Musings and Ramblings

Seriously, I have no idea what to write for this post, but I'm just rambling along.

Much as I would like to have a more relaxing 2011, Jan 2011 turned out to be a crazy month so far. I had so many things on hand.

As my dividend investing strategy continues, I realised that my cashflow gets better over time. While having achieved a $1.1k average monthly dividends does not ensure retirement, it does give some form of flexibility if I ever want to strike out on my own. Given my current circumstances, if I were to remain in my current state, I could retire if I want to right now, giving the occasional tuition and doing the occasional trading.

But I'm not going to do so. Why? It's not really about money, although more would be nice. It's about my passion, it's about what I want.

Why do I teach tuition? I really find it fun, but that's only one side of the equation. The best reward comes from successfully turning a failing student into acing the exam! The most recent example would be my 7 O level students with a score of 2 A1s, 3 A2s, 1 B3 (had expected an A2), and 1 B4 (from failing). It's a feeling of euphoria that I can't really describe with words when I know that these students who ace their exams were once lacking confidence, scoring badly, and looking for me to help pass their exams.


Why am I aiming to write a physics guidebook? I want my book to really benefit students in scoring, because I really do think it would have an X-factor, something extra to it, as compared to the books on the market. I do dream of being able to autograph my own book for my students. It's fun, and it's an experience that I want to have.

For the last 2 years, I helped teach a secondary school for Junior Physics Olympiad. It's another great feeling when I know some of the students achieved awards for their respective categories. What makes me happier was to know that this school just received the best non-IP school award for this competition. I was approached this year to help teach another secondary school for this same competition. Let's see if I would be able to do a repeat performance.

Why am I still in my full time job? It pays peanuts (to me at least), but I stay because I really like to do programming and solve problems (engineering). What makes the place even more fun is the colleagues I work with, the things we talk about, etc. They are the reasons that would hold me back and make me think twice if ever I want to leave for greener pastures.

So while I'm setting goals here and there, in actual fact, I'm setting a target where I want my passion to grow towards. I guess I'm an addict to seeing achievements, not just my own, but also people I helped, people I trained, people I know, etc. This is the main reason keeping me awake every night, thinking how I could author and write my notes better for the common student, thinking which are the best questions for training my A level and olympiad students, thinking of any new educational techniques and tricks I can conjure to arouse the interest of students, etc.

Guess I'm rambling too much. I better go sleep.