Thursday, December 31, 2009
Selamat Tahun Baru!!!
Tuesday, December 29, 2009
Pentingnya Networking
Friday, December 25, 2009
Up - The saturdays
Tahniah Juruukur!!
Paying a high price for bad advice
(sumber : Yahoo finance --> expert advice --> Robert T Kiyosaki)
At this time of financial crisis, people are seeking good, relevant advice. But this can be hard to find.
The following is typical of a question you would see in a financial publication -- and its less-than helpful answer:
Q: What can someone whose 401(k) is down do to rebuild their retirement savings?A: For anyone who is at least five years from retirement, there is probably time for their investments to right themselves.
Resist the urge to take money out of a 401(k) or to stop making contributions to it. Research has shown that dollar-cost averaging -- investing at given intervals -- pays off well in times of crisis.
Check whether the wild market swings have thrown off your asset allocation -- the specific mix of stocks and bonds that makes sense for an individual's financial goals and risk tolerance. If so, then rebalance it by selling shares that are overvalued and buying those that are below optimal levels. Focus on low cost....
Blah, blah, blah.
How naive do the so-called financial experts think people are? Well, obviously, many people are that naive because millions keep listening to the same old advice again and again.
The Same Old Story
So what is wrong with those giving the advice and those following it? Now that the markets have crashed and trillions have been lost, these so-called experts continue on like mindless parrots, saying over and over again, "Polly wants you to invest in a well-diversified portfolio of mutual funds."
Don't they know the market has changed? Don't they know the global economy is contracting, not expanding? Don't they know their advice is bad regardless of whether the market is expanding or contracting? Doesn't the general public realize that most financial "experts" are not professional investors? They're either sales people or journalists -- people who earn money via commissions or a paycheck. And even the people running our biggest investment banks -- or what use to be investment banks -- are compensated via commissions or a paycheck. They are not investors. They are employees working for banks.
So my advice is, be very careful whom you take financial advice from -- and that includes me. My guidance, after all, does not work for 80 percent of the people. My suggestions are not right for those who work for a paycheck or for commissions, nor do they work for those who save money in the bank or a retirement account.
The Right Advice for the Right Audience
My advice is for people who are entrepreneurs or professional investors. I have had a "real" job for only four years of my life, which means I only collected a traditional paycheck for that very short period of time. I do not have a retirement account. If my businesses or my investments are not profitable, then I don't eat. And I like to eat.
I chose to live my life this way because this financial lifestyle keeps me honest. It also keeps me wary and very suspicious of financial experts who offer inane advice. I personally cannot live on such advice. My businesses and investments need to be profitable monthly and pay me monthly, regardless of whether the economy is expanding or contracting.
I don't live in some fairytale world with the hope that the markets will right themselves in five years. I don't keep putting money into a losing venture such as a retirement plan filled with stocks, bonds, and mutual funds. I do not live on false promises. I cannot afford to live on bad advice.
Some Serious Questions
My questions to financial journalists and others who are doling out poor counsel: "What if your advice is wrong in five years? What happens if the markets don't come back? What happens if the markets just stay flat or crash even further? What happens if the markets recover and then crash when the person following your advice is in their late eighties?"
My advice for those seeking financial advice: Look for investments that pay you monthly or quarterly, regardless of whether the markets are up or down or whether the economy is expanding or contracting. Stop listening to those pseudo financial experts with crystal balls and journalism degrees.
The following are tidbits of information to keep in mind as you consider your financial options:
1. I learned my investment philosophy at the age of nine by playing Monopoly. In the game, if I had one green house, I was paid $8. If I had two green houses, then I was paid $16.
I began playing Monopoly for real when I was 26 years old. Today my wife and I have approximately 1,400 little green houses -- each paying us monthly. You do not have to be a rocket scientist or have a Harvard degree to play Monopoly for real. Today's depressed real estate market is the best time to start buying little green houses, even if credit is tight.
In 1987 the stock market crashed. That crash was followed by the crash of the Savings and Loan industry. Those two crashes led to the crash of the real estate market. The economy stayed down from 1987 to 1995. Even though my wife and I were strapped for cash and bankers did not want to lend to small investors, we found ways of putting deals together by using seller financing and creative financing, or simply taking over properties that the bank did not want on its books.
Most financial experts discourage people from doing what I do. They often say that it is risky -- and it certainly can be. But, in my opinion, following their advice of putting money into a savings account and investing in a 401(K) is even riskier in this volatile economy.
