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Thread: Life is a struggle.You struggle ... again & again. And one day, you triumph

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    Default Life is a struggle.You struggle ... again & again. And one day, you triumph

    I like to play tennis with one of my classmate. We usually talk about politics , FX, BOND stock & share etc. He was relating one of his experience talking to a very humble successful biz man which own a sushi restuarant.


    This man came from a poor family & father passed away when they were young. He decided to quit his secondary school to work to lessen his mother hardship . He worked in Daimaru as non skill job. He humbly worked very hard with the right attitude for almost 8 yrs struggle. Finally a opportunity came. He Japanese boss asked him to go Japan to work in his Sushi restaurant. He told his mother about it & promised her that he will not let her down & will send money back.


    When he was in Japan. He started from the very basic of just washing toilet , dishes ,etc before he is able to learn how to make sushi. It is only a few years later that his boss started to teach the skill. During the learn period, his boss would slapped him & colleague will scold him & make life a hell for him. He refused to give up & continued his hardship struggle.


    He knew his continuous struggle was for a better future. Finally with the skill he learnt. He decided to go back to SG with his Japanese girlfriend (later married) Her father did not approve their relationship . He promised her father he would talk care of her in SG. He opened a restaurant & was later became successful. LKY & family is one of his customers & always has a private room for them. Today, he is very successful driving lamborghini but still with a humble attitude. The harder the struggle . The more glorious the trumph. Right success is belongs to humble person


    It is sad most of our young generation do not have our old parent mindset of hardship & just do it attitude.

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    This is a song about stepping through life, finding answer in life. It really shows how most of us struggle to get to the top in our lives.
    So life is always a struggle journey. Mistakes are always there. We just have to learn from them and survived the lowest point of our lives.

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    totally agree..... worst is a lot of the mindset that hardship is cannot go holiday, need to work , cant buy fav branded stuff.. thats hardship to a lot of them
    “Nothing in the world is more dangerous than sincere ignorance and conscientious stupidity.”
    ― Martin Luther King, Jr.

    OUT WITH THE SHIT TRASH

    https://www.facebook.com/shutdowntrs

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    Quote Originally Posted by cbsh38584 View Post
    I like to play tennis with one of my classmate. We usually talk about politics , FX, BOND stock & share etc. He was relating one of his experience talking to a very humble successful biz man which own a sushi restuarant.


    This man came from a poor family & father passed away when they were young. He decided to quit his secondary school to work to lessen his mother hardship . He worked in Daimaru as non skill job. He humbly worked very hard with the right attitude for almost 8 yrs struggle. Finally a opportunity came. He Japanese boss asked him to go Japan to work in his Sushi restaurant. He told his mother about it & promised her that he will not let her down & will send money back.


    When he was in Japan. He started from the very basic of just washing toilet , dishes ,etc before he is able to learn how to make sushi. It is only a few years later that his boss started to teach the skill. During the learn period, his boss would slapped him & colleague will scold him & make life a hell for him. He refused to give up & continued his hardship struggle.


    He knew his continuous struggle was for a better future. Finally with the skill he learnt. He decided to go back to SG with his Japanese girlfriend (later married) Her father did not approve their relationship . He promised her father he would talk care of her in SG. He opened a restaurant & was later became successful. LKY & family is one of his customers & always has a private room for them. Today, he is very successful driving lamborghini but still with a humble attitude. The harder the struggle . The more glorious the trumph. Right success is belongs to humble person


    It is sad most of our young generation do not have our old parent mindset of hardship & just do it attitude.

    I have been once to his restuarant for Afternoon lunch many year ago at Goodwood park. I remember it cost $150 for 2 person.

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    Quote Originally Posted by cbsh38584 View Post
    I like to play tennis with one of my classmate. We usually talk about politics , FX, BOND stock & share etc. He was relating one of his experience talking to a very humble successful biz man which own a sushi restuarant.


    This man came from a poor family & father passed away when they were young. He decided to quit his secondary school to work to lessen his mother hardship . He worked in Daimaru as non skill job. He humbly worked very hard with the right attitude for almost 8 yrs struggle. Finally a opportunity came. He Japanese boss asked him to go Japan to work in his Sushi restaurant. He told his mother about it & promised her that he will not let her down & will send money back.


