Eulogy for Dennis Ng – Lessons from my teacher

[alvin]

Dennis Ng has made positive influences to many lives. On 26 Jul 12, he passed away at the age of 43.

There will be many stories shared by others, but I will just share mine; how our lives intertwined for the past 4 years and the lessons I learned from him.

Year 2008. I got to know Dennis through his housingloan.com forum (prequel of masteryourfinance.com forum). His insights about personal finance and investment were so intriguing and convincing. I told myself I got to meet this guy. There are many answers that I might be able to get from him. I emailed him but he did not reply. I sent a second mail and to my surprise, he replied and agreed to meet. It was during the meetup that he told me the second email made the difference – many people had requested to meet him but most of them stopped short after the first email. And this leads me to lesson #1 - Perseverance is necessary to achieve the things you want. I wrote about the meeting in this post: Meeting with a millionaire (and a Christmas gift).

In the first meeting, he talked about many things. But the many things eventually led to one thing – finding one’s passion. This had been the most consistent mantra being emphasised over the past few years since I known him. He had always asked me whether I have found my passion and every time I showed the clueless face, he asked me not to give up. He said it took time for one to find it. “Look within” was his advice. Below is an extract of the email from him in 20 Jan 09:

What do you feel passionate about?

Have you ever had the experience of enjoying doing something so much that you’re so engrossed that time passes quickly and you even forget about hunger?

If I ask you is there anything you feel such a strong commitment that you’re willing to DIE for it? What is it?

Is there something that you will continue doing despite others time and again to shoot you down?

Probably getting the answers from deep within you to these questions will help you in your search for your Passion and Purpose in life.

He left a good paying bank job to become a financial planner in 2000. He did it for a few years and went to start his mortgage broking business with his wife in 2003. It was a relatively a new concept and he had difficulties in the beginning. But he persevered by educating the public about this service and he began to see results in the form of steady income every year. Below is an extract of his forum posting on 4 Nov 2007:

By setting up Leverage Holdings Pte Ltd, I feel that I can leverage on my gift and experience in Finance to help people move financially ahead and help people to save both time and money.

For example, if you are currently servicing a loan that charges an interest rate of 4%, I am quite confident that I can help you save $5,000 to $10,000 through refinancing. Based on local statistics, with Singaporeans making an average of $4,000, a savings of $5,000 will definitely help to move a person financially ahead, without him having to work overtime, or taking up more jobs.

It is precisely of this “magic” in refinancing that made me embark on this business.

In my business, I make money by helping people save money, move ahead, expand their business or increase their wealth. The more people I help, the more money I make. People literally get richer after they walk out of my office.

One thing I learned from the second richest man in the world, Warren Buffet is this: “Choose something you love to do and you will never have to work a single day in your life.” To know if something is your passion, ask yourself if you will do it if you are not paid? If you said yes, it is most probably a passion for you. I’m enjoying myself each day doing what I enjoy doing. Thus, sometimes I tell people I have not worked a single day since I resigned from bank 7 years ago.

Majority of us do not know what we live for. What are our passions? Dennis definitely found his passion in life, that is through the teachings of financial literacy, encourages people to pursue their dreams and do good for the less fortunate. He did not need to work anymore but he continued to because he felt obliged to give back to the society. He always shared the story of seeing old folks cleaning up tables at hawker centre and how that scene broke his heart. He feared many Singaporeans would end up that state in the future if they had not managed their finances properly.

Many times, his wife has requested him to quit teaching but in vain. I am not sure if he had worked so hard that he got himself ill. He connected with hundreds to thousands of people daily through seminars, forums, facebook, email, twitter, newspaper, radio and TV; all for the purpose of spreading financial literacy. Although he had a short life, he really lived it, because everyday was meaningful to him. Lesson #2 – find your passion and live it.

He started to conduct investment seminars after he became a millionaire through investing. With a few businesses giving him good income, he could really retire. But he was determined to help 1 million people accumulate $1 million. On 2 Mar 11, he posted the following in the forum:

Helping 1 million people achieve S$1 million dollars, it might seem far-fetched goal for some, but I think it can be done, it’s just 10,000 of us helping 100 people each.

I suddenly think of these words of wisdom:

If it is to be, it is up to me.

Let’s not wait for someone to help, for someone to make a difference, let’s take it upon ourselves, that we will do our part. If it is to be, it is up to me.

The good news is I’m NOT Extraordinary Man or “Men Extraordinaire”, I’m just an average Singaporean. “If Yan can cook, so can you!” If Dennis Ng can become a Millionaire and Reach Financial Freedom, so can you!

He might appear to be a investing guru but many do not know that his ultimate aim is to influence people to do good things. He had a goal, he wanted 10,000 seminar graduates to each donate $1,000, amounting to a total of $10 million. He knew it would be very difficult to raise $10 million alone and he had to depend on the graduates to realise it. He wanted the foundation to do micro lending to the poor, help them start small and simple businesses that could provide for their livelihood. Besides money, he also wanted to impart his business knowledge.

During our first meetup, he showed me the book, The Go-Giver, which he intended to give to each of his staff. He said that most people are goal-getters and that is a self-centric approach to life. He always encouraged people to do good and believed that the world will be a better place when we start to focus on others rather than ourselves. In fact, he said that the weird thing is the more you give, the more you will receive. But he cautioned, give willingly and not in anticipation of a return.

He gave a lot to me. He said I reminded him of his youth – a young and driven guy, eager to learn about investing. He often said he learned from many people in the past and he felt obliged to pass on the knowledge. Even when he was against trading, he was willing to promote my book, Secrets of Singapore Trading Gurus. He really wanted me to succeed in life, and he seemed to have a stronger conviction than myself. He was my Rich Dad. And the biggest gratitude I can give to him, is to find my passion and prove that he is right about me. Lesson #3 – Focus on giving.