2. Today, as the economy is contracting, cash is king. Yet because the Federal Reserve is printing trillions of Monopoly dollars in order to stop deflation, in a few years we could see a hyperinflationary period. Hyperinflation will wipe out the value of a saver's holdings and eventually destroy most mutual funds as the government begins to raise interest rates in an attempt to stem inflation. In a hyperinflationary period, gold and silver will be king.
3. I am not actually recommending gold, silver, or real estate. Assets do not make you rich. Assets can make you poor if you are not careful. In 1980 gold and silver hit all-time highs, gold hitting $800 an ounce and silver $50 an ounce. So the suckers jumped in and were slaughtered. The same thing happened with real estate in 2004.
If you do not know what you are doing, no asset can make you rich. Ultimately, what makes you rich is your financial intelligence. Your greatest asset is your brain -- so take care of it and protect it from bad advice.
Thursday, December 24, 2009
Nostalgikyee
Penenang jiwa bila aku dilanda tekanan...
Wednesday, December 16, 2009
Oh Bangsaku...
(sumber : www.tazilan.com)
Salam, harapnya anda semua dalam keadaan baik-baik sahaja.
Sebenarnya akhir-akhir ini saya berasa agak sesak dada melihatkan perkembangan politik negara terutama sekali apabila ia melibatkan Perlembagaan Negara dan kepentingan orang Melayu. Namun saya tak berminat nak membincangkan tuntutan kaum bukan Melayu terutamanya yang dibangkitkan oleh wakil rakyat DAP.
Saya boleh faham dan terima tindakan mereka itu kerana ia menunjukkan mereka memiliki keazaman dan kesungguhan untuk membela kepentingan bangsa sendiri. Dah namanya wakil rakyat, maka apa yang mereka suarakan itu juga adalah tugas mereka. Kalaulah kita dilahirkan sebagai bukan Melayu, nescaya kita juga mahukan kesaksamaan dari segala segi.
Soalnya mengapa hanya sekarang begitu berani dan lantang? Dah lama kita dengar slogan menuntut kesamarataan ini iaitu ‘Malaysian Malaysia’ yang dicipta oleh Lim Kit Siang tetapi impaknya tak menggegarkan. Mengapa pula desakan kali ini dirasakan begitu ampuh sekali?
Sebabnya orang Melayu berpecah dan tak mahu bersatu. Hanya disebabkan dendam, gila kuasa dan politiking yang keterlaluan, bangsa Melayu semakin lemah dan relai…. mudah sekali digoyang dan diancam.
Dahlah ketinggalan dari segi ekonomi dan akademik, kekuatan politik yang menjadi tunjang bangsa Melayu di tanah Melayu selama ini juga kian terhakis. Lepas ni apa yang tinggal?
Saya lihat bukan Melayu terutamanya orang Cina tetap teguh bersatu walaupun berlainan ideologi politik. Biarpun mereka terdiri daripada MCA, DAP, ataupun Gerakan… bahkan ramai antara mereka berlainan pegangan agama (Buddha, Hindu atau Kristian), namun perihal kepentingan bangsa mereka tidak sesekali dikompromikan. Mereka sekata dan sehati!
Saya teringat peristiwa 16 tahun lalu (1993). Ketika itu saya merupakan seorang ’salesman’ dan berjaya membuat temujanji dengan salah seorang Pengarah syarikat kumpulan Pasaraya Fajar. Pengarah tersebut tentunya seorang Cina bergelar Datuk (dah lupa namanya) melayan saya dengan baik. Sebenarnya dia terkejut kerana itulah kali pertama beliau bertemu seorang salesman berbangsa Melayu.
Selesai urusan kami (saya berjaya dapatkan kontrak besar!), Datuk tersebut mempelawa saya berbual sambil dihidangkan teh cina. Perkara yang takkan saya lupakan daripada perbualan tersebut ialah tentang kekuatan orang Cina dalam bisnes disebabkan kerjasama, kesepakatan dan jaringan (networking). Bahkan beliau mendedahkan walaupun beliau seorang jutawan, beliau berkongsi modal dengan tiga lagi jutawan Cina lain demi mewujudkan bisnes pasaraya tersebut.
Beliau mempersoalkan mengapa tak ada satupun pasaraya besar milik bangsa Melayu sedangkan ramai juga jutawan Melayu dan pengguna terbesar adalah orang Melayu?
Beliau jawab sendiri persoalan tersebut… sebabnya jutawan Melayu tak mahu bersatu. Kalau boleh semua mahu makan seorang, kaya seorang. Sedangkan hakikatnya kekuatan atau kemampuan kita amat terbatas jika kita berseorangan berbanding bekerja dalam satu kumpulan!
Beliau tanya lagi… ada butut (betul) ka saya cakap? Saya hanya tersenyum pahit… sepahit teh cina yang dihidangkan. Dalam hati… memang betul katanya itu.