    When he was in Japan. He started from the very basic of just washing toilet , dishes ,etc before he is able to learn how to make sushi. It is only a few years later that his boss started to teach the skill. During the learn period, his boss would slapped him & colleague will scold him & make life a hell for him. He refused to give up & continued his hardship struggle.


    He knew his continuous struggle was for a better future. Finally with the skill he learnt. He decided to go back to SG with his Japanese girlfriend (later married) Her father did not approve their relationship . He promised her father he would talk care of her in SG. He opened a restaurant & was later became successful. LKY & family is one of his customers & always has a private room for them. Today, he is very successful driving lamborghini but still with a humble attitude. The harder the struggle . The more glorious the trumph. Right success is belongs to humble person


    It is sad most of our young generation do not have our old parent mindset of hardship & just do it attitude.

    My wife has found a new friend who work in Hai Di Lao (海底捞火锅). My wife went to Bangkok together with her just last wk.
    My wife told me her friend's "Tiger" mum are in control of their lives. They (A family of 5) live at HDB five rm flat. Parent & 2 of his siblings
    squeeze & sleep in the Master rm while most of the time she (eldest age 24) sleep in the living area. The rest of the 3 room are rented out.


    Her whole family members (except her father - construction worker) work in Hai Di Lao (海底捞火锅). Mother as a kitcher helper. 2 young sibilings
    (secondary & ploy) work during school holiday as a parttimer. She works as a "entertainer" waitress which is a much better pay than a normal waitress
    Her gross pay can be as high as $3k/mth. But it is hard work. She needs to sing , perform magic trick , play with children etc. I have been there once.
    The food is nice but NOT CHEAP. Surprisely, quite a number of young Sporean like to eat there.

    She said to my wife once she completed her degree. She would find a normal stable job & later move out to rent out a small unit by herself .She feels that as a grown up girl. She starts to feel inconvenient living in a "CRAMP" house.

    Life is always a struggle. Struggle are required in order to surivive in life. Lives life with a positive attitude and never give up. One day you will trumph.

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    Quote Originally Posted by cbsh38584 View Post
    My wife has found a new friend who work in Hai Di Lao (海底捞火锅). My wife went to Bangkok together with her just last wk.
    My wife told me her friend's "Tiger" mum are in control of their lives. They (A family of 5) live at HDB five rm flat. Parent & 2 of his siblings
    squeeze & sleep in the Master rm while most of the time she (eldest age 24) sleep in the living area. The rest of the 3 room are rented out.


    Her whole family members (except her father - construction worker) work in Hai Di Lao (海底捞火锅). Mother as a kitcher helper. 2 young sibilings
    (secondary & ploy) work during school holiday as a parttimer. She works as a "entertainer" waitress which is a much better pay than a normal waitress
    Her gross pay can be as high as $3k/mth. But it is hard work. She needs to sing , perform magic trick , play with children etc. I have been there once.
    The food is nice but NOT CHEAP. Surprisely, quite a number of young Sporean like to eat there.

    She said to my wife once she completed her degree. She would find a normal stable job & later move out to rent out a small unit by herself .She feels that as a grown up girl. She starts to feel inconvenient living in a "CRAMP" house.

    Life is always a struggle. Struggle are required in order to surivive in life. Lives life with a positive attitude and never give up. One day you will trumph.
    a lot of nice gimmicks giving lots of snacks while waiting. the company has differentiated itself well with good service from chinese waiters/waitresses in sg and obviously had done even better in china. owner recently bought a gcb here.

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    Quote Originally Posted by cbsh38584 View Post
    My wife has found a new friend who work in Hai Di Lao (海底捞火锅). My wife went to Bangkok together with her just last wk.
    My wife told me her friend's "Tiger" mum are in control of their lives. They (A family of 5) live at HDB five rm flat. Parent & 2 of his siblings
    squeeze & sleep in the Master rm while most of the time she (eldest age 24) sleep in the living area. The rest of the 3 room are rented out.


