We are all artists and creatives at heart, even though we may not think we are. And our smartphones enable us to do and create so many amazing things. The hard part is getting started and knowing how to start. Fortunately for Apple fans, Today at Apple has totally free and fun how-to classes and interactive activities for the public. (more…)
Of all the bad decisions I’ve made in my life, here are my top three: 1. I once stayed waaaay too long in a bad relationship. 2. I overpaid too much on my first home (16 years ago), and sold it at a huge loss. 3. At various moments in my life, I hold onto things I know I will never need or use in the future. What do all these have in common? They are examples of the sunk cost effect. (more…)
PM Lee’s May Day message1 was a call to action for us “to adapt, to embrace the change, to pick up new skills and take on better jobs.” Today, lifelong learning and upskilling are essential for staying relevant and mitigating risks in Industry 4.0. Our government offers many schemes and resources to help us do this. And as PM Lee said, “you should take full advantage of them.” One such resource is NLB’s LyndaLibrary.
Mention Industry 4.0, and what usually comes to mind is tech, robotics, automation, and the Internet of Things. So one might believe that only technical expertise, such as coding/programming, data science/analytics, and cyber security, will guarantee a future-proof career. But there is one overlooked skill, that even Warren Buffett swears by, which can “raise your value by 50%”. And that skill is public speaking and communication. (more…)
If your child is learning Chinese as a Mother Tongue Language, your child might benefit from using Duolingo. I’m relearning Chinese, and I certainly have benefited! I’ve previously written about the Duolingo app way back in 2015. At that time, Mandarin Chinese was not offered. But it was added recently. And did I mention it’s completely FREE?
There are times when I think I’m being frugal, but when I look back, I realise I was not. In fact, I was far from it. I’ve failed many times in the past at being frugal. And it’s still a work in progress today. So what does it mean to be frugal? If this is one of your New Year’s Resolutions, and you’re not doing these things, then you may be doing it all wrong.
I’ve salvaged furniture from the dumpster, and have even saved some imperfect but still-edible produce. But as someone who tries to be frugal, I passed on freeganism because it conflicted with some of my values. To be clear, frugality (as defined by the Reddit community) is “the mental approach we each take when considering our resource allocations – time, money, convenience, and many other factors.” Freeganism, while its origins began with anti-consumerism and veganism, has steered into the direction of not spending at any cost and living on the discarded excess of society. It has recently garnered much media attention in Singapore. So why can freegan thinking lead to unhealthy behaviours? (more…)