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Location:E Coast Rd,,Singapore
Friday, August 26, 2011
Tuesday, August 23, 2011
Sunday, August 21, 2011
Last year of the first 5-years plan
Before I embarked on my career right after graduation sometime back in 2007, I set forth a 5-years plan.
First of all, I did not expect myself to be an auditor. I became an auditor by a decision I made in 2003, during the last few months of my army life. I was first accepted into NUS Business School to study Business Administration. Naturally, regardless of what degree was, NUS was a good branding by itself and I thought that alone took care of everything.
JC asked me to visit some road-show by NTU Business School in Suntec. I was inspired by the Dean who reminded us that having a specialized degree is better than a general degree and Accountancy was a specialized degree, as compared to a Business degree. She said, "An Accountancy student can do what Business students do, but not vice versa." And I agreed with her.
I have no idea what I wanted to do. I knew that I have interest in Finance. Bonds, equities, derivatives and commodities. Business degree would be good. At that point in time, I did not know what Accountancy was. I had a very vague idea of what it is. Accountants.
However, I soon convinced myself that an Accountancy Degree would be in my best interest. I was right and I was wrong. During 2004, I submitted my application for NTU Accountancy course and was accepted. I did not have a full picture of what Accountancy course entails and the career paths it will bring me. Audit? Assurance? Accounting? Where are my bonds, equities, derivatives and commodities? During the last year of my study, I had to make a choice. What will my career be? I signed up for the Big 4. It was THE thing to do as an accountancy student.
Auditing is something that I did not regret doing. It widened my horizon and gave me opportunities that my common peers may not have accessed to. To travel, to gain industry knowledge and to strengthen my technical knowledge on accounting and the financial reporting standards. However, I soon loathe it. Auditing does not give me the work-life balance that I crave for. More importantly, whatever I am doing have little bearing on my interests in Finance. I am only doing part of it, the financial reporting part. Auditing involved moderate risks that bring little returns.
Nonetheless, I have made a 5-years plan: (i) To stay until Manager, (ii) To be proficient in the financial reporting standards, (iii) To be involved in different industries and (iv) To be involved in IPO process.
Now a preliminary check:
(i) To stay until Manager - May not realized it as I think I cannot handle the job and the stress well.
(ii) To be proficient in the financial reporting standards - I have the tools to update myself with the FRS. I have the basic knowledge of the FRS.
(iii) To be involved in different industries - Done. Manufacturing (Textiles, tiles, confectionary products), Retail, Hospitals, Constructions.
(iv) To be involved in IPO process - I am involved in several IPO projects. Even though, I was involved in different stages but I did have an understanding of the IPO process.
I think it a good time to move on.
I have started on the CFA again. And I am trying to plan out a proper route to do my ACA, and at the same time to stay in EY (due to the training contract). And I also plan to take the CAIA.
I will need to devise my second 5-years plan soon. Until then.
Saturday, August 20, 2011
Post ICT
The ICT was too short in my opinion. What I missed most was the camaraderie among the team. After all, this is our 10th year of friendship. The army exercises were standard and this time round, the BME was not too tough. However, it is the after-exercise activity that we look forward to most. BEER. TALKING CORK. Generally having fun.
This ICT is a break from our usual routines. Finally a place and time for us to remove our professional masks and just be ourselves. It is as if we were transported back to a decade ago when we first met at 41 SAR.
In addition, I have received a renewed energy from this ICT. Something that was painfully missing for the past 4 years, but I will put this down in words in another blog posting.
Sunday, July 17, 2011
Wednesday, June 15, 2011
Why do you believe in me?
Why do you come to church. Religiously if I may add.
To profess your love? To keep tab of the latest updates on the second coming? Or just a habit, just as someone who needs coffee and that newspaper every-morning. It is not easy to love someone wholeheartedly. To give your time, your space and yourself to him or her. I can't dare think of mortals who can do that for each other, what is more this someone whom you never have met, have face-time with and to think of it, "faith" is that underlying basis of whom this person exist.
