Orange Latern

When you first start working, it can be a hard transition from managing an allowance to managing a proper income in thousands. Though it may seem like you just have more money to spend, there are also a lot more things you need to pay for now as a “financially independent adult”. There are many things to learn on how to budget to make sure you have enough for loans, insurance, investment and future savings. Books and articles will tell you how to budget and fully utilize your income but one thing they don’t tell you is how to be disciplined. If you allocate a monthly budget to food expenses with the intention to save money, do you really think you will spend that little? In Behavioral Economics, there is a term called present bias that describes how people value things now more than they would later. It is a theory that captures our tendency towards immediate gratification — something we have all been guilty of one way or another and is often the thing that derails us from our...

We are all growing old and with declining birth rates and the loss of the kampung, Singapore’s ageing population problem is an issue that must be tackled as a country. It is not something to leave to government agencies; it is something we must all do our part to prepare for. In the study “Supporting Singaporeans’ Aspirations in Aged Care”, 998 respondents were surveyed to find out what concerns they had about growing older. Some concerns identified were not being able to care for themselves or carry out their daily living, being financially prepared for old age and worries about being able to live independently and comfortably. There was a clear preference for ‘ageing in place’ or the ability to live in one’s home safely, independently and comfortable, regardless of age, income or ability level with 78% saying that they preferred to stay in their own home. This survey may help explain why your elderly parents or grandparents are stubborn about living on their own. The elder...

I’ve watched my fair share of Tasty videos while scrolling through my social media feed and they share short cooking videos that make preparing your own meals look so quick and easy. But the sad truth is that it is never simple. Grocery shopping and prepping the ingredients before getting down to the actual cooking takes time and effort. Experience and talent can teach you how to mix in random ingredients you have in the fridge to get a decent meal but who has the time to learn? Hence, for those of us who cannot cook to save our lives, Tingkat delivery services are a welcomed experience. Like any food delivery service, you submit an order online and food is delivered to you for your dinner meals every weekday. These services are known to get boring after a while because the caterers tend to serve the same dishes and over time, the predictability overweighs the convenience of having your meals delivered to you at an extremely affordable price.Out of the 15 brands that I have tasted,...