by Shulin Lee
🎙 The Real Reason with Shulin Lee A podcast about success, mindset, and growth. Featuring real experts who’ve lived it. Hosted by Shulin Lee, lawyer-turned-recruiter and Singapore’s #1 LinkedIn Creator. Get raw conversations on careers, purpose, mental health, and leadership, without the fluff. Stop taking advice from people who haven’t done the work. Learn from those who have.
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Publishing Since
11/3/2025
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July 1, 2026
<p>Your CPF can be $4 million.</p><p>That's what Christopher Tan told me, and he manages $1.8 billion.</p><p>Part 2 is here. (Haven't watched Part 1? Start there: https://youtu.be/EKPqiYOiTbw)</p><p>In Part 1, I told you how my husband and I lost thousands before we worked out the basics. Those mistakes were my tuition fees.</p><p>Even after I knew what not to do, I still had no idea what to do.</p><p>Twenty insurance policies. A CPF account I'd logged into maybe twice, and never understood how to actually use.</p><p>So I sat down with Chris and asked him to explain money from zero.</p><p>His firm is the only one in Singapore paid a flat fee, never a commission. No product to push. No reason to lie.</p><p>I asked him: what's the perfect money plan for an ordinary Singaporean?</p><p>It's not investing that makes you rich. It's your surplus. Investing just helps you stay rich.</p><p>In this episode, you'll learn:</p><ul><li>How the CPF Special Account pays 4 to 5%, near risk-free</li><li>The 1M65 strategy: how a couple can hit $1 million by 65</li><li>Why he has never invested a single cent of his own CPF</li><li>If even Warren Buffett can't beat the market, what should you do?</li><li>The first thing to fix if you're living payday to payday (hint: it's not investing)</li></ul><p>You'll have a plan you can start this week.</p><p>This is a conversation, not financial advice. Your situation is your own.</p><p><br></p><p>==</p><p><br></p><p><strong>DISCLAIMER</strong></p><p>This conversation is for educational and informational purposes only. It does not constitute financial advice tailored to your individual circumstances. Before making any financial decisions, please consult with a qualified financial adviser who understands your personal situation. Past performance does not guarantee future results. Christopher Tan's views are his own and do not represent personalized recommendations for your specific financial situation.</p><p><br></p><p><strong>ABOUT CHRISTOPHER TAN</strong></p><p>Christopher Tan is the CEO of Providend, Singapore's first fee-only wealth advisory firm. He manages $1.8 billion in assets under management (AUM) and built his business around one simple idea: what if financial advisers only got paid to give advice, not to sell products?</p><p>That model lets him say what other advisers can't. And in this conversation, he does.</p><p>More about Christopher Tan:</p><ul><li><a href="https://providend.com/christopher-tan/" target="_blank" rel="ugc noopener noreferrer">https://providend.com/christopher-tan/</a></li></ul><p><br></p><p>More about Shulin:</p><ul><li>LinkedIn: <a href="https://www.linkedin.com/in/shulinlee/" target="_blank" rel="ugc noopener noreferrer">https://www.linkedin.com/in/shulinlee/</a></li><li>Instagram: <a href="https://www.instagram.com/the.real.reason.pod/" target="_blank" rel="ugc noopener noreferrer">https://www.instagram.com/the.real.reason.pod/</a></li></ul><p>==</p><p><br></p><p>Timestamps:</p><ul><li>(00:00) Opening </li><li>(02:01) Why Chris has never invested his CPF</li><li>(03:39) The biggest CPF myth</li><li>(07:40) OA to SA: Can you move money to earn higher interest?</li><li>(10:50) What actually happens to your CPF at 55?</li><li>(15:14) What should a 25 year old do? </li><li>(19:54) 1M65: $1million in CPF by 65</li><li>(21:50) Chris’ advice for Shulin </li><li>(26:45) Start here before you even think about investing</li><li>(28:30) Is it still safe to invest with wars, tariffs, and AI disruption?</li><li>(30:22) Insurance 101</li><li>(35:10) Should you invest in gold?</li><li>(38:27) Property as an investment</li><li>(43:08) ETFs explained </li><li>(44:18) Stock picking vs ETFs</li><li>(50:10) When couples disagree on money </li><li>(55:13) Q&As from listeners</li><li>(59:56) Your surplus makes you rich, not investments</li></ul>
June 15, 2026