Dennis was notorious for his ‘in your face’ comments. Many would have found him brash and got turned off by his approach. He always shared that it did not matter what others think about him. He was not here to ‘curry flavour’ anyone. He wants to be an honest and direct person, and hiding the truth from the person do him no good. His intention was to help the person and not make him feel good. Of course, most people would found it critical instead. Probably only a handful of his graduates could tolerate his directness. In fact, a few graduates deserted him because they found him too critical. I also know that he had bad relations with some of the ex-Wall Straits forumers. However, it was heartening to see that they all have forgiven him. Whether you agree with his comments, he meant good from his perspective. Lesson #4 – do not be too self-conscious and try to be well-liked; help others even if it means telling them the hard truth.

There are really too many things I have learned from Dennis and it is almost impossible to list everything in this post. I ranges from success principles to investing. He is definitely one of the most influential people in my life. Sadly, he passed away all of a sudden. How I wish I could have many more years with him and tap on his wisdom. But life is uncertain, we have to live each day with meaning, despite the challenges thrown at us.

He mentioned he did not want people to weep for him but make his funeral a celebration. Although there were many goals he had yet to achieve, he had already left behind a legacy. He will be remembered.

For more links to his teachings, see http://www.bigfatpurse.com/2012/07/eulo ... y-teacher/

[ein55]

Special thanks to Alvin for the sincere sharing. I am very touched to read this impartial article on our teacher.

After knowing the background of Dennis' poor health, I think some of us may have misunderstood his past actions to close the forum and stop teaching. He probably knows about his poor health condition and seriously considering reserving more time for himself and family, if the forum not worth his attention anymore. So, he has probably make up his mind recently by giving a final test to the forum to make a decision, whether it worths his sacrifice. Unfortunately, it is too late. Looking back, I am actually hoping he could successfully close the forum and exit from the investment education programs, as he deserves the enjoyment of financial freedom. This way, he may be able to improve his health over the time.

His unique way of teaching (with strong emotion to "wake up" the learners) probably has affected his health over the years, especially for heart/liver, esp with very little rest and overloaded work. It is also not easy for someone who is under the spotlight (TV, radio, books, seminars, interview, etc) to quit everything overnight, even he has achieved financial freedom. Once the train is moving to full speed, it is hard to change the momentum to slow down or stop it.

His strong character (a common quality found in many successful people) helps him to be persistent in achieving his dream project of helping others achieving financial freedom. At the same time, this same character unfortunately has somehow clashed with some graduates who have different opinions, including some of us, causing unwanted misunderstanding, resulting in ineffectiveness in his teaching plans to deliver the desired results. This has probably depressed him further, especially over the past 1 year when market is highly uncertain, most graduates look upon him for direction, but in reality, probably only God knows whether the market will be eventually up or down. Mixed market signals and different views have somehow disintegrated the forum group, as few people will admit they are wrong. As a result, more people keep quiet, less sharing, leading to recent misunderstanding that the graduates are not willing to share.

No one is perfect. Under the same condition, perhaps few of us can do better than him to resolve the difficulties encountered to achieve the goals. It is time for reconcilation, learning from the past but moving forward without further regret. Let's continue to share the investment knowledge with one another, not just within the forum, but also with the people around your circle of influence. He helped us and we help others, I believe this is what Dennis hopes to see from us eventually.

[accord]

I believe dennis greatest dream project is
- graduates like us can continue sharing, & educating the public to become financial free.
- to "pay-it-forward. Continuous helping whoever is in need and contribute to the society in whatever ways...

We must keep this forum more lively than before...
Maintaining this forum is a Must.

United is power.

[LKY(LimKaYew)]

We must keep this forum more lively than before...
Maintaining this forum is a Must.

United is power.

Dennis 师父， 一路走好了！谢谢您的无私教导！您那可贵的奉献精神将永存在我心​中。。。唉哉！痛哉啊！

[lootster]

Thanks to Alvin for your write up on Dennis.

I think you summarized what you know and learn from Dennis very well and I believe many who don't really know Dennis will too be touched after reading this article from your blog.

Indeed we are all very greatful for Dennis's teachings, not only on investment but more importantly on how to be a better person with the right morals and values.

[sereneloong]

Even in his death, Dennis continues to teach and inspire me. I have made this lesson into a video:
HOW TO ACHIEVE IMMORTALITY.
It is testament to Dennis' amazing life. Thank you for all that you have given so selflessly.

To watch Dennis' final lesson for me, click here: http://www.reallifetheory.com

Much love and respect,
Serene
P.S. I tried uploading the video directly on the forum but that didn't work. Pls click to view in memory of our Sifu...

[AdrianChua]

After knowing the background of Dennis' poor health, I think some of us may have misunderstood his past actions to close the forum and stop teaching. He probably knows about his poor health condition and seriously considering reserving more time for himself and family, if the forum not worth his attention anymore. So, he has probably make up his mind recently by giving a final test to the forum to make a decision, whether it worths his sacrifice. Unfortunately, it is too late. Looking back, I am actually hoping he could successfully close the forum and exit from the investment education programs, as he deserves the enjoyment of financial freedom. This way, he may be able to improve his health over the time.

If one has noticed, Dennis has been losing weight since 2009. That did not stop him from his selfless sharing and teaching. With his financial status, he could have retire and spend quality time with his family. Yet he chose to spend the rest of his life educating the public. Many people was skeptical on why he wants to teach, and do not appreciate his intention. Frustration and disappointment accumulated worsen his health.

Just to share what I saw from a Facebook post:
"Research has shown that each time you get angry there is at least 5% decrease in the efficiency of your heart in pumping blood to the rest of your body. The danger greatly enhances if you already have a weak heart."