many you have already done.

What is a “financial milestone”, and why ten?

A financial milestone is a checkpoint that tells you your money is actually getting healthier, not just busier. The road to financial freedom is marked by progress, and these are the markers along it.

Some milestones are about building wealth. Others, the ones most people forget, are about preserving it. A missed preservation milestone (no insurance, no cash buffer) can wipe out years of building in a single bad event. That is why the list mixes both, and why getting your house in order comes before marching anywhere.

Before any of this, do one thing: a clean, honest audit of where you stand today. You cannot fix a number you have not looked at.

The 10 milestones at a glance

#MilestoneWhat it really meansBuild or preserve?
1Clean credit historyPay every bill on time, no penalties, no finesPreserve
2The skill of budgetingA budget you actually keep, not one you redraw monthlyBuild
3Be a time-investorInvest your time into skills before you invest your moneyBuild
4Financial independenceYour livelihood no longer depends on who hands you moneyBuild
5Adequate insuranceProtection for you and the people who depend on youPreserve
6A plan to stay fitHealth, so you can actually enjoy the wealth you buildPreserve
7Own your homeThe roof over your head, so an emergency cannot put you on the streetPreserve
8Track active and passive incomeA quarterly reality check on where your money comes fromBuild
9Six months of expenses in cashA war chest, so you are never worried about bread on the tablePreserve
10Meet investors regularlySurround yourself with real investors, not a comfort zoneBuild

Now here is how each one works, and where people get it wrong.

1. Have a clean credit history

Paying personal bills on time is a chore for many. The financially healthy person masters it anyway.

It is simple, really. Do not buy what is beyond you right now. I have heard of startup founders who slept in basements to save on rent, bunking with four other like-minded nerds who did not mind the early shame for the later glory. Most of us are far more financially secure than that. Even with some debt, most middle-class families get by and put a little aside each month.

So the rule is plain. Do not spend what you do not have. Business loans do not count here, because they are a different animal from personal debt.

Have you done a thorough audit of your personal debts? A good credit rating is one big green tick on your financial health. Pay your bills on time, avoid penalty fees and fines, and your record at the Credit Bureau Singapore (the bureau that holds your local credit report) stays clean.

2. Learn the skill of budgeting

Before wealth is amassed, you have to learn to manage small amounts of money. If you can be trusted with little, you can be trusted with much.

Budgeting is a simple skill. The catch is that people do not keep to their budgets. They adjust them the way they adjust their exercise schedule, their weight-loss plan, their study plan, and everything else.

A budget you do not keep makes budgeting useless. The resolve to stick to it is part of the skill. If you cannot abide by your own budget, there is only one person to blame.

Parents have a role here too. Teach budgeting to children when they are young, and the attitude stays. Even when the amounts get bigger later, the discipline keeps the person financially healthy over the long run.

3. Be a professional time-investor

Here is the wrong question to ask: “I have $10,000, what should I invest in?” Anyone leading with that is starting at the wrong end. The right question is: “What skills should I acquire to become a proficient investor?”

Time is all you need to acquire skills. Many people complain about the lack of real financial education in schools, then stay stuck at the complaining stage. To be a professional investor of money, you first have to be a professional investor of your own time.

If you spend most of your time watching YouTube and it makes you happy, great. But if that is not the life you want, do something about it. Even after trading for many years, I still make it a point to read good books and stimulate my thinking. Self-help, trading books, even fiction. You would be surprised how much a good, beefy fiction book teaches you.

This is also where the human edge lives. A screener will tell you what is moving in a second, and that part is now basically free. What it will not do is build the judgment to know which opportunity is worth your time and which one to walk past. The skill you invest your time into is the part no tool can buy for you. It is the first of the Five Edges.

4. Be financially independent

If you are still living off your parents, that is okay. There is nothing to be ashamed of, because all of us start there. But you need a plan to get to the point where your livelihood no longer depends on who gives you money.

Many young people are quietly leaning on the safety net that their parents will rescue them if they mess up. That may even be true, since no parent wants their child to face a financial catastrophe. Still, every one of us needs to reach the place where we take responsibility for our own finances and keep honest track of where we stand.

5. Get adequate insurance coverage

As a responsible adult, your job is not only to protect yourself financially, but also the people you love. You cannot compromise on insurance, because your life does not revolve around you alone.

Having solid financial backing when something tragic happens is what financial responsibility looks like in practice. It shows you have a clear plan for emergencies.

Personally, I do not think investment-linked policies are really investments. As I said in milestone #3, invest your time, not your money into a policy hoping it grows. Take up the necessary protection, get the peace of mind, and that is all you need. You would be surprised how uninformed most people are about insurance, and getting this right is one milestone that will set you apart.

6. Have an active plan to keep yourself fit

Many people never even consider physical fitness a financial milestone. But what use is all the wealth in the world if you are too unwell to enjoy it?