    Her whole family members (except her father - construction worker) work in Hai Di Lao (海底捞火锅). Mother as a kitcher helper. 2 young sibilings
    (secondary & ploy) work during school holiday as a parttimer. She works as a "entertainer" waitress which is a much better pay than a normal waitress
    Her gross pay can be as high as $3k/mth. But it is hard work. She needs to sing , perform magic trick , play with children etc. I have been there once.
    The food is nice but NOT CHEAP. Surprisely, quite a number of young Sporean like to eat there.

    She said to my wife once she completed her degree. She would find a normal stable job & later move out to rent out a small unit by herself .She feels that as a grown up girl. She starts to feel inconvenient living in a "CRAMP" house.

    Life is always a struggle. Struggle are required in order to surivive in life. Lives life with a positive attitude and never give up. One day you will trumph.



    The mother is worry about their future . So when she worry. She will think,. She starts to prepare for rainy days .If she prepares ahead, then she will have less worries or no worries when they grow old. Always be prepared for rainy days. No matter how well you’re doing, you’ve got to be prepared.


    Again If one has no long-term considerations, he/she can hardly avoid troubles every now and then.; He/She who has no anxious thoughts for the future will find trouble right at hand.; If a man/woman is not farsighted, he/she is bound to encounter difficulties in the near future.; Those who do not plan for the future will find trouble at their doorstep.


    She collected monthly rental of $1800/mth. Let say nett retental income is $1500/mth. One year will be $18,000. Ten yrs will be $180,000.
    25 years will be $450k if assume she continue to rent out to Msian & others.

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    Struggle is always part of survival. So when you struggle to put a decent meal for your family. Sometimes, he may get stress out.
    You must know the way to let out your stress if not u will get burn out very fast.

    1. Exercise more.better with more friends . Play badminton, tennis , table tennis etc.

    2. Hot bath or steam bath or hot jacuzzi. My friend bought a portable sauna which costs $3k+.

    3. Alone in a quite place & listen to beautiful & motivational song or music

    etc etc

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    Quote Originally Posted by cbsh38584 View Post
    Struggle is always part of survival. So when you struggle to put a decent meal for your family. Sometimes, he may get stress out.
    You must know the way to let out your stress if not u will get burn out very fast.

    1. Exercise more.better with more friends . Play badminton, tennis , table tennis etc.

    2. Hot bath or steam bath or hot jacuzzi. My friend bought a portable sauna which costs $3k+.

    3. Alone in a quite place & listen to beautiful & motivational song or music

    etc etc

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    Quote Originally Posted by cbsh38584 View Post

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    If you are a trader (doesn't matter what you trade), then surely you are familiar with the saying "The smartest guy in the room is the bond trader".

    He is always worth listening to.

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    By proportion wise, bond followers tend to have more winners by virtue of the nature of the instrument. But the biggest winners are likely to be stock and property players. Biggest lovers too as well to be fair.

    Take your pick.
    The three laws of Kelonguni:

    Where there is kelong, there is guni.
    No kelong no guni.
    More kelong = more guni.

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    Quote Originally Posted by Kelonguni View Post
    By proportion wise, bond followers tend to have more winners by virtue of the nature of the instrument. But the biggest winners are likely to be stock and property players. Biggest lovers too as well to be fair.

    Take your pick.
    Well, they don't measure "smartness" by profitability.

    Even if we want to measure by profitability it is impossible that collectively all bond traders made money because it is pretty much a zero sum game.

    It is because of the universe of things that a bond trader is looking at, the macroeconomic and political changes that have a direct and more importantly immediate impact to bond price.

    It is quite clear that for what that has impacted the bond market, the impact is delayed for the equity market and even more so the property market. Particularly the property market which is the least liquid of the trio (in this context).

    So, while we are doing our own things in investing, it pays to keep tab of what the bond market is seeing.

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    Bonds, equities and properties, all are not zero sum games. The positions of investors as a whole always improve more than non-investors over time, even if not merely due to inflation. As there are charges for transactions, the rule of thumb is generally to beat these charges and inflation.