<p>For years, I never told anyone this.</p><p>My husband and I lost thousands.</p><p>Real money. Money we worked hard for.</p><p>On the UK property course. Trading systems. Affiliate marketing schemes.</p><p>All of them had glowing reviews. They all looked so easy to copy.</p><p>Yet, every one of them failed.</p><p>And when it didn't work, we didn't blame them. We blamed ourselves.</p><p>We lost money. We lost sleep. We lost confidence. It put a strain on our marriage.</p><p>The only person getting rich was the one selling us the dream.</p><p>For years, I carried that shame in silence.</p><p>Today I'm done.</p><p>Because here's what I wish someone had said to me back then:</p><p>It wasn't your fault. You're not stupid. You were sold a story that was built to make you feel that way.</p><p>So let me say what nobody else will.</p><p>Stop envying what you see online. Most of them are LYING. The dream life. The screenshots. The "I made six figures in my sleep." It's bait. They are selling you a course that worked for them and will almost certainly never work for you. And they know it.</p><p>If you haven't spent the money yet, let us save you from our mistakes. And if you already have, there's no shame here. That's the whole reason I'm sharing this.</p><p>So I sat down with someone who tells the truth about money.</p><p>Christopher Tan manages $1.8 billion. His firm is the only one in Singapore paid a flat fee, never a commission. He only makes money when he tells you the truth.</p><p>Then he asked me one question I haven't stopped thinking about: <strong>If everyone is winning… who is losing?</strong></p><p>What he said next made me angry. Then it set me free.</p><p>In this episode, you'll learn:</p><ul><li>Why "make money while you sleep" almost never works, and what they hide before you pay</li><li>The one warning sign that should make you close your wallet straight away</li><li>How most money courses actually make their money (hint: it's from you)</li><li>Why something can work for someone else and still fail for you</li><li>The most dangerous money advice going viral right now</li><li>Why good advice is boring, and bad advice spreads fast</li><li>The real difference between a money influencer and a real financial adviser</li><li>Why retiring really early sounds perfect but hides one big problem</li><li>The one question to ask yourself before you spend a single dollar</li><li>How to get back up after losing money, and why more people are in your shoes than you think</li></ul><p>By the end, you'll spot the lie before it costs you a single dollar.</p><p>Watch this before you part with your hard-earned money.</p><p>Then stay tune for Part 2, where Christopher shows you exactly what to do with your money instead.</p><p><strong>DISCLAIMER</strong></p><p>This conversation is for educational and informational purposes only. It does not constitute financial advice tailored to your individual circumstances. Before making any financial decisions, please consult with a qualified financial adviser who understands your personal situation. Past performance does not guarantee future results. Christopher Tan's views are his own and do not represent personalized recommendations for your specific financial situation.</p><p><br></p><p><strong>ABOUT CHRISTOPHER TAN</strong></p><p>https://providend.com/christopher-tan/</p><p><br></p><p><strong>FOLLOW SHULIN: </strong></p><p>LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/shulinlee</p><p>Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/the.real.reason.pod/</p><p><br></p><p><strong>Timestamps:</strong></p><ul><li>(00:00) Opening</li><li>(02:32) Is passive income even real?</li><li>(04:36) The reality of UK property investing </li><li>(06:04) The cost of being misled: Money, time, & trust</li><li>(07:18) Is FIRE actually achievable in Singapore?</li><li>(11:54) Controversial take on retiring early at 30</li><li>(13:50) Red flags in investing courses</li><li>(17:29) Dangerous financial advice on social media </li><li>(18:23) What fee-only financial advice means</li><li>(22:22) Young and starting out? Here's the simple financial framework</li><li>(26:17) Making life decisions before money decisions </li><li>(29:51) FOMO investing vs. boring ETFs </li><li>(32:27) What to do if you’ve lost money on a bad investment</li><li>(37:07) Good financial advice is boring </li><li>(42:45) Where to actually find trustworthy financial advice in Singapore</li><li>(47:25) Finfluencers vs financial advisors</li></ul>
May 13, 2026
