Best lifestyle buys as a teacher 2026
JOURNALLING & LIFE STUFFTIPS FOR A NEW TEACHER
9/27/20262 min read
Finally got some adult money and slowly made more purchases. As I looked back on this year, I realised that there were some items that greatly improved my standard of living and productivity as a beginning teacher.
Growing up in a frugal background, spending money usually felt difficult for me. However, this year I learnt that being willing to try new things opens up the options for me to improve my life, and that is a good reason to justify why I continue working hard to earn money.
Here are some of the four most life changing things (not sponsored) I have bought this year and I want to share why!
1) Air-con
My number 1 lifestyle improvement. The air conditioning system was spoilt for over a year, and finally we had enough of the weather and decided to fix it. Not only did my sleep quality improve, being able to sleep the entire night in deep sleep before waking up for school, it also gave me the motivation to do work in my room. In a hot environment like Singapore, an air con is a big improvement to standard of living.
2) Water Filter Jug
The second on this list is my water filter jug. This was something introduced to me by my partner after she saw this in a friend's house. Previously, I would always fill my water up to full before leaving school, making that the only water I had to last me till the next day. Ever since I got the filter jug, I drank a lot more water, improving my health. It also made my commutes to and from school a lot more enjoyable, not having to carry a litre of water on my back.
3) Disposable towel & 3 in 1 soap
This was a game changer, especially for days where I had to stay back for CCA or school events till evening. It is a convenient and fuss-free way to let me shower in school, without having to worry about drying the towel or where to store my bulky towels. This also freed me up to meet people in the evening, knowing that I can freshen up after a long day of work before meeting them.
4) Vacuum mop
Greatly improved household chores. I heard about how useful it was years ago when a friend shared with me about it. At that time, spending $200 on a trial product is difficult to to commit. After having taken the leap of faith this year, I found it so life changing in two ways - a) it reduced my need to bend my back to wring the mop, making mopping the entire house much more comfortable, b) it actually sucks up all the hair on the floor, and consolidates them, making clearing it a breeze. This is especially helpful when you have many long-haired individuals in your house. The only note of caution I have, is to look at the model and select one that is able to bend more, as the model I got does have some trouble getting deep under my bed or tables due to the limits in how low it can bend. Other than that, I am so glad that I do not have to keep bending my back to wring the mop and carrying the heavy pail of water around the house.
This post was written by myself :), image created using Gemini