Budget Update: February 2020
Budget Update: February 2020
Did anyone get any work done at all during the two-week political crisis??? Holy smokes on a stick, all that really did happen didn’t it??
Whatever happens, I just hope that (1) we don’t normalise corruption again, and (2) good economic policies benefitting Malaysians – not just rich Malaysians! – will be made.
Now back to my expense breakdown. Business, Rent & Utilities and Groceries expenses made up two-thirds of all my February 2020 spending. Travel and Public Transportation categories are lower than usual, due to lack of events to attend and cancelled events.
I wonder how long this will continue. I’ve read how COVID-19 is accelerating the number of companies offering remote-working option. If this goes on, maybe this will even be the new norm :/ What a situation we’re living through right now.
Does COVID-19 affect your expenses at all? In what way?
Yay of the Month:
- March 2020 will be a busy month for me because both Money Stories from Malaysians: Volume 2 and Cerita Duit Orang Malaysia: Jilid 1 book projects are nearing completion!
- Picked up my first cheque from MPH Distributors 🙂 Note: before you ask why bookstores take a big cut, know that product creation is NOTHING without marketing and distribution. How do you think they pay overhead costs like rent and employee salaries? I’m happy to pay them. Plus the bragging rights I get for having a book stocked in bookstores nationwide… priceless.
- Appeared in BFM Radio’s Ringgit & Sense show again 🙂
- Meeting these ladies <3
- Being part of HelloGold’s Emaszing Women campaign!
- Breaking a personal record! Thank you for your likes, comments, shares and not to mention you telling your friends about Ringgit Oh Ringgit, it keeps me hella motivated 🙂
- My sisters have been telling me to cut my hair for MONTHS. Because I’m a cheap-ass, I tried to wait it out, until I could no longer delay the inevitable. Thankfully, I found the gem that is A Cut Above Academy. RM150 for hair cut + perm for my hair length is CHEAP.
- Read two books: Hidden Persuasion: 33 Psychological Influence Technique in Advertising by Andrews, Van Leeuwen & Van Baaren (sure, no one can *force* you to buy something…but they sure can use psychology to make you more likely to buy) and How Women Decide: Everyone’s Watching You Call the Shots. Here’s How to Make the Best Choices by Therese Huston (see below)
- Interviewed by The Full Frontal – I’m no #3 in the 5 Remarkable Malaysians Talk About Being a Woman in a Progressive Malaysia article
Nay of the Month:
- Wordcamp Asia got cancelled due to COVID-19 fears 🙁 I’m disappointed but I understand. Thankfully everything but my AirAsia flight got refunded, so no major financial loss there.
- GrabFood’s 50% off deals REALLY got to me. 4 orders in a month, that’s once a week on average. Really jacked up my Food expense category, which tend to correlate with weight gains.
- Still waiting for Bigpay to refund the RM950 that got stuck in dispute since December 2019. First they said it can take up to 2 months to solve, but because the merchant didn’t respond to the dispute, I have to wait until 25 March 2020 to get my own money back. This is so annoying. Never depend on one account for all transactions, you’ll be at their mercy like this. I’m so upset.
Things to Look Forward to:
- Set up preorders for Money Stories from Malaysians: Volume 2 and Cerita Duit Orang Malaysia: Jilid 1 books! How shall I bundle them this time around heheheh
- Recording some YouTube videos for the long-awaited Ringgit Oh Ringgit YouTube channel! Speaking of which…
Korang, can you subscribe to my YT channel please? I need at least 100 subscribers to change the custom URL. Now the url is https://t.co/8B5sjdRG4I , which annoys the heck out of me! pic.twitter.com/erIkwiMaFU
— Suraya Zainudin (@surayaror) February 6, 2020
How about you? What are you looking forward to in March, and the rest of the year? Share with me, I wanna know 🙂
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To read about my past monthly budget update, click here. Graphs are taken from my expense-tracking app Money Lover (how expense tracking works)
it’s been a crazy start to the year. work from home until now, business trips got delayed, rescheduled and some already overlapping with raya. on the good side, gaji masuk so far …
It’s been pretty crazy all around, I agree. Have to count small blessings now, given everything that’s happening. Glad no problems with gaji…
Work From Home = less spending on transportation and food (cleaning out the fridge and pantry)