Jadi jangan salahkan DAP dengan kerenah mereka. Orang Melayu sendiri yang membuka peluang keemasan ini, takkan mereka nak lepaskan. Pintu pagar dah kopak dan terbuka sedikit, tentulah mereka cuba nak masuk.
Jangan salahkan kaum lain kalau kita sendiri yang lemah… Kita Melayu, tak kira PKR, PAS atau UMNO… semuanya beragama Islam, susah sangatkah nak berpakat? Orang takkan perlekehkan kita kalau kita KUAT!
Kita dok kelahi, depa pakat ketawa kat kita.
(walaupun artikel ni tak berkaitan dengan finance dan property, aku terpanggil nak sebarkan sebab aku rasa bangsa melayu kita dah makin lemah dan goyah. Masing2 sibuk mempertahankan ideologi masing2 sampai hilang perpaduan bangsa melayu tu sendiri. Sedey2. Kalau kuasa politik melayu pon dah boleh diperkotak katikkan oleh bangsa lain, apa lagi yang ada untuk kita?Takkan nak sampai dihalau dari bumi sendiri baru nak cakap " oooo...KALAU lah dulu kita bersatu padu...")
Saturday, December 12, 2009
i know...THE SECRET
Wednesday, December 9, 2009
Rindu kat aktiviti auction
Sunday, December 6, 2009
The Book of Excuses
The Book Of Excuses |
One of the funny things (at least it’s funny to me) is hearing the excuses people give to justify why they are not rich. What’s ever funnier is that the people call them “reasons”; I call them excuses. Throughout the years, I’ve heard excuses such as “I don’t want the responsibility” to “people would come to rob me” to “I’m too young” to “I’m too old”! I’ve heard the works and now would like to share them with you. Enjoy!
So there you go, folks, a partial (!) list of excuses people give why they are not rich. That’s the problem with the world today. Everyone is too gung-ho about money. All they think about is money, money (Moral of the story : Kalau nak ubah taraf hidup, jangan bagi banyak alasan. Terus buat je. Take Action! Jangan sambil lewa nanti jadi 'lemau'. Aku sendiri pon hampir jadi lemau jugak sebab dah bertahun2 berada dalam suasana 'comfort zone'. Nasib baik aku masih ada kekuatan untuk berubah.Kalau aku tidak bertindak sekarang, agak2 nyer sampai akhir hayat kot aku akan berada dalam comfort zone tu.) |
Saturday, December 5, 2009
Update on apartment bukit subang
Friday, December 4, 2009
Pengalaman bersama Bank Negara
Tuesday, December 1, 2009
Skim Cepat Kaya
Assalamualaikum Saudara Azizi,
Buat pertama kali setelah beberapa lama saya mengikuti
tip-tip dan nasihat berguna daripada saudara, tiba-tiba
terdetik rasa kurang hormat kepada saudara. Ini hanya kerana
pendapat saudara tentang swisscash yang terlalu dangkal.
Sebagai seorang yang menganggap diri sebagai seorang
pakar/profesional dalam memberi pandangan, sepatutnya
pandangan dan nasihat tersebut datangnya daripada ilmu
pengetahuan dan pengalaman mendalam saudara sendiri.
Dalam kes swisscash ini, tidak wajar jika saudara katakan
bahawa daripada nama swisscash adalah bertujuan untuk
menarik perhatian pelabur dengan nama switzerland sedangkan
kebenarannya swisscash tidak pernah pun mengatakan bahawa
mereka dari switzerland dalam website mereka. Swisscash
adalah produk pelaburan oleh Swiss Mutual Fund (1948). Base
mereka ialah di Republik Dominican dan pejabat operasi
mereka juga di New York.
Lagi satu dakwaan saudara bahawa skim ini akan recycle duit
adalah tidak tepat dan dakwaan bahawa jenis perniagaan atau
pelaburan yang mereka jalankan tidak boleh diketahui oleh
umum adalah tidak tepat kerana saudara boleh mendapat
maklumat tersebut melalui website mereka.
Saya nasihatkan saudara cuba dulu melabur sedikit contoh
usd100 atau jika tidak berminat silalah layari website grup
kami untuk mendapat maklumat lanjut.
Untuk makluman saudara, saya baru saja melabur sebulan
tetapi income dah lebih 40%. Jangan hilangkan rasa hormat
orang lain terhadap saudara hanya kerana pandangan saudara
sesekali dangkal. TQ.
tuandean@mail.com
Wa'alaikumsalam Tuan Mohd Fakaruddin,
If I say that Swisscash is the best investment in the world,
would it make everything alright?
