Business and lifestyle blogger Grace Tan gave up an annual income of $114,000 in sales to pursue her passion - and ended up getting a life in the process.
Ms Tan, 27, recalls how she became increasingly miserable at her old job because she had "no life".
"I was working late very often, including the weekends, because I had to cold call potential clients or be involved in evening preview sessions," she says.
"It broke my heart every time I'd to tell my mum I won't be coming home for dinner because of work," she recounts as tears well up.
Ms Tan was working at a local education centre, convincing parents to take up education packages administered by the centre.
But those two years of slogging it out made her realise that life and health are more important than money.
"I gained 5kg in those two years due to a lack of exercise and because I was desk-bound most of the time," she says with a laugh. "And when friends asked me what I did over the weekend, my answer would always be: 'Work'."
Although she was rewarded with a good commission, the job did not satisfy her thirst for knowledge and emotional fulfilment.
The self-professed bookworm enjoys browsing and reading all sorts of materials, and would follow up with reading book reviews and interviews with the authors.
"Sometimes I'd feel that the interviews were inadequate, maybe because of space constraints or other factors," she says. "That's when I took the initiative to contact the authors to ask them other burning questions."
While some may say that curiosity kills the cat, it paid off for Ms Tan when she clinched an interview with Mr Peter Buffett, son of American investment guru Warren Buffett.
"I wanted to find out more about his relationship with his dad and what pearls of investment wisdom his dad gave him along the way," she explains.
Scoring interviews with people of interest soon led Ms Tan to build her career as a blogger by documenting their stories on her site.
Last year, her site - workingwithgrace.wordpress.com - was judged best individual blog at the Singapore Blog Awards, and she published her first book Blogging For A Living.
Advertorials and advertisements rake in a four-figure amount a month, with her income supplemented by companies that get mentioned on her Facebook page, which has garnered over 10,000 likes.
Ms Tan is engaged to financial planner Derek Gue, 31, and lives with her parents and younger sister.
Q: Are you a spender or a saver?
I'm definitely more of a saver now and always keep my eyes peeled for good deals and discounts. Where there is a sale, I'll be there!
For now, I save about 20 per cent of my income as cash. Part of the remaining sum goes to stock investments while the rest are kept aside for my new home.
Q: On average, how much do you charge to your credit cards every month?
If I'm travelling, I cap my credit card expenses at $1,500 a month. Otherwise, I charge less than $500 to my cards. I prefer paying for purchases by cash or Nets as it is easier to track how much I've spent.
Q: What financial planning have you done for yourself?
Insurance is important to me because I witnessed first-hand how a health scare chalked up a high five-figure medical bill for a loved one.
When I was 23, I started attending workshops and asked friends on how to invest in the stock market. As I'm relatively young, I opt for stocks that are engaged in businesses I'm familiar with.
I prefer investing in businesses that sell consumer goods, run shopping malls or are in the food and beverage sector. Seeing is believing, so if their business is brisk, it gives me confidence that the company can bring in revenue.
Q: Moneywise, what were your growing-up years like?
My parents gave me just enough pocket money throughout my schooling years and made sure I learnt the importance of budgeting.
From giving me an allowance by the week, they increased it to once a month after I'd proven I wouldn't overspend.
I remember getting $300 from an Edusave award in upper primary, and I pleaded with my parents to let me spend it on a Power Rangers toy I'd been eyeing. That is one of the rare occasions when I splurged on something I really liked.
Q: How did you first get interested in investing?
My dad never got the chance to go to university, but he was savvy enough to invest in items that he knew about and which would appreciate. I watched him buy gold bars directly from merchants or goldsmith shops.
On the contrary, I'd friends who bought into "gold investment" schemes promising returns that were too good to be true. They ended up getting their fingers burnt. So I followed in my dad's footsteps and picked products I'd understand.
Q: What property do you own?
None at the moment, but my fiance and I are waiting for our four-room HDB flat in Punggol which will be ready soon.
Q: What is the most extravagant thing you have bought?
An iPad2 that cost more than $1,000 when it was first launched a few years ago. That was when I was suffering from the "too much money" syndrome and didn't know what to do with the money I'd earned from sales.
So I bought the tablet because it was the trendy thing to do then.
Q: What is your retirement plan?
I hope to retire by 40 - that is, to do what I want and enjoy it at the same time instead of working for the sake of earning money.
My paternal grandma suffered from diabetes and had to have one of her legs amputated. So I hope to give more time towards being a health ambassador and stressing the importance of healthy living.
Q: Home is now...
A four-room flat near the Punggol Waterway Park where I live with my parents and younger sister.
Q: I do not drive...
But commute via the BMW, which stands for bus, MRT and walking!
WORST & BEST BETS
Q: What is your worst investment to date?
That would be the stake I bought in Singapore Airlines back in 2010 that has since incurred a paper loss of about 30 per cent.
I made an emotional decision to invest in it after my pleasant experience with the airline when I took a month-long trip to three countries. I was in love with the brand and felt that I wanted to own a small stake in this stock that is often associated with our national pride. Although the stock price hasn't risen to the levels I bought it at, at least it pays out dividends regularly.
Q: And your best?
Quitting my job and striking out on my own. The road to financial sustainability and roughing it out for the initial years as a blogger were tough. But I was determined to take up a slower-paced job that would let me enjoy the smaller things in life.
I make a four-figure sum on average, which is more than enough for me to get by on. Also, bloggers need not spend as much if you have kind sponsors to help cut down on some of your expenses. Having a dependable fiance, who said he will be able to support our financial commitments, also helps!
This article was published on April 20 in The Straits Times.
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