I don't think there is fundamental difference between robots and humans. They respond to a certain set of codes and stimulus. Predictability.
Why then are humans created if after-all, the raison d'etre for the whole religious ideas and to-dos are but to assuage a certain set of stimulus. Free will is but an illusion. Humans generally cannot free will their way into not eating. Humans cannot free will their way into not breathing.
The chains of religious ceremonies, the going through the motion and I think something about tithing and the prosperity gospels.
I don't create zombies.
Thursday, May 5, 2011
Wednesday, May 4, 2011
Recaps
1. No. American citizens please do not think that with the death of Osama, it will mean some sort of curse-breaker to the decade of bad news.
2. The PAP is divided into 2 parts. One is the old guards, the other is the one that is currently under attack. As we think of the source while drinking the water, we give credits and thanks to whoever is due, not because he or she is in the same party. As such, vote with your heart.
3. Apple has just refreshed the iMac line with the new sandy processor a d thunderbolt. My current iMac can probably last me another 3 yrs. Hopefully by that time, thunderbolt will be a mature technology.
4. With reference to pt 1, US has another 2 weeks to come to a consensus to vote for higher debt limit. Not that happy liao le right?
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2. The PAP is divided into 2 parts. One is the old guards, the other is the one that is currently under attack. As we think of the source while drinking the water, we give credits and thanks to whoever is due, not because he or she is in the same party. As such, vote with your heart.
3. Apple has just refreshed the iMac line with the new sandy processor a d thunderbolt. My current iMac can probably last me another 3 yrs. Hopefully by that time, thunderbolt will be a mature technology.
4. With reference to pt 1, US has another 2 weeks to come to a consensus to vote for higher debt limit. Not that happy liao le right?
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Location:Strathmore Ave,Singapore,Singapore
Monday, May 2, 2011
Political Apathy
Even when the whole nation is on an exuberance mood amidst all the political awakening, Tanjong Pagar GRC is the only ward not contested. I realised that my 2 other new homes lie within TP GRC, so I still don't get to vote even if I change my address now. I have stayed largely silent on the current state of affairs, refusing to join in the debate of which party is funkier and with more booze. I am also not going to list out the merits and demerits of the current political system. The truth is, Singapore cannot survive without PAP. To clarify my afore-said statement, Singapore cannot survive a period without any certainty and good governmentship. ie, Singapore cannot boot the incumbent and expect WP or SDP, or for that matter, a coalition of PAP, WP or SDP to continue to steadily steer the Singapore Ship in the right direction. Eventually they will. But what about the time in the middle?
I have read all the pros and cons, the Tin Pei Ling, the fight to death in Aljunied and the freudian slips by PAP. As much as there are pent up frustrations, there are also silent agreements on not rocking the ship. I do agree the need for more voices and to check on the Government. I find it amusing to read on the news that the Government is actually caring for us. Now.
How the Government is going to review the S$8k for first-time HDB buyers, how the MOE is looking into certain key issues, and not forgetting the promises of upgrades. This is not how you run a country. This is just politics. This is the part that saddens me. I have read how the old guards like Goh Keng Swee, Toh Chin Chye, Devan Nair, played the game of Running a Country, rather than politics. Their policies are consistent and did not miraculously appear during the campaigning week.
I am also worried about the 4G leaders. You are saying our next PM is among the current nominees? God. I don't need a political degree to know something is wrong somewhere.
I am also worried about the current leaders. Why are there no more the likes of Teo Chee Hean or Jayakumar?
Just like a canary in a mine, I am really thinking hard.
Come 7th of May, I will still go for my Deutche Klurs. And what may come on 8th of May?
Hurray Osama is dead. Now can we focus on the economy?
News of the death of Osama reverberated around the western hemisphere and some press said in his death, he managed to "galvanize" the American citizens. WIth so much bad news for the past 10 years, election of Bush Jr, 911, Katrina, Lehman, Bear Stern, end of series like Ugly Betty, Michael Scott leaving the Office, debts and more debts, surely the death of Osama meant something?