    Of the three, the one with the highest transaction charges will be the safest to me, as transaction costs are very high to deter entry or exit due to emotions such as fear or tikum.


    Quote Originally Posted by Hakuho View Post
    Well, they don't measure "smartness" by profitability.

    Even if we want to measure by profitability it is impossible that collectively all bond traders made money because it is pretty much a zero sum game.

    It is because of the universe of things that a bond trader is looking at, the macroeconomic and political changes that have a direct and more importantly immediate impact to bond price.

    It is quite clear that for what that has impacted the bond market, the impact is delayed for the equity market and even more so the property market. Particularly the property market which is the least liquid of the trio (in this context).

    So, while we are doing our own things in investing, it pays to keep tab of what the bond market is seeing.
    The three laws of Kelonguni:

    Where there is kelong, there is guni.
    No kelong no guni.
    More kelong = more guni.

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    Kopitiam boss , Lim Bee Huat - He struggles & struggles ... again & again .Finally he trumphed
    ==================================================================


    He first started work as a kopi kia (coffee boy) at the now-defunct Esplanade Food Centre in 1962. Juggling both work and school, it was indeed hard for the nine-year-old boy.Going against the wishes of his parents, he would clean the spittoons, wipe the tables, and serve coffee every day after school for $1 a night. From an initial daily wage of a mere dollar, Lim worked hard and finally convinced his boss to raise his pay to $1.50 within a year.

    And many knuckle knocks on the head from his boss later, he fetched, carried and bargained his way up to $3.50 a night by the time he had finished his 'O' levels.The millennials of today would probably just pack and leave when the going gets tough. But for Lim, he had no choice but to stick to the job because of his family's poor financial status.

    Lim said: "Every morning, my parents would leave seven five-cent coins on the table for each of my brothers, sisters and me. Even then, five cents couldn't buy you anything." He would pool the money and buy a French loaf, which costs 10 cents.

    In more desperate times, he would even eat the roadside food offerings left by worshippers during the Hungry Ghost Festival.
    "When you're hungry, that's what you have to do. I had to think of survival. With school opening, I needed shoes, books, uniforms. I had to come up with solutions myself." "My thinking was that working hard was a way of life. Enjoy now, suffer later. Or suffer now, enjoy later." The latter was an obvious choice to him.


    Towkay At Age 18
    ===========
    In 1970, when he was enlisting in National Service, the Government revamped the Esplanade Food Centre and Lim started to see the potential of a bigger and better business at Esplanade.

    With his hard-earned wages, he would scrimp and save till he was finally able to cough up enough money to buy his own stall.

    He tendered for the drink stall there (the one where he used to work at) for a rental of $1,250 a month - a substantial sum back then - with the help of an older friend because he was too young to be eligible.

    He outbid his former boss and took over the business, even employing her brothers to work for him.

    "I was more gutsy than the owner, but she had no grudges against me," Lim said in an interview, which was later published in S-Files: Stories Behind Their Success.

    So at age 18, Lim became his own boss - while also being a soldier by day.

    He went on to take another four stalls at the Esplanade by age 23, and this formed the foundation of his hawker empire.

    Business was so lucrative that during National Day in 1973, he sold over $6,000 worth of bubur cha cha (coconut and red bean dessert) at 25 cents a bowl.

    It paid for his first car, a second-hand Datsun 100A costing $3,000.

    Thereafter, Lim went on to celebrate his birthdays with a new coffeeshop takeover every year - from Rochor Centre, Victoria Street, Clementi, Whampoa, Toa Payoh, Clementi, Tampines, and even an AT&T canteen.

    "It's the Chinese businessman disease - if you have one, you think of two. If you have two, you think of three. And if you have five, you think of 10."

    His strategy, which is still relevant today, is to dominate the drink and dessert stall, while renting out the food stalls.

    "People can't just come in for food. If a foodcourt has 50 stalls, it will take you 50 days to patronise all the stalls. But you have to come to me every day for drinks or desserts. I think my game is quite clear," he said.


    In 1988, Lim started Kopitiam Investment Pte Ltd to tender for a Bishan project.

