The raise paradox: why earning more never feels like enough

Singapore’s brand of financial anxiety has a curious shape. Household incomes are climbing, yet a third of the population says they have not saved enough in the past six months. The reason has less to do with how much people earn and more to do with the invisible gap between income and what actually gets set aside.

In this episode of Money Hacks, a podcast from The Business Times, Howie Lim speaks with Michelle Mah, founder and psychotherapist at The Curious Bonsai Therapy & Coaching, and Wildon Goh, head of Southeast Asia and country head of Singapore at Fidelity International, about why lifestyle creep happens, what is actually driving it and how to break the cycle before it quietly derails retirement.

Why listen

• Why 13 per cent of Singapore households earning $30,000 a month still feel financially insecure  Goh explains the gap that actually determines wealth: not income, but the space between what you earn and what you save and invest.

• Why small subscriptions do more damage than big purchases  People fear losing money on large purchases but barely notice $2,000 a month bleeding out through Spotify, Grab and other small recurring charges. Goh explains why that quantum, added up, becomes meaningful.

• Why your brain adapts to a new financial baseline faster than you realise  Mah unpacks money scripts, the subconscious beliefs about money formed in childhood, and why $8 lattes and daily ride-hailing quietly become non-negotiable norms.

• Why the sequence of spending needs to be reversed  Save and invest first, then spend what remains, rather than the other way around. Goh explains why automating this removes willpower from the equation entirely.

• Why only 28 per cent of Singaporeans feel prepared for retirement  With rising longevity pushing life expectancy toward 100, Goh makes the case for why investing cannot stop the day you retire.

More money does not automatically mean more wealth. This episode explains the gap and how to close it. Watch now.

Discover more episodes at bt.sg/podcasts. Got feedback? Email us at btpodcasts@sph.com.sg.

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Written and hosted by: Howie Lim (howielim@sph.com.sg)

With Michelle Mah, founder and psychotherapist, The Curious Bonsai Therapy & Coaching and Wildon Goh, head of Southeast Asia and country head of Singapore, Fidelity International

Edited by: Howie Lim & Claressa Monteiro

Produced by: Howie Lim, Nicole Teo & Chai Pei Chieh

A podcast by BT Podcasts, The Business Times, SPH Media

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