Nope. The death of Osama is insignificant. Even with his absence for largely a good 6 to 8 years, the extremists continued their insurgencies. Osama was merely a figurehead, which can be easily replaced. His death did brought some sort of closure to the 911, albeit 10 years late. And the infamous "Job Accomplished" fiasco can finally be laid to a rest. Yes. The job is done. What the Americans now need to know is that the amount of resources that fueled the hatred and blood in the Middle-east should come to a stop. US should pull out fully from the Afghanistan and Iraq. All resources should be diverted back to the US. The so-called "Global Interests" initiatives should be revisited and the focus should now be squarely within the US soil. It might be painful to give up its global leadership position. But just look at Libya, US nudged France to take on the fore-front role in leading the air-strikes. Lesser attentions are given to Africa, where the Chinese government is actively buying up precious oil fields. And people are listening more to what the Chinese has to say rather than what Barack Obama is saying, just look at all the recent conventions.
The world has entered into a new era of multi-laterialism. As such, I believe that the US has little reasons to hold on to its antiqued role of being a world police. The US government will need to reallocate all the resources back to the American economy and the people. Take a few steps back, so that it can advance more in the future. Fix the trains, fix the bridges, fix the educational system, fix the economy, fix the housing woes, fix the Social security, fix the medi-plans.
| Oh, say, can you see, by the dawn's early light, What so proudly we hailed at the twilight's last gleaming? Whose broad stripes and bright stars, thru the perilous fight, O'er the ramparts we watched, were so gallantly streaming? And the rockets' red glare, the bombs bursting in air, Gave proof through the night that our flag was still there. O say, does that star-spangled banner yet wave O'er the land of the free and the home of the brave? |
Sunday, May 1, 2011
US' insatiable hunger for debt
I am not trying to sound like an economist or an academia. I am just worried about the debt that the US is silently stockpiling in its backyard. It is amazing that the world is largely silent on this. Of course, there are voices about cutting the "federal debts", stopping the "QE2" and becoming more "competitive and productive" . However, the fundamentals go deeper than that. The recent debt-ceiling debacle revealed a weak Congress. The press and the tea-partiers missed the point. Cutting the federal debt is not enough. After the 8 years under Bush, US has accumulated some much debt that interest repayments alone can easily wipe out any tax revenue for the year. That means, US will have no money for anything else. Every single cents is used to pay off the interest on the debt. So currently how is US managing this nonsensical fiscal mess? Yes. By borrowing even more to fund daily operations.
QE2 is expected to cease by June 2011. This will invariantly drive interest rates up, especially long-term rates. Investors and businesses hate uncertainty in the economy, as such, the interest rates will be driven up higher after June 2011. The current interest rates are starting to creep up as the inevitable reality of the end of cheap money is just a few months away. Higher interest rates will mean that borrowings are more expensive. And add that to the current interests that US is paying off. Stopping any future QEs is a double-edged sword. No QE will mean that USD will be driven up, and it mean more expensive exports, and it will impact on the bottom-lines of many US companies, lesser hirings, lesser spendings, lesser consumers confidence and lesser taxes. We are back with lesser taxes. And lesser taxes mean US will have to borrow more debts. On the other hand, the more money the FED prints to flood the economy, the value of the Dollar will decline as the supply increases. With a declining dollar, in the short-run, US' creditors like China, will first of all, stop purchasing more of US debts (since the value of debts are declining in value) and the creditors will swap out US debts with other forms of store of value like gold, commodities or oil. US will be forced into bankruptcy. That is bad. Just look at Greece.
