in 2010, Malaysia's median salary was around RM1,500/month. today in KL, the median formal sector wage sits at RM4,391/month. on paper, that's nearly 3x growth in 16 years. sounds like massive progress, right? so why does everyone still feel like they're drowning?🥹 because while salaries grew, the cost of just existing kept compounding. none of these feel dramatic on a random Thursday, but look at the shift from 2010 to 2026: •⁠ nasi lemak: RM4.50 → RM9.00 •⁠ ⁠kopi-O: RM1.00 → RM2.50 •⁠ ⁠basic room rental: RM800 → RM1,500+ •⁠ ⁠Big Mac: RM8.50 → RM17.50 same life. double the cost. and the scariest part? we just... adapted. we stopped complaining about the RM5/hour KL city mall parking. the RM1,500 shoebox room. the RM17.50 burger. we just tap our cards and keep running. you're not broke because you're reckless. you're stressed because survival got structurally expensive. but here's the plot twist: not all Malaysians are on the same treadmill. look across the South China Sea. the KL vs Kuching dynamic tells a wild story about geographic arbitrage within our own borders. a Big Mac costs the same. a Myvi actually costs about RM2,000 more in Kuching (East Malaysia shipping fees, yo!). but in Kuching, you're not losing RM10/day to LDP toll plazas. your breakfast is a RM6 bowl of Kolo Mee. the iconic Sarawak Laksa, which used to be RM5 and has jumped to RM8-15, still beats KL cafe prices any day. and your RM1,500 gets you a proper living space. not a converted storage room. at RM10/day on tolls and parking alone, the Kuching Myvi premium pays itself off within a year. for anyone who can work remotely or run a digital business, the cost-of-living gap between West and East Malaysia is one of the most underrated financial hacks available right now. this was a strong reminder when we ran the @Solana Network State build station. watching @ns builders live and work there reminded me how differently the math works once you step outside the KL bubble. but location is only a band-aid. wherever you live, the underlying trap is the same: if your salary grows at 5% but your cost of living compounds at 8%, you're actively losing ground. you cannot out-earn inflation on a linear monthly paycheck alone. the only way off the treadmill isn't working longer hours. it's changing the game. moving from just earning to owning assets. investing. building. putting your money into things that grow while you sleep. the question isn't "how do I ask for a 10% raise?" it's "how do I make sure my money compounds faster than the treadmill moves?" so if you want to build something that grows, come join us at the @SuperteamMY x @RedotsClub event tomorrow to meet other builders and ship something cool. link in🧵

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