Goals and Future Plans

I feel like I’ve been spinning my wheels lately, like I’ve just been going through the motions of life and not really getting anywhere. When I get like this it helps to put down my goals and thoughts to sort everything out.

Goals for the Rest of the Year

First up, I plan on passing the CFA Level II exam this June. I signed up for a Weekly Study Course and I’m determined to finally pass this stupid thing this year. I may commit seppuku if I don’t pass.

After that there is a CAIA exam that I plan to take in September. The CAIA exams are easier than the CFA exams so a three month study period should be more than enough to pass. CAIA stands for Chartered Alternative Investment Analyst, it’s the designation that’s used mainly for hedge funds.

After that I intend on studying for the GMAT to get started on applying to NYU for their MBA program in Quantitative Finance which is basically financial modeling. I probably should be taking this slower but in my own mind, I’m behind where I feel I should be so it’s time to bust my butt and catch up.

I’m also going to start listening to my Pimsleur language mp3s. I’m going to start learning Mandarin and Cantonese to get in touch with my dad’s culture and to prepare myself for one of my long term goals which I’ll talk about below.

Future Plans

As for my plans further out I’d like to be completely debt free by the end of the year. After that I’ll start saving money and investing again. I’d still like to be able to buy a place here in NYC although I do have plans to move sometime in the future.

I’d like to expand my horizons further and move to Singapore eventually. My thinking is China will eclipse the US eventually and I’d like to have a head start on working in that economy. It would also set my (future) kids up to have the best opportunity available to them, like what my parents did for me when they immigrated to the US. It will be a while before I move to Singapore but it’s definitely in the back of my mind and I’ve started to think about the logistics of it.

So those are my plans for the foreseeable future, what are yours?

~ by Master Phu on February 26, 2008.