Cloud 007 : I have finally found the Ultimate Dream of my Life - Financial Freedom

What a life of ironies, full with regrets and many what ifs. I have myself many question about what if, but all these question I knew deep in my heart that the answers were irrelevant. Because what is more important is the future in front of us, what happened in the past is past tense and can't be undone.

It has been three months since I attended the two seminars in my last blog, since then I have attended more than twenty three seminars including the Invest Fair 2010 in Marina Bay Sands. I feel as if now I have earned a million dollar worth of knowledge from the seminars which can help me to pursue my ultimate dream, which is Financial Freedom.After attending from all these seminars, I have finally decided my first financial tools to generate my cash flow towards succeeding my financial freedom plan, which is Forex Trading.

It was coincidence at the period of time when I was deciding to attend Concept of Price course which trade on US Eminis Futures, that I found Metatrader 4 software which allows for demo trading of forex. So the stories unfold, I have spent almost close to two months of journey of self studying Forex trading from trading with MT4 and reading books on Forex Trading written by this person called Yeo Keong Hee. During the two months, mistakes and lesson were learned through the hard and painful ways. I traded Forex almost every day from Monday to Friday, within in the early morning before going off to work and also the late hours after works. I traded Forex while studying the Forex book, learning every lesson about Technical Analysis on Forex charts and also the psychology of winning traders. It was within these periods, my skills in technical analysis had leaps in miles of understanding. Of course, understanding TA itself doesn't mean I am a qualified trader. Updated until today, I had busted 5 Forex demo account in MT4 (since MT4 allows infinite accounts opening, so I guess it is OK)

Below I explained a little details about certain accounts which I had busted:

1.) First account - I managed to earned up to 2500 USD profits from a 5000 USD 1:100 leverage account. Here, I had just started learning about technical analysis, so the winnings are purely what I called Beginners Luck. The account ended when my computer crashed and was sent to the computer shops for repairs.

2.) Second account to forth account- all of my accounts hit the margin calls and lack of funds to do multiple tradings, so I closed off the accounts because of my ignorance to admit my failures. (Learned that my trading personality needs a lot of brushing)

3.) Fifth account - my more successful accounts which I managed to earned around 4300 USD from a 5000 USD 1:100 leverage account, lasted two weeks and a half. First week earning was 2500 USD while second week was 1800 USD, but within the first three days of third week all my earnings were wiped out and reach margin call. (Finally learned that risk management is very important to preserve our capital in the long run, which I started to ignore as overconfident from a serious of successful tradings).

4.) Now in my six account, which I started with a smaller amount around 3000 USD with 1:50 leverage. (I have stricken myself to put stop-loss and profit target trigger for my trading, hopefully this account would last longer)

I am fascinated with the potential financial cash flow which Forex can provide if I am successful in this trading platform, but still keeping in minds that I still need a lot of lessons and experience to be learn. Because of this I believe mentors are essential for my continues learning in this financial tools to guide me of which is right and wrong in Forex trading. Currently I had two mentors in Forex trading, one is Yeo Keong Chee's Forex Trading books and another is a Forex course which I am very soon to attend called TerraSeeds TFlow. The course is instructed by a successful trader named Binni Ong, about the usage of Fibonacci Advanced Retracement trading technique. I happened to found out that Fibonacci Retracement technique to be quite very accurate in predicting price movement in charts, so I buy into her theory of this trading technique.

Whatever outcome from my first path into the financial path, I hopefully am able to stick to my hearts and be patience towards the whichever obstacles encounter along the path. Keeping my head clear is also important to remind me of the possible failures of my current path pursuing, and the financial dangerous if I failed in the path. Nether less, I am gracious that God had lighten me to this alternate path as answer to my many prayers. I know now this is my path to pursue, but I also know that I must work hard to walk this path as there's no free lunch in this world. I will continue learning to be more experience mature and knowledgeable equipped along the road to finance freedom, hopefully I am able to achieve the light at the end of this tunnel.

I thanked God again for his holiness answer, I promise I will try my best to be successful in the path.

Cloud 006 : Another Perspective of Earning for a Living

Half year have past, although what I anticipated during the first month of the year never happen until now but I had gone through some enlightenment during that period. The enlightenment regarding life and meaning of it, that is not just about chasing dream and fame but to make a living for life.

