Sunday, March 2, 2008

Getting out of the rat race


June 1998 was when I first started as an employee for a Japanese company. I was once that optimistic newly grad from a well-known college, eager to be part of the workforce, full of ambition and dreams and hoping that one day I shall be successfull in my chosen field. Ten years and four companies later, I am still an employee - less enthusiastic about work, uncontented with the pay, stressed and overworked. For 10 long years I have been working my butt off so that the owner of the company could get rich. And what do I get in return? Bills, bills and more bills to be paid monthly.

It was then when I read a book entitled Rich Dad Poor Dad by Robert Kiyosaki that it finally hit me; when it comes to my personal finance, I was not evolving at all. Yes, my current salary is 10 times more than I was getting during my first year of work, but my expenses have also increased dramatically. Therefore, my financial status during my first year have not changed after 10 years. I am still struggling to make both ends meet because as my income increases, so are my expenses. Depressing as it may, I am stuck inside the Rat Race - working endlessly with little reward or purpose like a lab rat trying to escape whilst running around a maze or in a wheel but ultimately going nowhere.

Question is how do I get out of the rat race? ...
Well, first thing's first; in order to find a solution, one should be aware of the problem. After taking in what I read and relating it to my personal being, I am able to come up with some realizations. These in turn will act as guide posts to achieve my goal.

My personal realizations:
1. Things that I thought I "need" are really just "wants".
2. I have acquired liabilities which I thought are assets
3. My want for a bigger, better and faster things is a never-ending cycle
4. Being an employee will NOT make me rich
5. I am a certified impulsive buyer and so I always end up buying stuff I don't need.
6. Most importantly, I lack self discipline when in comes to spending.

This book has given me some useful insights about handling personal finance, cashflows and the difference between an asset and a liability. It made me aware of my financial obscurity and how I can find a solution for my problem. Right now, I am thinking of doing some small investements hoping beyond hope that it is not too late for me. This is a slow and tedious process that may very well be prone to failure. This is better than doing nothing at all. I hope that someday soon, I will blog about how I was able to get out of the endless, self-defeating, pointless pursuit and vicious cycle called the rat race.