Top 6 'Raise-Guarding' Saving Tips to learn for channeling a new salary into an early retirement - Goh Ling Yong
That email from HR finally landed. You got the promotion. You nailed the negotiation. Your salary is getting a well-deserved boost, and the feeling is electric. Your mind instantly starts racing: that new gadget you’ve been eyeing, upgrading your apartment, finally trying that fancy restaurant that’s always booked.
Hold that thought.
While celebrating your hard work is essential, this moment is a critical crossroads in your financial journey. The path you choose now can be the difference between a slightly more comfortable present and a radically free future. The biggest threat? A sneaky thief called lifestyle inflation—the tendency to increase our spending as our income grows. It’s the reason so many people earn more and more over their careers but never seem to get further ahead.
This is where "raise-guarding" comes in. It’s a powerful mindset shift. Instead of seeing a raise as extra spending money, you see it as rocket fuel for your most important financial goal: early retirement. It’s about building a fortress around that new income and directing it with purpose before it gets absorbed into the daily grind. Here are the top six raise-guarding tips to turn your next pay bump into a fast track to financial independence.
1. Automate Your Raise Before You Even See It
This is the golden rule of raise-guarding, and it is non-negotiable. The single most effective way to save your raise is to make sure the extra money never touches your primary checking account. If you don’t see it, you can’t spend it. The trick is to act before your first new, larger paycheck arrives.
The moment you know the exact amount of your after-tax raise, log into your bank account. Let’s say your take-home pay is increasing by RM800 per month. You are going to set up an automatic, recurring transfer of RM800 from your checking account to your investment or high-yield savings account. Schedule this transfer for the day after your payday. This pre-commitment is psychologically powerful. You are making a decision for your future self before your present self has a chance to be tempted by a bigger account balance.
This "pay yourself first" strategy is a cornerstone of smart personal finance, a principle that wealth-building experts like Goh Ling Yong often highlight. By automating the process, you remove willpower and emotion from the equation. Your savings and investments grow consistently in the background, compounding month after month. You simply adapt to living on your old salary, which you’ve already proven is perfectly possible.
Actionable Tip:
- Calculate the exact after-tax increase in your monthly paycheck.
- Log into your online banking portal today.
- Set up a recurring transfer for that exact amount from your primary account to a separate brokerage account or a high-yield savings account earmarked for long-term goals.
- Schedule it for the 1st of the month, or whatever day is right after you get paid. Set it and forget it.
2. Remix the 50/30/20 Rule For Your Raise
You're probably familiar with the classic 50/30/20 budget: 50% of your income for needs, 30% for wants, and 20% for savings. It's a fantastic starting point for managing your finances. But when it comes to a raise, applying this same ratio is a missed opportunity. Your needs are already met by your previous salary. Applying the 50/30/20 rule to your new money means you’re automatically allocating 80% of it to lifestyle inflation (50% for "upgraded needs" and 30% for wants).
Instead, create a "Raise Remix" rule. Be far more aggressive with the new income. A powerful alternative could be an 80/10/10 split, or even 90/10/0. This means you’re directing the vast majority of your raise towards your financial goals while still giving yourself a small, intentional taste of your success.
Let's use that RM800 monthly raise again. An 80/10/10 split would look like this:
- 80% (RM640) to Savings & Investments: This portion goes directly into your early retirement fund, your brokerage account, or towards another major financial goal. This is the wealth-building engine.
- 10% (RM80) to Debt Annihilation: Use this to make extra payments on high-interest debt like credit cards or student loans.
- 10% (RM80) to Guilt-Free Spending: This is your reward! This RM80 is for you to spend on anything you want, no questions asked. A nicer coffee, a streaming service, a contribution to your hobby fund. It prevents you from feeling deprived and makes the whole plan more sustainable.
3. Create a 'Future You' Fund with a Specific Name
Generic savings goals are hard to get excited about. An account labeled "General Savings" is vague and uninspiring. It's easy to raid that account for an "emergency" that’s really just an impulse purchase. To truly motivate yourself, you need to connect your savings to the future life you’re trying to build. Give your raise a specific job.
Instead of just saving your raise, channel it into a fund with a vivid, exciting name. Open a new, separate account (a brokerage account or high-yield savings account) and give it a nickname that resonates with you. Don't call it "Retirement Fund." Call it the "Retire at 45 Beach House Fund" or the "Financial Freedom by 40 Account." This simple act of naming transforms a boring financial task into an exciting life project.
Every time you see that RM800 transfer, you won't feel like you're depriving yourself. You'll feel like you're buying a piece of your future freedom. You're not "saving money"; you're funding the life where you call the shots, where you can travel without checking your bank balance, or where you can pursue a passion project without worrying about a paycheck. This psychological trick makes sticking to your plan infinitely easier.
