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At 27, I found myself with only $ 16 in my bank account. Here is my story of how I recovered and the financial lessons I learned along the way.
I am now 36 years old and have completely changed my life financially. But things weren’t rosy just a decade ago.
It all started when I was at the peak of my acting career and wanted to do something different. I decided to dedicate myself to singing, it was something I had always wanted to explore and pursue.
After all, I was one of the top 30 contestants on 2004’s Singapore Idol and had been trained as a singer and dancer at the Music and Drama Company while serving in the National Service. He knew he had to try.
In 2011, I started writing the lyrics for my first single, Unleashed. The creative process was pretty straightforward and everything went smoothly … until I had to produce the music video.
There were a few setbacks along the way, but one that still hits me hard, one that would affect me financially in the long run. My original contractor, who charged us $ 7,000 to build the set, stood us up at the last minute due to another project.
I ended up having to fork out $ 11,000 for another contractor to come in and finish the job. It was the first time that I paid such a large sum of money in one go. I still remember my hands were shaking when I wrote the check.
[[nid:480733]]The second big hit, which raised the cost of producing the video, was the dancers. I had to shell out almost $ 10,000 on them and the choreography lessons.
If you are in the industry, you will know that productions in general have unavoidable costs such as rental of filming locations, visual effects, crew members, transportation, equipment and meals, among others. One thing led to another, and soon the whole process ended up costing around $ 100,000. He had not taken into account such a high expense.
I found myself broke and lost.
All I had left was a pathetic $ 16 in my bank account. I knew I had to come up with a game plan to rebuild my finances and find a survival strategy.
How I survived with little or no savings
With only $ 16 in my bank account, I couldn’t even meet the minimum ATM withdrawal requirement. I had to borrow money from another actor, a good friend, Dawn Yeoh.
In order to get back on my feet as soon as possible, I decided to start saving rigorously. Most days, I would eat inexpensive rice (or ‘Cai Png’) at coffee shops, spending an average of $ 3.50 per meal, knowing that it keeps you full.
I was also very disciplined in tracking my expenses. I made an Excel sheet and wrote down every penny that came out of my pocket. From there, he could decide if there was something he could do without.
[[nid:498856]]When you’re broke, you find that even the smallest luxuries cost you a penny. Some of the most common money sinkers are subscription services like Spotify and Netflix.
It is important to review your credit card statements to see what you are really paying for and if you are still using the service. If not, cancel them.
I stayed home on days when I was out of work and avoided going out because it meant spending more money. I took a break from vacation, bought luxury items, and started living with my parents to save on rent.
When he has very little to live on, he realizes the privileges of being able to travel, shop and eat out. After cutting all these unnecessary expenses, my account started to recover and look much healthier.
I started saving an average of $ 300 to $ 500 at the end of each month. But he knew that was not enough. He knew he had to aim higher, save more and faster.
Why did I go hunting for more income and side jobs
In addition to spending less and saving more, I began to rush and look for more avenues to earn more money. I took side jobs and went to more auditions. Using my design talent, I did some freelance touch-up work for extra money, earning me an average of $ 50 per job.
Note that this was the rate from a decade ago. These side jobs should pay you much better now, depending on the organization or agency and the type of project.
[[nid:473283]]For acting, income varies depending on your role and experience. You can earn anywhere from $ 40 a day as a calefare (the role of an extra in the movies) to over $ 10,000 a month for a lead role (yes, actors make a very decent amount).
While I was fortunate to have a consistent work flow, my cash flow was inconsistent. It would take 60-90 days for clients to pay me after completing a job, and that’s something that a lot of people don’t realize in Singapore’s creative industry.
It’s weird because you don’t go to a restaurant, eat the food, and pay them 60-90 days later. Unfortunately, however, it is a frequent practice here.
How I started a business, paid myself a salary and CPF
To help keep track of and regulate my earnings from these jobs, I established a private limited partnership and directed my earnings there. I paid myself a regular salary of $ 2,500 and CPF.
If you are self-employed, starting your own company is a great way to have more control over your salary. It can provide a bit of stability and predictability, and leave room to start saving.
The first rule is always pay yourself first. When your pay comes in, put a part in a separate bank account and survive on the rest.
About 10 to 20 percent of your income would be a good start and then slowly increase the amount each month. If you have extra cash at the end of the month, save that too. I can’t stress enough how savings can be the savior of your life.
Why did I seek passive income after saving enough
Honestly, saving enough is still not enough. After setting aside enough emergency funds (I recommend at least three to six months of your income), direct the rest of your money toward earning passive income. Make your money work for you.
[[nid:485305]]Currently, I have a financial advisor to whom I give the remaining money, who helps me divide it between several RSPs (Regular Savings Plan), some in the form of unit trusts and others in the form of cryptocurrencies and theft. -investors.
Personally, I enjoy taking control of my own finances, so I also find out my own investments.
Besides investing, I also receive some money in the form of royalties for my music. For the uninitiated, royalties are an umbrella term for money raised through ownership of intellectual property, which can be in the form of copyrights, trademarks, or patents.
The amount you earn depends on how popular your music is and how many streams you get. My music copyrights represent only a small sum of my passive income, so it’s more like coffee money. But you know what they say, each drop forms an ocean.
To be honest, I always find it difficult to answer when someone asks me, “How much money do you have to earn to be considered financially stable?” Because it really depends. Everyone has different goals and lifestyles, so there is no “set” amount to determine if you have “made it”. But what I can tell you is that this also has no secret. Earning moolah is hard and pure work.
3 great financial lessons I learned through this experience
- Save, save and save whenever you can
- Working with the wrong people is always financially expensive, so be very careful who you do business with.
- Earning money is never an easy journey. There have been some jobs that never worked or some clients that never paid, so look for as many sources of income as possible so you don’t get stranded when you are suddenly out of work.
This article was first published in SingSaver.com.sg. All content is displayed for general information purposes only and does not constitute professional financial advice.
