Yes we r on track but $888k in 20 years time is nothing to shout about. Many of my sec school classmates in legal and medical fields are earning this amount on an annual basis. Though I tell myself to be contented but cannot help but look over my shoulder occasionally especially during annual class gatherings where people will size my up and ask how I am doing. I get dejected always after such functions but recover quickly enough for the rest of the year. In fact I deliberately missed this year gathering so that I dun have to sink into the occasional depressive state. I am much happier now.

TO, u guys are like that coz you never invested hard in your career and planned ahead. You might have started low but with adequate planning, you had chances to make those changes to better industries.

Don't compare with others who are more successful than you. Look at those with less. Count your blessings. Be happy that you have a home, a wife and a child. Don't take these for granted. Stop going to all these reunions, they are just events for egoistic people to boast.

Happiness is not about how much you have. Those with fortune may not be happy as they always worry about losing their wealth, they may have rocky marriages and their children have strained relationship with them due to years of parental neglect.

Invest your time in nurturing loving relationship with your family. This is more meaningful and lasting.

I agree with you. As to people worse off than me, honestly I have yet to meet one. Everyone i meet be it colleagues,friends or people on the street seem to be doing very well financially. Just have to look at the number of top notch brand new cars on the road of which some costs easily more than $200-300k each. Under new ruling,they would have to fork out at least $100k to 150k cash without making a dent in their pockets.This is something personally I will struggle to do..perhaps if you have stories of worse off people than me you can share so that I may feel a bit better and learn to be contented and not compare anymore.

When I said that you should look at people with less, you have to look beyond your social circles and to look beyond our shores. We are fortunate to be here. If you look around the world, we are very, very lucky in comparison. Count your many blessings and you will find contentment.

Since you save $44k pa, and since you want to own a car, why not just wait for 3 years and then buy your new car with your savings, paid in full cash. You don't have to buy those $200-300k cars. Just buy a new car which is less than $100k. There are many good new cars in the market selling at less than $100k.

No disrespect to you but it is easy to say look beyond our shores. I guess u r doing very well financially and you may not understand what it means to live in relative poverty. But I will heed your advice to be thankful and content. Not to compare with others and continue to live simply in this island state of prosperity and abundance.

Cheers.

No lah.i am not looking for car. I certainly not at level where I can own car. Heard from many forums that minimum income must be $10k take home in order to own a 5 yr old jap car. so in meantime I am not even dreaming....

I am 35 yr old
to the original poster - shall we meet?

Singapore is a depressing place to live in. I have lived in the east and west, never seen a worse place spiritually to live in than singapore.

Just went to sg recently and it was so crowded, you have to contort and twist your body just to walk around. Tiring to even walk around. Also,there are so many psycho crazy people around. There are so many people yet no one seems to acknowledge each other or make small talk. Some folks are incredibly rude. People don'tstrike me as competent. Can't stand listening to the people speak,be it english or chinese, people sound dreary and aggressive. I see errors everywhere. I think i pass by at least tens of thousands of people daily and just 4 days in sg i got death stares from psychos on train, had to walk past some guys who suddenly started talking to themselves, etc. The place has a bad unfriendly vibe.

I was born in the 80s and i could have a walk leisurely then, people though less advanced stillmadesmall talk andsmiled. There were only 2.5 million people. Now, 3 decades later, there are 5.5 million approaching 7 million.

After three days of doing nothing, just walking around in cramped crowded small spaces everywhere and talking to robots with blank dreary stares, i felt more tired than three years of work here. The spaces are so small and you never know whuch crazy person will suddenly attack you. The english spoken is horrible, the chinese spoken is horrible and people are just so curt and dreary with no persobalities.

I am sitting in a cafe now, i can make small talk and smile at anyone. We can say hi and exchange a few words. In sg, all i got was passive aggressiveness or the polite people will deliver standard lines like robots 'yes sir' 'thank you'...i know they don't even mean it.man it is such a crowded (no 1 in the world) horrible cold place to live in spiritually. Even hk is much better.