When will you retire or reach financial independence? I think most of us would be happy retiring (or having the option) sooner rather than later. The problem, of course, is that even with acceleration strategies it takes time to accumulate enough savings to support ourselves without having to work. Fortunately, there is another way to view [Continue Reading]
How Frugality Bought My Freedom
This article is about the idea that frugality, or living more simply financially, can buy you freedom both in the long run and in the short run. Frugality does not have to be a painful and difficult sacrifice. Frugality does not mean you must become a greedy, covetous Ebenezer Scrooge. Like people who love exercise or [Continue Reading]
The True Cost of Regular Expenses: The Rules of 752 & 173
The concept of reaching financial independence where passive income fully supports your lifestyle is fairly simple in theory. Essentially you just increase your income, cut your expenses, and maximize your savings rate (see my article “Simple Math, Early Retirement“). But, as we all know and as I shared in “Destination Financial Independence,” simple concepts like losing weight, exercising, and [Continue Reading]
How Much is Enough? The Fulfillment Curve
In the beginning of our lives, more possessions did indeed mean more fulfillment. Basic needs were met. We were fed. We were warm. We were sheltered … We then went from bare necessities (food, clothing, shelter) to some amenities (toys, a wardrobe, a bicycle) … Eventually we slipped beyond amenities to outright luxuries – and [Continue Reading]
Making a Dying is Not Living
How many people have you seen who are more alive at the end of the work day than they were at the beginning? Do we come home from our ‘making a living’ activity full of more life? … Where’s all the life we supposedly made at work? For many of us, isn’t the truth of [Continue Reading]
The Two Financial Games You Play
(and How to Win)
Almost every time I teach a class about real estate investing, I remind everyone of a really important reality before we start talking about houses and financing. The message is this: We are trying to win two different financial games. Just like basketball and baseball, these two financial games have very different rules, “equipment,” required [Continue Reading]