For the past couple of weeks, I had attended two short talks which enlighten up my perspective about earning for a living. As a general, we knew there were a few ways of earning a living such as working for an employer, managing a business of your own or do freelancing and contract works. Most of us would still be working for a salary at the current age, or maybe a few have their business at a medium stage. Of course I fell under the first category for past 7 years.

It started when I begin reading Rich Dad Poor Dad back in 2005 and have a glimpse about personal finance management as a start, then I started trading around late 2007 as a beginner with small capital invested in stock market. At that time I didn't know much about stock market nor trading theory, so it makes no surprised that until today I didn't make a big income from my investment. But all those experiences, which I started as a alternate hobby to my artist career became a basic board for my understanding today. When I attended the two course, I felt that my understanding of trading had leap few ages forward.

The two course I attended are The Concept of Price and Track the Trend, which involves around trading but at 2 different major area. The first one was majorly involve in the knowledge of buying through prices in an index in US, while the latter was more about trend trading through stock market around the world. The two all involves on chart and graph reading for price buy sell decisions, this was the thing that got me so hooked on. I was interested to know about reading graphs back in the early days of my trading and never success in finding an understanding on catching the trend of trading which I was seeking. Now my understanding have broaden and I am more knowledgeable on this type of knowledge, greatly excited to be exact.

I haven't sign on the two courses for full time as I lacked the fund to do so at the moment, but it have became apparent to me that these would be my targets in the near 6 months or so. Hoping this would be an alternate fate that might change my destiny for my remaining years of life, I greatly anticipating in learning it as to seek the next dream of my goal which is called Financial Freedom...

Cloud 005 : Life is Like Playing Professional Soccer

I am a great soccer fan, especially for English Premier League, and also a decade of fan for Manchester United. Ever since David Beckham scored the most magnificient goal of his career, loping the ball pass half court into the net from the goalkeeping of Wimbledon goalkeeper Neil Sullivan, I was Man U greatest follower since then. Is also when Man U won the treble back in 1999, when I saw Ole Gunner Sokjaer scored the final goal in European Champions League final during injury time, I devoted my loyalty to seek pleasure in pursuing soccer news ever since.

I played fooball manager game since my devotion to Man U, always choosing Man U as my team to start the campaign, never failed once in every year edition of the Football Manager / Championship Manager game that I had successfully chosen Man U for the team to play.

But tonight, I had the sudden realization that my life is like playing professional soccer, where there are contract period and transfer price for everything. In terms of contract to the football club is like our employment contract to the company, we sign the agreement with the company to provide our service to the company for the projects involved. Sometimes the contract can be bound for years, without any changes such as salary raise and that means bad news for your career. There are times after some time you might feel want to negotiate the contract with the club (company) but you feel refrain from doing so. Just because you feel you unworthy of a new contract, doesn't mean you shouldn't try to negotiate. More over if you like me had done massive contribution to the company all the time but still get ignored until now. This tend to get frustrating.

Then when you think about the transfer issues in football, you tend to interpret that as the time of your tolerance to the company you work for. When you had work at the company for sometime and there still no improvement over your contract, you might start to think about submitting the transfer listed request, a.k.a start to look for other job employment. That's how footballer life is, you don't tend to be bench all the time so you get so frustrated and start seeking other clubs to join. And then there's also the case if you already been a major contributor to the club (company) for so long, and your contract still not yet been negotiate is like the club (company) insulting your professional career. When this happen, is normal to start to thinking about other clubs to join, where you can contribute your skill for better cause.

It is frustrating at time to think about such cases, but this is such a life for a professional footballer also. When you play well but you are not offer a new contract, you transfer to other club. When you are bench warmer and never get the chance to shine, you transfer to other club. Taking the case of Carlos Tevez at Man U for instance, he got his chance to show what he had to contribute to the club and the fans loved him. But at the end, he gets delayed by the club on contract negotiation and finally transferred to rival Manchester City with frustration. This is such a case almost nearing to becoming a reality for me now, but I hold my grudges until the last date before Chinese New Year, the date they promised to sort something out for my career. Time is ticking surely, my patient is also running thin, they know it and nothing still been done.

An extra issue that resembling football is that when a club payed so much money to buy a player supposedly to improve the club but had not yet shown any satisfactory result since so long time, you tend to get frustrated if he had something you desire. He gets a lucrative contract but not even close to our ability, is frustrating to think that we are actually getting less pay than this fag-got. Apologize on the senstitive word, but is frustrating to think about someone who is not good at all is actually double your pay, higher rank than you but doing less than you. And this person is not management staff some more, I tend to do more management than this guy does. So bull shit of the company to hire such a person, wasting the company resources.