Increasing a country's productivity and competitiveness is on the "to-do" list of almost every government. However, there are many factors for this "increase" to take place. Some of the factors are education, technological advances, infrastructures and political stability. Yet, perhaps one of the most important factor is the human factor. Questions like are people willing to work that extra 30 hours a week? Are people willing to go for skills upgrading? Are businesses built for long-term productivity gains or just short-terms profitability? USA is clearly unable to juggle all these at the current moment. With an empty coffer (nope I don't consider "debts" as money), the White House and the Congress are severely limited by what they can do. They have to ration out the available resources. And like a crack addict, the Land of the Free craves for more debts so that they can spend on the "nows". Let the future President and the future Congress and the future generation worry about the mounting interest repayments (and I am not talking about debt repayments).
This discussion only touched on the surface of the reality of the US economic outlook and it is a grim one. However, I believe in cycles. The Greek empire gave way to the Roman Republic which finally collapsed by early 5th century, which in turn saw the rise of golden period in China of the Tang dynasty in the 6th century, and we have Gengis Khan's empire stretching from Europe to China sometime in the 12th century. The rise of Renaissance in Europe in the 14th century and during the same century, the wealth of the Chinese was demonstrated by the 7 trips of Cheng Ho. The Age of Colonization gave rise of the British Empire, where the Sun never sets. And the USA became the leading man in the 20th century after WWII.
Many said that the limelight will once again return to China. The Beijing Olympics and the Shanghai World Expo have placed the red carpet for the eventual return of China to the front-page. Just like the yester-centuries of the Han,Tang, Ming and the early Qing dynasties. Or will it?
Friday, April 29, 2011
Tuesday, April 26, 2011
Monday, April 25, 2011
Saturday, April 9, 2011
Intercontinental
Tiramisu...
Und mein baileys kaffee...
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Location:Middle Rd,,Singapore
Sunday, April 3, 2011
Saturday, April 2, 2011
Friday, April 1, 2011
Thursday, March 31, 2011
Sunday, March 27, 2011
Friday, March 25, 2011
Wednesday, March 23, 2011
Sunday, March 20, 2011
ビル
Hitachito nest white ale
Sapporo
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Sapporo
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Location:Somerset Rd,,Singapore
Saturday, March 19, 2011
Viewing condo at tanjong pagar
Going to get the studio...
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Location:Wallich St,Singapore,Singapore
Wednesday, March 16, 2011
Rendevous
Heart my MacBook air n the latte...
MBA: oh my dear latte, U have no idea how badly I missed you...
Starbucks: I missed you too. So when can we meet again?
MBA: let me check my schedule... Hmmm it will be a long long long long time....
Starbucks: noooooooo......
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MBA: oh my dear latte, U have no idea how badly I missed you...
Starbucks: I missed you too. So when can we meet again?
MBA: let me check my schedule... Hmmm it will be a long long long long time....
Starbucks: noooooooo......
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Location:Tanglin Rd,,Singapore
Sunday, March 13, 2011
Earthquakes
From Christ-church to Japan, a lot of lives were transformed within a short span of a few weeks. There was a lot of prayers and mentions on twitter, weibo, facebook, and a hosts of blogs and news devoted to the recent earthquakes.
Of course, the can of prophesies burst open and all pointed to a warming up to the eventual 21 December 2012. Nice going mayans....
I believe we will all survive and perhaps this disaster is going to allow Japan to come back stronger. Their politics and economy is in mire and a rout for nearly 20 years. This earthquake should trigger another more massive one, either in Indonesia side or the US's plate.
Saturday, March 12, 2011
Stinky fish
I regretted ordering fish n chips.. The fish has a yu xing smell...
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Location:Handy Rd,,Singapore
Thursday, March 10, 2011
Judging
As the train drew close to Queenstown MRT station, I heard a lady saying something in Mandarin, although I can't really make out what she said. And the couple in front of me started to shift awkwardly. I naturally assumed that the lady said something that caused the couple to move. And I removed my earpieces, and I heard "Come, remember to stretch your legs so that we can get across." I thought to myself, the station is still a couple of minutes away and the couple is trying to accommodate her by shifting whatever millimeters they could find.
A crazy woman.
I was silenced and ashamed, when the train doors opened and I saw the woman with a child. She was talking to her kid. >.<
Saturday, March 5, 2011
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