EP 19: Lets Talk cha ching$ ft. reggie from the f$nancial coconut
Hosts: Jade and Deniece
Guest: Reggie Koh
ABOUT THE EPISODE
In this episode, our hosts feature Reggie Koh from The Financial Coconut (T.F.C) podcast, as he discusses key personal finance principles and tips, talks about his podcast, and shares practical knowledge people can adopt to create financial security.
A MILLENNIAL MESS
EPISODE 19 PODCAST SHOW NOTES
Episode Timeline:
[03:00] Jade and Deniece introduce T.F.C (The Financial Coconut) group, a personal finance podcast hosted by Reggie Koh. It is the number one financial literacy podcast in Singapore, and was started by Reggie without having any particular financial training but by learning and picking things up on his own. Personal finance is a small part of your life but it is important.
[05:45] Reggie's motivation for starting the podcast: Initially he was merely irritated by the adverts of fake gurus with unrealistic financial promises, and decided to record and put his thoughts out there which he did not plan as to be a podcast initially. His friends shared it with their friends who then became his audience. He also tried to find out what people needed help with, to discuss them as topics. After talking for a while, he started to interview guests who gave him more traction and grew his audience even more.
[12:24] Our hosts ask Reggie what he likes about the AMM podcast and what can be improved on. Reggie suggests having more cuts to reduce some of the chitchats while also keeping the conversation organic. Another suggestion is to have more clarity of their audience persona which means narrowing down more and identifying the audience to build up the community. "It's very hard to talk about everything and everything under the sun and get listeners"
[16:13] The focus today is "Financial Literacy".
[18:40] Considering planning for retirement and finances, where do we start? Reggie agrees that first, it is very important to have a rainy-day fund in an account that is not very easily accessible. "If you can have a rainy-day fund of 3 years, then historically you are safe because 3 years is the longest financial crisis ever" Reggie suggests a 6–12-month rainy day fund should be sufficient.
[24:00] What would be your target sum for retirement and where would it come from? One of the guiding principles for this is to recognize that life is a journey, and you don't need to be too hard on preparing for the end because the experience is also important. "If for every dollar that you make, you spend 50cents, then for every year that you live, you can live two years, and for every 10 years of work, you can live 20 years" The base idea is that if you can spend less than what you earn, then you're safe.
[28:25] People should not buy any kind of structured financial product until they have a stable income and a stable life. Reggie believes you must figure out the kind of financial stability you want before investing. Also, your financial goals must be realistically based on your earning potential, if not then adjust your strategy for earning or change your goal. It is important not to go into financial planning or insurance expecting to make quick money, but rather to try and see if interest can be developed.
[39:47] While the pandemic has had a huge negative impact on the finances of people, it has also given more people reason to take time out to decide what they want in their lives, and try out new things.
[42:42] Reggie agrees that there is value in getting a financial coach to assist but also thinks the good ones are rare and don't often advertise themselves. Personally, for his finances, based on how far he has come with his finances, Reggie just lets things run for now. He started making money working for his friends and was very prudent which allowed his funds to grow.
[53:00] Reggie shares his checklist: First have a stable income. Next, clear high-interest debts, keeping in mind that your income must be greater than your expenses. Thirdly create your rainy-day fund. After this, you can get involved in basic investment including compound interest. Discover what you like, you can create the life you want. If you're already struggling then you probably should not invest. Your goal in life is always changing, for Reggie he shares that his goal is to collect experiences. Listeners are encouraged to join T.F.C on Telegram to get more personal finance ideas and ask questions.
Keep up with us on socials!
http://instagram.com/amillennial.mess
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Hosts:
http://instagram.com/jade.kerr
http://instagram.com/deniecefoo