Is the time running out for contract negotiation? Will I tolerate the mistreat from the club if the date is elapse at the end? Should I start to look for other clubs to join since there is nothing much I can do to change my situation? These are question I tend to let God and time to answer it, hopefully it will be answer in a nice way...

Cloud 004 : Zen of Regrets

In our life, we have many regrets and most of them is those regret which will haunt us forever. For me, I have many regrets and it has been haunting me until this very day. It chill my spine every time when i remember these regrets, biting my teeth and hitting the walls until my fist bleed. It is very painful indeed, through to the core of my heart.

This recently, I had been revisiting those memories of regrets by unconscious, perhaps because of the recent events that are happening in my life. I had lost a lot of my faith in life, and the belief to chase success again. I regret, regret because of those decision I had made few years ago that haunted me until these very days. I had a rough path in my life because of those decision that I made at those times of my life. It's crazy to think about it, because it had happened in the past but it still bite my heart out every time I experiences some unpleasant events this recent year.

How I wish could go back to those time, when I made important decisions in my life. Although there were many regrets that I can't fix again in the past, there are some that I always remember to remind me of what future possibility could have been. One decision that I had regretted until today is the decision to left a big company which I joined four years ago, it was the biggest mistake in my life which had damaged my career path until today. Because of this decision I had to restart all that I had fight for three years before the decision been made, until today I am still recovering from the damaged of this decision. If I had not been to rash on my decision to gain fame, which are very false fame to be honest, I would have been in the front line of the career I started.

I was young, stupid, and inexperience in life decisions. For the punishment of this mistake, I had to endured so many setback in this 4 years. Arghh, how I wish could return to the time I made the decision, to slap me at that time before making the wrong move in my life. But.... this is life, we have to learn through mistakes, understand them and never repeat this same mistake again.

Because of this lesson, I had stay on the same path for 2 years above, reluctant to leave it path for another challenge. Perhaps, I am still waiting, waiting for sign from above that when my time to go, I will have the chance. But at the moment, the signs shown recently have told me to stay put, maybe until I had accomplish some goals.

I am not sure, but I only can wait. I can't have the luxury to be running around since I had someone to take care of. She also been in a lot stress in life this recently and I have to show all my support to her. Maybe until she have return to her own path in life, then I can consider mine again. Unselfishness...

Regrets are things that let a person grow up, and these lessons in life that make a person rise towards his goals. I believe, I trust, this must be a sign from above. You can read it through many books, written by those who walked through the same journey, living past regrets...

Lets hope for the best this year, hopefully there would be less regrets to lives on....

Cloud 003 : Accept Fate with a Correct Conscious

The cold wind breeze through the silent night, and there was myself alone, sitting on the middle of a row of benches just down stair my house. I sat there for half an hour, thinking through a lot of stuff in my mind, as my feeling have been mixed with despair and little gratitude. I spoken to myself about the fate of my life for the past few years, I admitted the defeats of fate and feel little small gracious about some decision I made in the couple of weeks.

First of all, I feel defeated and tired about the life that I had endured for the past few years. I feel very tired, unwillingly but finally defeated by the fate that falls upon. For everything I tried, promises I made to myself over and over many times, is just seems that the path to success is a really impossible dream. As I am writing now, I feel dreams are a dead thing for me, unrealistic and will never fullfil in my lifetime. However I tried, I had to endured more suffer and difficulty than anyone else that I knew. It seems a joke in my life that the harder i try to achieve something, the further it gets away from me throughtout the year. Life as in myself right now, is a mixed of little illusion and full of reality. I can't proceed anymore than I am now, I am stuck in an island that prohibit me from reaching other island. Is becoming a true reality to me that as I am getting elderly knowledgable, the more I accept defeats in any effort I try. As so much I would like to keep fighting and standing hold to the sail, I always find myself in the midst of a perfect storm with only my sail in sight. Sounds sad? but this is the truth of adulthood.

