smoke and mirrors

There are many similarities between Hong Kong and London. Firstly, especially within the popular city areas, overcrowding is a huge problem. As a result of this, property prices are ridiculous. If you thought London was bad, buying the same home in HK would cost you twice as much. One of the first things I noticed about London during my last visit was the sheer number of homeless people. Whilst I’ve not seen as many homeless people in HK you can see people working extremely hard everywhere. Incidentally the one homeless person I did see was literally on his knees with a bowl, something I have never seen in my life in Glasgow.

I feel in HK the divide between the rich and the poor is just as bad, if not worse than in London. You can see people driving rolls royces and ferraris, especially if you frequent Central, HK. Otherwise like in London seeing people in nice suits and dresses is very common.

From my limited understanding, a good “average” monthly salary is $30,000 HKD which is approximately equivalent to £3,000. The minimum hourly wage is a puny $34.5 HKD (~£3) and will rise to $37.5 HKD this May. Food is relatively cheap depending on what you eat but of course restaurants are very expensive. The 30,000 HKD is unlikely to get you very far as the main limiting factor is the accommodation. And needless to say $34.5 HKD an hour will struggle to get you a bedspace in HK.

Whilst there are truly rich people in every country the majority of people who are driving nice cars and wearing fancy clothes are living a facade. Everything is mortgaged or bought on loan; every day is lived paycheck to paycheck. This is okay in Glasgow/Dundee as a £3,000/month lifestyle is actually quite extravagant. Spending half on rent and bills would net you a very nice place with plenty left over food, play and your car.

Of course I wouldn’t recommend it but the option is always there and not that difficult to do. I should mention that the tax is very low in HK (<10%) so I’m comparing their after tax salary with ours.

I feel a bit of a fraud typing out this post having spent almost £5,000 on this two week holiday but it’s important not to get too carried away in this smoke and mirrors game. It’s important to develop your inner world first when you are first starting out in the world – your first decade in the workplace. Inner world can refer to keeping fit, developing strong financial fundamentals, getting good at playing a musical instrument or accruing career capital at your job.

Notice that the four examples of inner world are things other people cannot see when they look at you. Nice clothes, a nice (rented) home, a nice (mortgaged) car are outer appearances that can be mimicked immediately as banks are very keen to lend you money. In fact it has been very eye opening watching HK TV as almost every 3rd or 4th advert consists of banks advertising money lending. They like to use HK television stars for their adverts which gives the entire subject a seedy feeling.

It is undoubtedly easier in Glasgow/Dundee than it is in London, and even London is easy compared to Hong Kong. However it is still straightforward to spend £300,000 on a 2-bed flat in the Dundee waterfront when you are in your first decade of work.

Tempting as it may be to do otherwise, ensure you work on your inner world first, things that other people cannot necessarily see. Once your inner world reaches a certain level you can then transition into improving your outer world, and by then you will have the necessary foundation to support your outer world and thrive.