Sunday, August 1, 2010

Hello! :)

It's been awhile since I last published a new blog post. I've been rather lazy, I would say. haha.

Anyways, for a re-start, I would like to encourage YOU, whoever YOU are, to start investing.

The global economy's recovery is back on track, some even boomz-ing. This will probably continue for another 7-8 years, before another cataclysmic recession comes. Vicious cycle, they say.

Co-related, inflation is rising too. Inflation erodes the real value of your money. Say the Consumer Price Index(CPI) rises at an average of 3% a year, imagine how much money has been 'lost' over the years! Thus, instead of putting all your money in the bank, why not use some of them to start investing? Of course, this is just one reason out of many, on why you should invest. This post is certainly too shallow to cover the depth of this whole issue. It is merely a small insight into investing on my part.

To begin, you could seek advice from friends who are already into investments. Ask them(with the proviso they are willing to help you. Financial-related books are an option too. You could also engage a financial consultant, adviser or any professional. I personally have two, one from Prudential and the other Philips Securities.

My investment portfolio is currently 30% gold, 40% cash and 30% equity securities - 15% mutual funds, 15% stocks. I intend to increase the securities portion to 40% when I have more $$$. Bonds are an option too. I will also allocate 10% for a cool and daring venture, when the EPL starts. No! It's not what you think - I do have have the temerity to engage in betting. I invest.

To those who are still sceptical of investing: I strongly encourage you to re-consider your stand. Read up more on it. There are obviously a lot of benefits if you start early.

To youths who feel ambivalent about taking the plunge: consider this quote from Nobel Laureate(Literature) Samuel Beckett, 'Ever tried. Ever failed. No matter. Try again. Fail again. Fail better.' Afterall, we are still young. And that, is our biggest capital.

Best regards,
Darren Ong

Disclaimer:
Please convince yourself investing is beneficial, before you start. And as usual, caveat emptor applies. Do plenty of intensive research before you start. It's your money, your choice.

Fight on 4:51 AM

Wednesday, December 30, 2009

Hello, whoever you may be! :)

Its a very good time for me to reflect upon the promises I've made in the past.

1.After A lvls, i promised to
a) continue my community service (done)
b) strive for continued excellence (not to the best of my abilities)
c) start my financial planning (done)
d) get a scholarship (not yet not yet)

2. When i entered OCS, i promised to
a) do my best (not done)
b) come out of it saying i've breezed through it (done)
c) maintain relationships with my frens [ for males yes, for females no =( ]

After doing all these reflections, i think its also an apt opportunity for me to reaffirm my friendship with allll those whom i cherish really very dearly.

Whoever you may be: As long as you consider me as your friend, i would consider you mine too! :) I wanna say i really really cherish you as my friend. I might have hurt you in a way or another before. For that, i sincerely apologise. And i hope i've learned and changed. If not, please do tell me. I swear i will try and change for the better. I might have appeared to neglect you in the past, especially when i'm in NS now, but trust me, i've never and will never forget about you.

SO... i wish all you a very happy new year and may all your dreams/wishes/hopes be granted asap! :)

Best regards,
Darren Ong

Fight on 9:04 AM

Monday, September 21, 2009

The decisions i make, words i say, things i do might appear weird, temperamental and wrong. But i swear all of them were executed after giving much thought. I have my reasons for doing so. ...

Yet, some of them are much regretted even till today. hais...

Fight on 12:54 AM

Friday, September 11, 2009

My personal opinion(open to ideas/debates)

Love can really make or break someone.

I see my friends, changing drastically because of love, some for the good and others for the worse. I've seen more of the latter recently.

One of my friends has began to turn vengeful, thinking of ways to deal with the guy who snatched away his love whilst trying to change his way of living so as to get his girlfriend back. Ironically, I believe changing for the sake of doing it would not change things. Things would remain status quo. Neither would it make him a happier person.

Worse still, another friend of mine wants to commit suicide. Yes, certainly, he deserves our sympathy for losing his love. But, surely, he is foolish to even think of doing that. This is an understatement.

He could be despondent, dejected and feel like hes lost all meaning in life. But that does not give him the entitlement to end his life, the right to hurt his family and friends. Simply because they care for him. He is merely transferring his pain to others who care for him or even creating more pain in this world. Yes. Its unfair, not justified and definitely not worth it. Please. Family and friends are there for a reason.

I understand it really hurts to be out of love, especially when the couple was together for years. The pain, the sudden lost of a pillar of support and meaning in life all adds up... But time will heal. Do not get me wrong. I am not saying it will heal fully. A tinge of pain and regret will still linger in their minds even when they become, say octogenarians, in future. But then, they'll find their actions stupid looking back at what they've done.

They should move on. Perhaps they can keep themselves occupied through reading, exercising, learning an instrument, playing computer games, hanging out with friends, doing community work and so on so forth. Possibly anything! Anything would suffice. After all, love in the purest sense should be about happiness, not anguish.

Yours Sincerely,
Darren Ong

Fight on 6:22 PM

Sunday, August 23, 2009

Stay true to ur moral values, ambition, aspirations, beliefs, and most importantly... feelings :)

Fight on 3:27 AM

Sunday, August 16, 2009

Yo!

I was kinda impressed by this quote.

"Integrity > motivation > capacity > understanding > knowledge > experience. Without integrity, motivation is dangerous; Without motivation, capacity is impotent; Without capacity, understanding is limited; Without understanding, knowledge is meaningless; Without knowledge, experience is blind."

To all the people entering uni: All the best in uni! :)
To all the juniors taking Alvls: Jiayou! :)
To the rest: Take care!

Fight on 5:57 PM

Saturday, July 25, 2009

Yoyoyoyo.

Some of my bdae celeb pics at botanic gardens and glass hse! haha. was quite surprised(though i knew beforehand cus of some minor leaks hehe) and very touched! lol a big thanks to all my dearest frens especially eewen, old fren soph, best fren sx, bro gp and winston :):)