    At that time, Lim was already a veteran in the business; with experience in operating a chain of 8 coffee shops for more than a decade, as well as a canteen at the AT&T Building for two years.

    The following year, he pumped in a whopping $2.01 million bid for a coffeeshop in Bishan Street 11, which chalked up his reputation as a fearless bidder who single-handedly hauled up Housing Board coffeeshop prices.




    Lim recalls a particular taxi driver who remarked to him (without knowing who he was): "This towkay xiao eh, ai ke tiao lao hao (this towkay is crazy, going to commit suicide soon)."

    Clearly, many thought it was an insane amount of hard cash to fork out for a location in a HDB estate.

    However, the investment has since paid off handsomely - that piece of property is thriving and was worth about $6 million in 2008.

    But behind each of his bold bids was deliberate planning and hours of sitting on Bishan benches like a vagrant.

    There, he says he watched intently and carefully stored away details like the area's demographic distribution, neighbourhood traffic, spending power and other wry observations like "young couples don't cook at home to preserve their kitchens".

    Only when he was sure the gains far exceeded the odds, did he place his bid.

    When McDonald's first opened here in 1979, he also sat outside Liat Towers for a few days observing the beeline for burgers; and French fries.

    He remembers mulling to himself: "If I can't beat you, can I join you? If I can't have foreign expertise, can I set up a local tier to lead? Can we prove and show Singaporeans can do it, too?"

    Then, he went on to do it by taking over the ailing Lau Pa Sat Festival Market from Scotts Holdings Limited in 1995 at a cost of $8 million, pumping in an additional $4 million in renovation and $600,000 on advertising to nurse it back to health.


    Photo: Berita Harian
    At that time, many people thought Lim was crazy to pump in so much money into a project that, until then, had not yielded any profit.

    His business instinct was inevitably sharp as knife, and the market reopened for business as a 24-hour bustling food court.

    Being A Boss Does Not Mean Having A Lavish Lifestyle

    Despite his successes, Lim lives a very simple life.

    Home for him is a modest three-room HDB flat in East Coast, and he said that he has no plans to move into a bigger house in the near future - partly because he just has no time to shift.

    Every waking hour is devoted to his business.

    "Whatever money I earn, I put it back into the business. I keep rolling the cash. I don't have much left to spend on myself."


    Photo: Shin Min
    As the chairman of the Kopitiam Group, Lim today owns over 80 outlets - including food courts, coffeeshops, cafes and dessert stalls - in Singapore.

    The kopitiam king also owns 98 per cent of Kopitiam Investment Pte Ltd, and he gave a per cent share each to two long-time employees.

    Lim clearly is the kind of boss who rewards others for their loyalty.

    In fact, he makes it a point to reward his staff with a Rolex watch when they have worked with him for more than 10 years.

    He said he also always listen to the suggestions of his staff because "they are all better qualified than I am. In fact, sometimes I'm a bit shy to admit that I'm the least qualified person in my company."

    His Secret To Success

    The man sure is humble for someone who has worked his way up to build his own kopitiam empire.

    So what's his secret to success?

    "Concentrate on a specific job [and] give your heart, soul, and 100 per cent. Don't dilute your interest and plans. Go and go and go all the way to achieve your target," he advised.

    In his years of business, the 64-year-old never once pondered on failure.

    While his business is relatively successful, it does not mean that it has not faced any problems along the way.

    "Of course we have labour and rent problems now. But if we are running a business, we need to expect that costs will go up in time."

    "[In Singapore], everyone is thinking of progress. If you are willing to work your way, it's doable. Everything is doable, as long as you put in the effort."



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    Quote Originally Posted by cbsh38584 View Post
    Kopitiam boss , Lim Bee Huat - He struggles & struggles ... again & again .Finally he trumphed
    ==================================================================


    He first started work as a kopi kia (coffee boy) at the now-defunct Esplanade Food Centre in 1962. Juggling both work and school, it was indeed hard for the nine-year-old boy.Going against the wishes of his parents, he would clean the spittoons, wipe the tables, and serve coffee every day after school for $1 a night. From an initial daily wage of a mere dollar, Lim worked hard and finally convinced his boss to raise his pay to $1.50 within a year.