Actionable Tip:
- What is the one thing financial freedom would give you that excites you the most? Is it travel? Starting a business? Not having a 9-to-5?
- Open a new investment account (or use a sub-account if your bank allows it).
- Nickname the account based on that dream. Examples: "World Trip 2035 Fund," "Quit My Job Fund," "Passive Income Machine."
4. Perform a 'Lifestyle Creep' Audit
Before your new, bigger paycheck even hits, use this opportunity to look backward, not just forward. A raise can act as a powerful motivator to optimize your current spending. Think of it as plugging the leaks in your boat before you add a more powerful engine. If you can trim your existing expenses, your new raise becomes pure, unadulterated fuel for your goals.
A lifestyle creep audit involves meticulously going through your last 3-6 months of bank and credit card statements. Look for the small, recurring charges that have snuck into your budget. That free trial that turned into a RM40 monthly subscription? The gym membership you haven't used in four months? The daily gourmet coffee that adds up to over RM200 a month? These are the silent killers of financial progress.
By identifying and cutting these unnecessary expenses before your raise arrives, you create even more room in your budget. Let's say you find RM150 in subscriptions and phantom charges you can cut. Now, your RM800 raise effectively feels like a RM950 raise. You've amplified its power without any extra effort. As I've learned in my own journey and from mentors in the finance space, intentionality is everything. Knowing where every dollar goes is the first step to telling it where to go next.
Actionable Tip:
- Download your last three months of credit card and bank statements.
- Go through them line by line with a highlighter. Mark every recurring subscription and any purchase you don't remember or regret.
- Be ruthless. Cancel everything you don't use or value. Use a service like Hiatus or Truebill if you need help, or just make the calls yourself.
5. Inflate Your Debt Payments, Not Your Lifestyle
If you have high-interest debt, such as credit card balances or personal loans, your salary raise has just handed you a golden shovel to dig your way out. Using your entire raise to aggressively pay down debt is one of the smartest financial moves you can make. Why? Because it offers a guaranteed, tax-free return on your investment.
Think about it this way: if you have a credit card with an 18% APR, every extra dollar you put towards that balance is effectively "earning" you an 18% return. You'd be hard-pressed to find a guaranteed 18% return in the stock market. By obliterating your high-interest debt, you're not just eliminating a monthly payment; you're freeing up massive amounts of future cash flow that would have otherwise been wasted on interest payments.
Once the debt is gone, that entire payment amount (your original minimum payment + the extra from your raise) can be redirected straight into your investments. This creates a "debt snowball" that turns into an "investment avalanche." It's one of the most powerful ways to accelerate your journey to financial independence. You're turning a financial anchor into a financial slingshot.
6. Celebrate the Win, Not the Windfall
You worked hard for this raise, and you absolutely deserve to celebrate. The key is to distinguish between a one-time celebration and a recurring lifestyle upgrade. Guarding your raise doesn't mean you can't enjoy it. It means you enjoy it intentionally.
A great strategy is to take your first month's raise—that initial RM800—and use it for a planned, meaningful celebration. This could be:
- A fantastic dinner at that restaurant you’ve always wanted to try.
- A weekend getaway to a nearby city or nature retreat.
- Buying that one high-quality item you’ve wanted for a long time (a great watch, a durable piece of cookware, a new office chair).
This approach gives you a tangible reward and a great memory associated with your achievement. It scratches the itch to spend without committing you to a higher monthly cost basis. The danger isn't in the one-time RM800 dinner; it's in the new RM100/month subscription box, the RM200/month car payment upgrade, and the RM300/month rent increase. Those recurring expenses are what truly sabotage your long-term goals. Celebrate the win, then automate the rest of the windfall towards your future.
Your Future is in Your Hands
A salary raise is more than just a number on a payslip; it's an opportunity. It's a chance to buy back your most valuable asset: your time. By consciously practicing "raise-guarding," you choose to invest in a future where you have more options, more freedom, and more control over your life. You trade a little bit of instant gratification for a lifetime of financial security and the potential for an early retirement you once only dreamed of.
Don't let this opportunity dissolve into a slightly more expensive version of your current life. Seize it. Put these systems in place and watch your future self thank you.
Now it's your turn. What's the one tip from this list you're going to implement with your next raise? Share your own raise-guarding strategies in the comments below
About the Author
Goh Ling Yong is a content creator and digital strategist sharing insights across various topics. Connect and follow for more content:
Stay updated with the latest posts and insights by following on your favorite platform!