But how can I say such a thing when all the signs are
showing that it is a Ponzi scheme? How can I say it when all
the alarm bells are ringing and red flags are showing that
it is a Ponzi scheme? So I cannot and will not say it
because I know Get-Rich-Quick (GRQ)/Ponzi schemes will not
do anyone good.
Here, you are either part of the problem or you are part of
the solution. If you 'invest' in Ponzi schemes (even though
the money may be just a token amount), then you are part of
the problem. By staying out, then you are part of the
solution.
In many ways, the GRQ schemes operating on the Internet are
pretty much like the Superman movies. Everyone - except the
actors in the movie - knows that Clark Kent is Superman.
The signs are obvious: Kent and Superman are the same height,
same size and heck, they even look the same. What's more,
every time Kent is missing, Superman shows up. And every
time Superman is around, Kent is not there. So the signs are
obvious to everyone, except to the actors in the movie. They
do not, cannot and will not see the signs.
Similarly, the signs showing that the GRQ schemes operating
on the Internet (and off it as well) are scams are obvious
to everyone, except to the voluntary victims. Just as the
actors are blind to the fact that Clark Kent is Superman,
the voluntary victims are blind to the fact that the GRQ
schemes are scams. They do not, cannot and will not see the
signs.
1. Semua skim Ponzi akan menggalakkan 'pelaburnya' merekrut
'pelabur' baru, kerana itulah cara utama mereka mendapatkan
wang baru. (Itulah yang saudara sedang lakukan sekarang
dengan meminta saya melabur diskim ini.) Tanpa 'pelabur-
pelabur' baru, skim tersebut akan berkubur dengan cepat.
2. Pulangan yang dijanjikan adalah 20% (atau lebih) sebulan,
yang bermakna 240% setahun! Pelabur-pelabur world class
seperti Warren Buffett dan George Soros pun 'hanya' memberi
pulangan 20 - 34% setahun! Adakah masuk akal orang yang
tidak pernah dikenali dapat memberikan pulangan yang
sebegitu tinggi? Kalau betul pula, sudah tentu semua media
di dunia termasuk CNN, Fortune dan Forbes akan memberi
liputan yang menyeluruh kepada pengurus dana tersebut.
Kenapa tak ada? Takkanlah media dunia (yang tahu semua
pelaburan lain) begitu buta dan tidak pernah mendengar
pulangan yang sebegitu hebat?
3. Adakah masuk akal yang pelaburan yang baru dibuat satu
bulan sudah boleh mendapat pulangan 20% bulan berikutnya?
Semua pelaburan, termasuk yang paling untung sekalipun,
memerlukan masa. Kalaulah 'pengurus' dana itu betul
melaburkan wang dalam forex, hedge funds dan sebagainya,
pelaburan tersebut pun tidak membayar hasilnya lepas satu
atau dua bulan. Jadi kalau 'pengurus' sendiri tidak dapat
hasil pulangan, macam mana dia hendak bayar orang lain?
Dari mana datangnya wang tersebut? Jawapannya dari poin 13
di bawah.
4. 'Pengurus' dana hanya menyebut forex, hedge funds,
kommoditi dan lain-lain (to impress people who wants to be
impressed) tetapi tidak menerangkan dengan terperinci
tentang pelaburan-pelaburan tersebut. Siapa pun boleh sebut
- sebab cakap saja.
5. Sebab pelaburan itu ada di 'offshore' tidak bermakna yang
pulangannya akan menggunung. Pelaburan di 'offshore' adalah
sama sahaja dengan pelaburan di 'onshore' - mutual funds,
unit trusts, fixed deposits dan sebagainya.
6. Anda sendiri baru sebulan membuat 'pelaburan' (ehm, ehm)
dalam skim tersebut. Adakah itu bermakna anda seorang pakar
dalam pelaburan dan orang lain yang tidak melabur dangkal?
7. Pendapat dan kata-kata anda bermakna ratusan pakar
kewangan di Bank Negara, Suruhanjaya Sekuriti, Azizi Ali dan
juga media massa Malaysia adalah salah! Saya tidak fikir
kami salah.
8. Untuk pengetahuan anda, saya telah membuat kajian yang
terperinci tentang pelaburan ini di Malaysia dan juga di
negara-negara asing termasuk di UK, USA dan Eropah. Very,
very few people have heard of Swisscash. Isn't that strange?
Only Malaysians and Singaporeans (and a handful of others)
seem to know about them. Could the rest of the world be so
blind? Or could we be the ones who are being taken for a
ride?