    And many knuckle knocks on the head from his boss later, he fetched, carried and bargained his way up to $3.50 a night by the time he had finished his 'O' levels.The millennials of today would probably just pack and leave when the going gets tough. But for Lim, he had no choice but to stick to the job because of his family's poor financial status.

    Lim said: "Every morning, my parents would leave seven five-cent coins on the table for each of my brothers, sisters and me. Even then, five cents couldn't buy you anything." He would pool the money and buy a French loaf, which costs 10 cents.

    In more desperate times, he would even eat the roadside food offerings left by worshippers during the Hungry Ghost Festival.
    "When you're hungry, that's what you have to do. I had to think of survival. With school opening, I needed shoes, books, uniforms. I had to come up with solutions myself." "My thinking was that working hard was a way of life. Enjoy now, suffer later. Or suffer now, enjoy later." The latter was an obvious choice to him.


    Towkay At Age 18
    ===========
    In 1970, when he was enlisting in National Service, the Government revamped the Esplanade Food Centre and Lim started to see the potential of a bigger and better business at Esplanade.

    With his hard-earned wages, he would scrimp and save till he was finally able to cough up enough money to buy his own stall.

    He tendered for the drink stall there (the one where he used to work at) for a rental of $1,250 a month - a substantial sum back then - with the help of an older friend because he was too young to be eligible.

    He outbid his former boss and took over the business, even employing her brothers to work for him.

    "I was more gutsy than the owner, but she had no grudges against me," Lim said in an interview, which was later published in S-Files: Stories Behind Their Success.

    So at age 18, Lim became his own boss - while also being a soldier by day.

    He went on to take another four stalls at the Esplanade by age 23, and this formed the foundation of his hawker empire.

    Business was so lucrative that during National Day in 1973, he sold over $6,000 worth of bubur cha cha (coconut and red bean dessert) at 25 cents a bowl.

    It paid for his first car, a second-hand Datsun 100A costing $3,000.

    Thereafter, Lim went on to celebrate his birthdays with a new coffeeshop takeover every year - from Rochor Centre, Victoria Street, Clementi, Whampoa, Toa Payoh, Clementi, Tampines, and even an AT&T canteen.

    "It's the Chinese businessman disease - if you have one, you think of two. If you have two, you think of three. And if you have five, you think of 10."

    His strategy, which is still relevant today, is to dominate the drink and dessert stall, while renting out the food stalls.

    "People can't just come in for food. If a foodcourt has 50 stalls, it will take you 50 days to patronise all the stalls. But you have to come to me every day for drinks or desserts. I think my game is quite clear," he said.


    In 1988, Lim started Kopitiam Investment Pte Ltd to tender for a Bishan project.

    At that time, Lim was already a veteran in the business; with experience in operating a chain of 8 coffee shops for more than a decade, as well as a canteen at the AT&T Building for two years.

    The following year, he pumped in a whopping $2.01 million bid for a coffeeshop in Bishan Street 11, which chalked up his reputation as a fearless bidder who single-handedly hauled up Housing Board coffeeshop prices.




    Lim recalls a particular taxi driver who remarked to him (without knowing who he was): "This towkay xiao eh, ai ke tiao lao hao (this towkay is crazy, going to commit suicide soon)."

    Clearly, many thought it was an insane amount of hard cash to fork out for a location in a HDB estate.

    However, the investment has since paid off handsomely - that piece of property is thriving and was worth about $6 million in 2008.

    But behind each of his bold bids was deliberate planning and hours of sitting on Bishan benches like a vagrant.

    There, he says he watched intently and carefully stored away details like the area's demographic distribution, neighbourhood traffic, spending power and other wry observations like "young couples don't cook at home to preserve their kitchens".

    Only when he was sure the gains far exceeded the odds, did he place his bid.

    When McDonald's first opened here in 1979, he also sat outside Liat Towers for a few days observing the beeline for burgers; and French fries.

    He remembers mulling to himself: "If I can't beat you, can I join you? If I can't have foreign expertise, can I set up a local tier to lead? Can we prove and show Singaporeans can do it, too?"