Secondly, I give a sense of gratitude to myself on couple of action that I feel a bit relief of. The first, I had not betray my righteous conscious when pursuing some path, I had not betray the code of trusts that I had agree upon. As to so much I wanted to try to win that path, I did not use the trust that fall bestow me to achieve that. At to the little least I will be proud of myself for doing this, although it might bring the demise to my dream. But the code of righteous, as my wife had suggested to me before the event brought sense to my thinking that I should try other way to achieve the dream, even mean with harder way, as I had done. It became an unknown hope now that if my path can really become reality, even though I had past the first obstacles with self satisfactory feeling, the second obstacle had not appear yet as I am writing. A feeling of nervousness drive through my spline, render myself in a loosing hope. I still holds on, but in my heart I felt the hope is dying in a slow and painful way. Had I got any choice, no I don't. Had I lost my righteous conscious, thank god I didn't. I whispered to myself over this choice.

The second which I feel was the righteous thing done was an event that happened this very night, with an old friend which I feel uncomfortable of a while back. But as we all gathered for a reunion dinner, I leave myself with the decision of either ignore this person or not befriend with him forever. For it was his promises that had been broken that put my trust to the sand, I felt disgusted and uncomfortable for his unwillingness to help me even when he had promised. Although I had tried to make up with the person after a bad fall perviously because of some irresponsible third person. But I whispered to myself, do I need to make an enemy for the rest of my life? So i pull myself back, putting the smile back on and had jokes with the person as if nothing ever happen between us. I feel a bit relief and the sorrowness flew away little by little, as if the rope in my heart is loosing up but not entirely. I knew I had made a gracious move, I acknowledge him as my friend even though he might not had the same feeling towards me. But I feel in my heart that someday he will understand my actions, I bank in that future. Later on, I feel that he might not betray me totally as I look straight towards his eyes, as I bank my hope. I knew if the demise of my dream would not fall entirely upon this friend, as it was the situation that prohibited me from achieving it. I rest my hatred soul loose slowly into the breezing wind, flying slowly towards the cold night.

It is a path to true reality that the elder we get, the more we are accepted to the defeats of fate that fall upon us. I cry with full sorrow throughout my tears, but I feel it still unable to bring the success I had dream on. I know the dream might die, but I thank to god that I didn't lost my soul entirely during these process. Is a wise and noble thing to accept fate with a correct conscious. Hopefully it would open the heaven gates to me...

Cloud 002 : Career is not a wealth

I once asked my wife this question "Do you think a career is a wealth?" She answered "No, career is not a wealth". We then elaborate the reason which defines a career is not a wealth, even though everyone in this world work through extreme hardship to achieve a successful career including myself.

Most of us finish our studies in college and graduated to be employ in a company of our field of interest, then we work our ways up the level in years time to achieve higher career success, mainly in salary increament and climbing management hierachy. Some might take a few years, most would find it tough to reach there until decades of experience. This is would be an inspiring journey which clearly define a person destiny in this world, a person success is clearly define also by his career success. But is career a wealth? I doubt so, after a deeper elaboration of the topic.

Firstly, career is not a wealth in terms that it can't be past down , mainly to the next generation. When you demise, so does your career follows to the grave. When you fall fataly ill and unable to work, so does your career as company you work so hard for can dismiss you with lawfully application. When you get retrench in econonmy hard times, your impressive career can't generate income for your living at the moment your paycheck stops. And lastly, you can't sell off your career for quick cash unlike your other assets such as properties and investments.

From the mentioned above, we can't any reason why career should be a wealth. Although career is the main thing that generate income for us to spend on living expenses and collecting wealth assets. Without career, we can't generate income to buy food and get shelter. So career is really important after all, although is not wealth.

But for most people, we have been obsessed with achieving career success until our determination blinded us from other aspect of life surrounding us all the time. We work day and night, spends weekend at office to satisfied our boss so we can get salary increament and promotion. Because of this we neglect our health and family relationship, some might work all the time till he forgot how fast his children have grown up in a glimpse. For some, their boss promotes other who are more talented and work lot less despite their extreme hardship all along. Full with disappointment and despair, they left the company to search for other opportunities. If they fail to realise the content of such, a dejavu will occure wherever they go.

Again such examples as above really defines why we should not be determine with career success, as most time it would not go our way. Career is a good for life journeys, but it should not be the main thing in life. Career is not a wealth, it doesn't bring happiness till your end. It is merely a tool for us to collect real wealth, such as savings and properties. So it is wise to save up much money along the way when you reaching the career climax, as it can enable you to be financial freedom when you retired one day.