9. Sebagai seorang Chartered Financial Consultant, saya
telah belajar tentang semua pelaburan di dunia. Saya juga
telah membaca lebih 700 buah buku tentang kewangan. Further,
I have studied about money and investments for the past 15
years. So I will reserve my comments about the 'dangkal'
part.
10. Tidak ada seorang Financial Consultant yang bertauliah
di dunia akan mengatakan pelaburan sebegini adalah valid
kerana mereka tahu ianya skim Ponzi.
11. Semua 'pelabur' skim Ponzi akan berkata "Cuba dulu.
Sikit saja. Belum cuba, belum tahu." Jawapan saya: Kenapa
nak cuba jika anda tahu benda itu merbahaya? Kenapa nak cuba
jika anda tahu benda itu membawa penyakit? You don't have
to try drugs to know that it will bring serious consequences
to you, your family and everybody else around you.
12. Semua jawapan yang diberikan oleh 'pelabur' Swisscash
sekarang adalah sama sahaja seperti apa yang diberikan oleh
'pelabur' skim Pak Man Telo di tahun 1980an. The exact same
answers - the local banks are jealous, the government don't
understand the investment and the non-investors are blind
for not investing in this 'golden' opportunity.
13. Anda mendapat pulangannya kerana wang itu datang
daripada pelaburan orang-orang yang baru masuk dalam skim
tersebut. The money is being recycled. Just as your
'investment' is being used to pay others before you. Situasi
ini mungkin akan bertahan satu, dua atau tiga tahun, tetapi
apa yang pasti ialah ianya akan berkubur juga apabila tiada
'pelabur' baru. Apabila ia berlaku, anda akan kehilangan
semua wang anda.
14. Jika rakan anda memberikan anda wang daripada hasil
rompakan, apakah anda akan terima wang tersebut? Jika rakan
anda memberikan anda wang hasil daripada jualan dadah,
apakah anda akan terima wang tersebut? Saya jangka anda akan
menolak wang tersebut kerana tahu ianya hasil daripada kerja
yang haram. Well, wang daripada skim Ponzi juga adalah salah
dan pada pendapat saya adalah haram.
15. Anda boleh ambil harta anak kecil yatim piatu - kerana
dia tidak berdaya untuk menghalang anda dan dia juga mungkin
tidak faham situasi sebenar - tetapi apakah tindakan anda
itu betul? Jika anda tahu benda itu tidak betul, apakah anda
akan melakukannya kerana peluangnya ada di depan mata? Wang
daripada skim-skim tersebut adalah daripada poket orang lain.
Tiada usaha, tiada kerja dan tiada apa yang di 'value-added'.
Apa yang pasti ialah semua mereka akan kehilangan wang
akhirnya. Kini anda tahu situasi sebenar, adakah anda masih
mahu melabur di skim sebegitu?
16. At the end of the day, it is your money. You do what
you want with it. Just don't drag others into it.
to be continued.....
sambungan jawapan azizi ali..
Are we men of steel and character or are we made of straws
that can be crushed by the flimsiest wind? I'd like to think
the former, where we think and act rationally, especially
when it comes to investments. Kita melabur hanya selepas
membuat kajian yang teliti tentang pelaburan tersebut dan
risiko-risikonya, dan juga mengambil kira keadaan kewangan
kita. Of course we will make mistakes along the way (I made
a few myself) but that is the very nature of investments.
They come with risks. So it is no shame to lose.
But it is another story altogether when it comes to GRQ
schemes. All the signs are there and all the alarm bells are
ringing - including warnings from Bank Negara, the
Securities Commission and now Azizi Ali.
Are we so blind not to see the obvious signs? Are we so
desperate that we are willing to lose our money and even our
dignity in the process?
Saya boleh menceritakan 1,001 sebab lagi (klik di bawah untuk
lebih informasi) mengapa pelaburan yang dibincangkan adalah
satu skim Ponzi, tetapi saya tahu ia merupakan usaha yang
sia-sia - kerana anda sudah membuat keputusannya. So I will
not confuse you with the facts further since your mind is
already made up.
"http://www.MillionairesPlanet.com/books_specialreport.htm"
As for the 'respect' bit, Tuan Mohd Fakaruddin, I have never
done anything in my life just to make people love and
respect me. I do what I love to do, give it all I've got, do
the best that I can and tell things as it is. After that,
whether people judge that I'm good or small or half good or
half small is up to them. If they like what I do, then I'm
happy. If they don't, then that's fine too. This is a free
country.
While I can warn people about the dangers, I cannot stop
anyone from throwing their money away. Again, at the end of
the day, it is your money. You can do whatever you want
with it, including giving it to con man.
I consider this matter closed.