<p>Is Sleep Training Cruel? Asia's No.1 Sleep Trainer Tells You the Truth.</p><p>Sleep training is one of the most Googled parenting topics in the world. And one of the most misunderstood.</p><p>Your mother-in-law. Your neighbour. That random stranger in the Facebook parenting group. They all have something to say.</p><p>But here is the problem. Most of what you have been told is wrong.</p><p>Every exhausted parent has Googled it at 3am. Every exhausted parent has stood outside their child's door, heart pounding, asking the same question: am I doing damage to my child right now?</p><p>Louise Duncan has been inside thousands of homes across Asia. She has been chased out by grandmothers with brooms. She has sat with mothers crying on the other side of a door. She has watched marriages break down under the weight of broken sleep. And she has seen families come out the other side, rested, close, and wondering why they did not do it sooner.</p><p>In this episode, Asia's No.1 Sleep Trainer sits down with Shulin Lee to set the record straight on every lie exhausted parents have been told about sleep training.</p><p>This is not a gentle conversation. But it is an honest one.</p><p>If you have ever cried outside your baby's door and wondered if you are a bad parent, this episode was made for you.</p><p><br /></p><p><strong>What You Will Learn:</strong></p><ul><li>The sleep training lies keeping your family stuck</li><li>Why sleep training hits two of the most powerful human brain triggers at once</li><li>The Romanian orphanage story and what it actually means for your child</li><li>Why mothers are wired to feel guilty every time their baby cries</li><li>The real reason sleep training was never about your baby</li><li>Does letting your child cry damage your bond? What the science says</li><li>Why the grandmothers who chase Louise out end up being her biggest fans</li></ul><p><br /></p><p><strong>THIS EPISODE IS FOR YOU IF:</strong></p><p>You are running on broken sleep and starting to lose yourself. You have tried everything and nothing has worked. You are terrified that sleep training will damage your child. Your relationship is falling apart because neither of you has slept properly in months. You want the truth without the judgement.</p><p><br /></p><p><strong>ABOUT LOUISE DUNCAN:</strong></p><p>Louise Duncan is the founder of Petite Dreamers Sleep Solutions and the first certified Sleep Sense consultant in Singapore and Southeast Asia. With over a decade of experience, she has privately coached thousands of children from birth through primary school to correct sleep challenges in the home. Her approach is evidence-based, culturally sensitive, and built on one belief: every family deserves to sleep.</p><p>Website: https://petitedreamers.com/ </p><p>LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/louise-duncan</p><p><br /></p><p><strong>ABOUT THE REAL REASON:</strong></p><p>The Real Reason is hosted by Shulin Lee, founder of Aslant Legal and Singapore's No.1 LinkedIn creator. Each episode goes beyond the surface to find the real reason behind the choices, challenges, and turning points that shape the way we live and work.</p><p>By the end of this episode, you will never think about sleep training the same way again.</p><p><strong>FOLLOW US ON:</strong></p><ul><li>LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/the-real-reason</li><li>Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/the.real.reason.pod/</li></ul><p><br /></p><p><strong>TIMESTAMPS: </strong></p><ul><li>(00:00) Trailer & Opening</li><li>(02:16) Meet Louise Duncan</li><li>(02:22)The Mum-Shaming Around Sleep Training</li><li>(05:37) What Is Sleep Training?</li><li>(09:05) Sleep Hygiene, Routines & Props</li><li>(12:01) Why Sleep Matters for Kids</li><li>(13:34) Bedtime in a Singaporean Household</li><li>(15:56) Navigating Multi-Generational Households</li><li>(20:18) Sleep Training for Different Family Situations</li><li>(22:50) Why Is Sleep Training So Polarising?</li><li>(28:01) Best Age to Sleep Train</li><li>(28:51) Different Family Situations</li><li>(30:03) Why Is Sleep Training So Polarising?</li><li>(31:27) Am I Damaging My Child?</li><li>(34:28) What Louise Wishes More Parents Knew</li><li>(36:26) What to Try Tonight</li><li>(42:19) Screens, Night Lights & Bedtime Environment</li><li>(45:20) Final Takeaways</li></ul>
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🎙 The Real Reason with Shulin Lee
A podcast about success, mindset, and growth. Featuring real experts who’ve lived it.
Hosted by Shulin Lee, lawyer-turned-recruiter and Singapore’s #1 LinkedIn Creator.
Get raw conversations on careers, purpose, mental health, and leadership, without the fluff.
Stop taking advice from people who haven’t done the work.
Learn from those who have.
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