A Creative Director friend of mine once told me this, "Clarence, always save up money whenever your earnings are high because you won't know when it ends, don't waste away the opportunity to collect wealth when you can." He was once a very successful Creative Director earning six figures during his high days, but since then he had sold off most of his assets to clear off debts and maintaining his family expenses. His works inspire me until today, although I have not yet reach my career climax but I will always save up to the days I reach my career high.

Career is not a wealth and it shouldn't be a determine part of one life. Is to my current conclusion, career is not wealth...

Cloud 001 : The seven characteristic of a person life, in pursuing career and wealth

During the dinner with my wife, I came up a theory on several type of personality which can define a person success in life, in pursuing career success and seeking wealth. This is an assumption which I had seen through experiences and understanding from the books and articles of successful people.

To my belief, there are seven type of character that defines how a person who lives through his life in pursuing career and searching wealth.

The first person who is a fine talker in his work, in which he never needed to take much initiative nor energy to execute daily test, instead always find ways to manipulate other towards his goals in working environment. He is a successor in career life but never self improve himself during his free time after life, as he enjoys maintaining the current situation of his career life to be his finest level. This person enjoys success and wealth through his only income which is his career, but he is hated by his colleagues and subordinate throughout his whole career for been talker and butt kisser.

The second person who is someone who always work hard and contribute fully towards his daily work in career, always giving the extra edge and contribute extra effort selflessly. He is never a fine talker so he need to push more effort through hardship in his career. Although he tries to find extra income through freelancing and alternative work during his free time, he is burn from exhaustion throughout his life to achieve success. This person always tired in pursuing success and wealth through the hard way and seldom find the enjoyable success he is hoping for.

The third person is someone who contributes fully towards his career with a satisfactory amount and also finding ways to improve himself with skills and financial knowledge. He is very professional towards his work and always commit full effort to succeeding a task, but only until a satisfactory amount of effort he can afford. Never burn himself down from overwork and learn to find smart ways in earning extra income through investment knowledge, he is never a believer in executing freelance nor burning extra exhaustion after work. This person who might be a great successor in life when he is giving the right chance at the right moment, leader with great success are born from this category, but very rare.

The four person is someone who doesn't contribute much towards his career, never really give effort in executing his daily work and always be normal in the office, He comes or leave on time at working days, hanging around the office without much thinking of the future. But he gives more or full effort during free time at doing freelancing or alternative jobs which yield extra income. He is an expert in accumulating wealth from the extra work he did outside his career. This person might achieve great success in gaining wealth in the future through his outside career income, some might afford to open his own business and build up a great amount of wealth. But he would never be a great leader with great success.

The fifth person is fine talker and also great seeker in financial knowledge during his free time. He works with great intelligent way by manipulating people to execute his work, and yet able to fine ways to improve his financial wealth with investment knowledge during his free time. He would never be burn from exhaustion in his career and able to gain great wealth in the fastest way a person can achieve, hence becoming a wealthy and successful person at a young age. This person is widely found in these days as those who achieve great success in wealth at a young age, and boasting his success through seminar talks and publishing books about himself. A very inspiring person for the generation nowadays, for the people who seek quick success.

The sixth person is a hardworking person who always contribute fully towards his career, as well gaining extra wealth though income outside his career. Almost same as the third example, but this person works without stopping and always contribute extra effort all round towards everything that can gain wealth. He might neglect his family or people close to him, he might be burned from exhaustion after his success in the future. This person usually would decease at a young age and be remembered as a great icon for his before death success, never really get the chance to enjoy his success during his lifetime.

The seventh person is someone who doesn't really need to put much effort in his career and riding the boat smoothly throughout his life. He is also very good at accumulating wealth by accidental ways such as getting rich from the tips his friend gave in investment. He never needs to work hard and talk his ways into career success and getting the hatred from colleagues and subordinates, he is well loved and respect by everyone throughout his whole life. This person lives through a life of heaven and peace, and yet able to achieve great success in life. The perfect role model for all man kind but will be hated by gods of ancient Greeks. Like those old days, people with happy life will get a tragic ending. This person is almost near extinct at these modern days, yet still have one in a million.

The above examples are my theory of character that defines the very life of most people in this world, i believe all or most ninety percent of the us in this world falls under these few category. Some might have full resemblance or similarity towards the seven type of character. If you find yourself not among the seven character, perhaps you would need to analyze yourself if you have been living your life thoroughly with great thoughts towards your own future, or you have been running away from responsibility in your life.

Yet this is all just my assumptions and opinions... Understanding is appreciation.