Flexibility versus Lock-in

A common complaint by loyal customers of our telcos is that the latest promotions are only eligible for NEW customers only.

You signed up for that 2 year 100 Mbps broadband plan with glee thinking how smart you were. Especially if you compare the savings you are getting in relation to the more flexible pay-as-you-go top up plans.

You smart; others not stupid.

From the "others" perspective, you are the bird in hand for the 2 next years.

One year later, you find to your dismay for the same price, the telcos are now offering new customers twice the speed at 200 Mbps!? Throwing in free installation and other services to rub salt into wound.

You now wonder whether it would have been wiser if you had used the more expensive pay-as-you go top up plans for 1 year and then switch to the current promotional plan...
  


We face similar dilemmas in our investing and trading decisions.

Should I lock-in my money for 1 year, or do I go for the 5 years fixed deposit that pays a higher interest?  

Sames goes for bonds. Hmm... Is now the time to go for shorter maturities as in 1 to 5 years, or do I go for the longer maturities like 10 to 30 years?

Is renting now better or should I bite the bullet and buy with a 30 year mortgage? 

(This is can be a classic penny wise pound foolish scenario. Save small money here and there and always talking about low cost index funds to only find out your neighbour has bought their unit for $100,000 less than you. Ouch!)

Should I hold on to this losing speculative position, or should I just cut my losses short and retain my flexibility to pounce on future opportunities?


Flexibility has a price.

Lock-in may not be the bargain you thought it is. 

How to offend people without trying

1)  You bump into your friend who is with her two daughters. You point to the younger daughter and shoot your mouth, "Mei mei is so much cuter than jie jie!"

Right in front of jie jie and her now fuming mom.


2)  At the company's dinner and dance, after a few drinks, you went up to the mic and exclaim, "Peter is the best manager in the whole company!"

Your immediate boss (not Peter) is not smiling, and the CEO (whom Peter reports to)  is smiling uncomfortably.


3)  At the HDB heartland hawker center, you are scolding your son, who has just missed 1 point from getting full marks, "If you don't study hard, you'll be condemned to staying in HDB next time you grow up!"   

Everyone stops eating and is now staring at you. Yeah you!

let it go 讓它去

I tell you, there are lots of talented "amateurs" amongst our midst.

Excellent taiwanese (hokkien) cover of this Disney animation's super hit "Let it go" by Indina Menzel.

This song appears after an ostracized Elsa abandons her kingdom soon after her cryokinetic powers were discovered by the public. Realizing that she no longer needs to hide her incredibly powerful ice abilities, Elsa declares herself free from the obstacles that she's been faced with since childhood and rejoices in using her powers without fear.


Haven't we at sometimes in our lives felt the same way?

We have a gift or an alternative view of life; but we are afraid to reveal it to others.

Fear of being different. 

Fear of not fitting in. 

Fear of standing out.


1,2,3. Sing it out loud now!

Let it go! Let it go! Let it go!