How I managed to save $100k before hitting my 28th birthday

Now this calls for a celebration. After scrimping and saving and working hard saving everything I could afford, I have finally achieved my target of $100k before the age of 30, with 2 more years left to spare. I shall make full use of these 2 extra years to continue to build my savings and wachest to the next target, which is to achieve $200k in savings and investments before my 32nd birthday.

Why 32nd birthday?

Well, some readers may ask this question, so I might as well answer it first. Well, its more like an extrapolation of my saving abilities. When I started working after graduation at age 25, I took 3 years to achieve 100k in savings and investments, so I had simply added 3 years + additional 1 year buffer for unforeseen circumstances. So voila, the number 32 comes to my mind. Furthermore, I had a headstart after graduation as I had already saved around the region of $20k before starting to work full time.

How I did it

I am going to spoil the surprise by saying there is no magic involved. All it takes is sheer hard work and discipline. I cannot emphasize it any more, discipline in delaying instant gratification goes a long way to achieving your goals before you even know it.

In fact, I didn't even realise I achieved my target until I recently checked on my investments and saving accounts. I had multiple saving accounts which makes it harder to keep track of the total amount I had saved.

My income 

I am not going to reveal my income, but I have to say my gross income is definitely less than the median income of the employed people we see in Singapore. Yes, even though I have been working for 3 years, I have not experienced a phenomenal increase in salary to even assist in my saving goals. So this shows that, increasing incomes do matter, but even without it, it is still possible to achieve it if we have the perseverance and focus, we can achieve it.

Investment returns

Next, people may point to my investment growth. Well, my returns coming from my investments are almost similar to the returns we get from the STI. It is simply because my portfolio had been weighted heavily to the local banks and telcos. However, due to the weak telco sector, my returns have been staying even below the performance of the STI, so that also means I didn't make more than say from a regular investor who had invested in the STI ETF at similar times I had entered the market. Thus, it is clear that there was no stellar returns to assist in boosting the growth of my savings towards the $100k level faster than anticipated.

My advice

What I am trying to drive here is, simply sheer perseverance and discipline goes a long way to achieve the savings goal we all have always dreamed of. We always see in sensational facebook feeds of making tons of money from the stock market, and this person relaxing at the beach as a result without lifting a finger. This is definitely a scene which this advertisers would like you to believe to buy their product, be it their hugely expensive courses or products they are looking to sell to you to make that commission. Don't fall for it to make another person reach their savings goals a lot faster!

So I am going to give a simple reminder. Stay focused on your goals. Make it a game, a game you would want to unlock the achievement. The achievement of financial independence, the dream of all financial bloggers out there. It is a lot closer than you think, as you let the power of compounding do its work, while you work hard to save more from your income.

Now you just need some motivation, and I hope this can motivate others seeking for some affirmation of their belief or simply looking for a way to grow their wealth. Stay the course and may we have a good weather ahead!