    Then, he went on to do it by taking over the ailing Lau Pa Sat Festival Market from Scotts Holdings Limited in 1995 at a cost of $8 million, pumping in an additional $4 million in renovation and $600,000 on advertising to nurse it back to health.


    Photo: Berita Harian
    At that time, many people thought Lim was crazy to pump in so much money into a project that, until then, had not yielded any profit.

    His business instinct was inevitably sharp as knife, and the market reopened for business as a 24-hour bustling food court.

    Being A Boss Does Not Mean Having A Lavish Lifestyle

    Despite his successes, Lim lives a very simple life.

    Home for him is a modest three-room HDB flat in East Coast, and he said that he has no plans to move into a bigger house in the near future - partly because he just has no time to shift.

    Every waking hour is devoted to his business.

    "Whatever money I earn, I put it back into the business. I keep rolling the cash. I don't have much left to spend on myself."


    Photo: Shin Min
    As the chairman of the Kopitiam Group, Lim today owns over 80 outlets - including food courts, coffeeshops, cafes and dessert stalls - in Singapore.

    The kopitiam king also owns 98 per cent of Kopitiam Investment Pte Ltd, and he gave a per cent share each to two long-time employees.

    Lim clearly is the kind of boss who rewards others for their loyalty.

    In fact, he makes it a point to reward his staff with a Rolex watch when they have worked with him for more than 10 years.

    He said he also always listen to the suggestions of his staff because "they are all better qualified than I am. In fact, sometimes I'm a bit shy to admit that I'm the least qualified person in my company."

    His Secret To Success

    The man sure is humble for someone who has worked his way up to build his own kopitiam empire.

    So what's his secret to success?

    "Concentrate on a specific job [and] give your heart, soul, and 100 per cent. Don't dilute your interest and plans. Go and go and go all the way to achieve your target," he advised.

    In his years of business, the 64-year-old never once pondered on failure.

    While his business is relatively successful, it does not mean that it has not faced any problems along the way.

    "Of course we have labour and rent problems now. But if we are running a business, we need to expect that costs will go up in time."

    "[In Singapore], everyone is thinking of progress. If you are willing to work your way, it's doable. Everything is doable, as long as you put in the effort."



  21. #21
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    Quote Originally Posted by cbsh38584 View Post
    Life is a circle of happiness , struggles , hard times , good times etc. If you are going through hard times, have faith that good times are on the way.

  22. #22
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    Life is always a struggle. Do not get yourself into a painful struggle which you can avoid at the initial stage.
    Do not invest into ppty if you are a mariginal case investor.


    A couple (age 35 to Age 40) with 2 kids (age 3-10) earning combine Salary of $12k-$15k is better off living in HDB rather than upgarde to condo.
    1st priority has to be plan your future retirement as early as possible through CPF. High interest (2.5% to 5%) & guarantee.

    There is no certainty in term of job sercurity now. Always remember that the company you work for promise you job today but never promised you job tomorrow. Be prepared for rainy days. No matter how well you’re doing, you’ve got to be prepared. Don't plan to fail & go into a high debt


    Assuming you are buying a condo costing $1.2m. Loan $900k. Part of your purchase is using CPF-OA whcih wipe out your future retirement.

    1) Combine couple Salary assuming $12k- $15k/mth

    Per month
    =======
    Mortage loan of 900k (1.5%) = $4300
    ppty tax = $80 ($2.5k/yr)
    Maint Fee = $300
    Mortagage insurance = ??? (Some dont buy at all)
    Electricity bill = $250
    Family car loan ($70k) = $1000
    Car petrol = $250
    Car insurance = $80
    Car road tax = $80
    Couple HP bill = $120
    Starhub SVC = $60
    Kids enrichment = $500
    Kids school fee = $800 (age 3-10)
    Family expense Food etc = $800
    Maid =$700
    Piety Filial - Parent =$1000 (I hv a high Salary earner friend paying $6k/mth mother. Wife not so happy)
    Misc like holiday etc = ???
    Misc like sick = ???
    -----------------------------------------------
    Total $9070
    -----------------------------------------------

    Couple insurance est = $1400
    2 Kids insurance = $600
    =====================
    Total family insurance = $2000/mth
    ======================

    Your expense family est per month is around $11,070. Couple Salary is 12k-$15k. You are in a border line case. Risk is high as you cannot guarantee your job is secured. Stay where you are. It is a totally different condition in SG. If you dont have the right skill. A master or a honor degree is also useless.