Keeping fit is simple, yet hard to do. Just like budgeting, most people know what to do and do not do it. Get yourself in shape if you want your financial health in shape. The two are more connected than they look.

7. Own the roof over your head

Yes, there are stories of young people who made it big and bought a mansion with the $150 million they got from selling a company. Most of us do not have that luxury.

The majority work their way to owning a first home before getting anywhere major in life. When it comes to financial freedom, owning the roof over your head is the least you can do, because when an emergency strikes, you will not be forced onto the street.

8. Monitor your active and passive income

Financial freedom involves both active income (what you earn from working) and passive income (what your assets earn for you). Reviewing them every three months or so keeps you up to date on your progress. It is also a reality check, so you do not quietly drift into skiving.

A simple Excel sheet does the job. It is as easy as tracking your expenses, and most basic apps on the App Store or Play Store work fine. The hard part is not the tool. It is drilling in the discipline to keep the routine.

9. Keep six months of expenses in cash

This is another defensive safety net. If you do not even have a six-month war chest, do not yet think about financial freedom. Reaching the goals you set takes real effort and real risk, and the last thing you want to be worrying about mid-journey is whether there is bread on the table or milk in the fridge.

10. Meet investors regularly

If you are a Pokemon card fan, you probably spend most of your time around fellow Pokemon fans. That is fine if you want to be Ash Ketchum. But if you want to be an investor, hang around real investors.

Go to events. Meet like-minded people. Network hard, and find out what the scene is actually like. Know what is trending, what is outdated, what people are interested in. Spending time with these people keeps you in sync with the world of investing and expands your thinking.

For example, when I first heard of options, it blew my mind. You can actually make money when prices do not move. You do not have to bet on a rise or a fall, you simply collect premium. I will not go deep here, but learning that opened my mind when I was much younger and kept me hungry to explore.

Many people fall into a comfort zone once they hit their 30s and 40s. That is normal, because the trials of life take a toll. But if you really want a fulfilling life, you have to step out and behave like someone who is going to live one.

Two quotes I keep coming back to. If you are 25, behave like you are 35: be mature, patient, and kind in your dealings with people. And if you are 55, behave like you are 35: stay excited, passionate, willing to change, and open to young people for who they are.

I used to get criticised for spending too much time on my phone. Guess what? I now spend most of my time on the phone trading and analysing charts, not confined to a desk in an office. The things society did not quite accept can become mainstream very quickly.

How many of these do you actually have?

Be honest with yourself on each line. You can forgo a few early on. But to be genuinely stable, you have to build the foundation strong. When the storm comes, would your financial house stand?

If you are going to make any headway toward financial freedom, it had better start today. Make a plan. Go to your drawing board. Stop relitigating the past, and live a life of possibilities. Do not know where to start? Ask, learn, and seek help.

FAQ

What are the financial milestones to hit in Singapore?
The ten worth aiming for are: a clean credit history, the skill of budgeting, becoming a time-investor, financial independence, adequate insurance, a plan to stay fit, owning your home, tracking active and passive income, holding six months of expenses in cash, and meeting real investors regularly. Roughly half build wealth and half preserve it.

How much should I keep in an emergency fund?
A common rule of thumb is six months of your living expenses, held in cash. The point is to never be forced to worry about basics while you take the risks that financial freedom requires.

Should I learn to invest before I have a lot of money?
Yes. The better first question is not “what should I invest in” but “what skills should I acquire to become a good investor”. Time spent building judgment compounds before any capital does.

Are investment-linked insurance policies a good investment?
Personally I do not treat them as investments. The cleaner approach is to take up the protection you genuinely need for peace of mind, and to build your investing skill separately. This is education, not advice, so weigh it against your own situation.

Why is physical fitness on a financial checklist?
Because wealth you are too unwell to enjoy is not much of a goal. Health is the asset that lets you actually use everything else you build.


So, how many of the ten did you tick off? Tell me in the comments, and flag the one you are tackling next.

If you want to start with milestone #3, building the skill before chasing the return, that is exactly what we teach. Read the pillar: The Skills That Make a Profitable Trader.

Want a simple system to start with? Grab the free 15-Minute Swing Trading Starter Kit. It’s the exact routine I use to scan once a day and trade any market in 15 minutes, the practical side of becoming a time-investor.


About the author. Spencer Li is the founder of Synapse Trading and a Certified Financial Technician (CFTe) with 15+ years of trading across stocks, forex, crypto, commodities, and bonds. His trade log is public: every trade since April 2024, dated, losses left in. He has taught a 15-minute daily trading routine since 2014, one system for any market.

Education, not financial advice. Synapse Trading is not licensed by MAS to advise on investment products. Trading carries risk of loss; past performance is not indicative of future results.


Related

The Skills That Make a Profitable Trader (pillar) · How to build an emergency fund and start investing in Singapore · Active vs passive income explained

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