  23. #23
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    My kids enrichment and school related fees cross 2K per month actually.

    Property tax cannot be 80 pm if annually 2.5K.

    Anyway the profile stated is more relevant for EC or resale EC limited at 1 mil, preferably with loan below 600K.
    Last edited by Kelonguni; 14-06-17 at 12:06.
    The three laws of Kelonguni:

    Where there is kelong, there is guni.
    No kelong no guni.
    More kelong = more guni.

  24. #24
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    Quote Originally Posted by cbsh38584 View Post
    Life is a circle of happiness , struggles , hard times , good times etc. If you are going through hard times, have faith that good times are on the way.
    It is sad that our famous Lee family's petty disputes over their late father's Oxley Road home has become interntional news.
    Let hope the Lee family internal struggle will end amicably soon.
    Our father of S'pore. LEE KUAN YEW - I will always love you for what you have done for Singapore.


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    Lately, I contacted a few property agents on the profiles of recent property buyers.

    Majority are "investor" in their 30+ to mid 40, buying small units of <$1.2m - 1.5m, ie 1 bedroom or two bedrooms.
    In short, all these need to pay for the ABSD with 60 LTV if no problem with TDSR. And I think, they almost empty their CPF and cash for this investment.

    IMHO, all these are weak investors, counting on the payrolls and hopefully rental income to cover the all cash outflow.

    This group of buyers have over-estimated their job security and optimistic about rental income / economy.

    Should these do work out in their favour, there would be wave of sellings.

    Let's see when there will be a recession.

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    Quote Originally Posted by Laguna View Post
    Lately, I contacted a few property agents on the profiles of recent property buyers.

    Majority are "investor" in their 30+ to mid 40, buying small units of <$1.2m - 1.5m, ie 1 bedroom or two bedrooms.
    In short, all these need to pay for the ABSD with 60 LTV if no problem with TDSR. And I think, they almost empty their CPF and cash for this investment.

    IMHO, all these are weak investors, counting on the payrolls and hopefully rental income to cover the all cash outflow.

    This group of buyers have over-estimated their job security and optimistic about rental income / economy.

    Should these do work out in their favour, there would be wave of sellings.

    Let's see when there will be a recession.
    Bank will not call them until it crash more than 40%.

    Every month they are paying down their loan, if rented out they save on the interest.

    Better than to put in the Bank. Rental yeild is the lowest in Singapore, security is what most look at.

  28. #28
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    Quote Originally Posted by Arcachon View Post
    Bank will not call them until it crash more than 40%.

    Every month they are paying down their loan, if rented out they save on the interest.

    Better than to put in the Bank. Rental yeild is the lowest in Singapore, security is what most look at.
    Banks will not call if you are still serving the loans well.

  29. #29
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    Quote Originally Posted by Laguna View Post
    Banks will not call if you are still serving the loans well.

    That is why I cash out 660K use only 555,800, 104,200 to pay the loan for the time when I got no rental income.

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    Positive thinking is a mental and emotional attitude that focuses on the bright side of life and expects positive results. A positive person anticipates happiness, health and success, and believes he or she can overcome any obstacle and difficulty.

    Positive thinking: It may not make you rich. But it will help you to reduce stress & prevent you from a total breakdown.

    1. Surround yourself with positive people.

    2. Remember that no one is perfect and let yourself move forward.

    3. Meditate or do yoga or listen to / Sing your favorite song

    4. Happiness vs. more "want" (Which Comes First?). Be contented.

    5. Positive living. Do something for yourself that you truly enjoy like playing Tennis , golf , badminton etc with your friends.
    It keep you healthy & also reduce your mind stress. This is a very important "Must do thing" you need to focus on.


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