At the beginning of the month, I resolved to write two blog posts a week and work out three times a week. Today’s the last day of January, so how did I do? In a word, meh. In each case, I can make an argument that I either barely succeeded or failed miserably. On the blog front, this is my 9th post of the month so I’m right there on the line for a 4 ½ week month! Conversely, however,…
A few years ago, I read Thomas Piketty’s book, Capital in the Twenty-First Century. This behemoth of economic research covers the history of income and wealth inequality in Europe and the US. One thing that struck me at the time, and has left a lasting impression, are the statistics on capital vs. wage growth over time and the significance of their implications. His research shows that historically, the rate of return on capital outpaces the economic growth rate (and therefore…
“To achieve FIRE, strong financial discipline on spending and investing is crucial. Lifestyle sacrifices are less common.” That doesn’t sound so extreme to me.
One of the tenets of the FIRE movement has been to avoid accumulating things. Our society’s consumerist culture is overtly shunned by most in the FIRE community. This makes a lot of sense since buying things is expensive and research has shown that material items don’t seem to give people lasting happiness. So, what can give us lasting happiness? Life’s experiences and spending time with friends and loved ones. When we purchase a new thing, we receive a momentary boost…
It’s that time of year again when many people make New Years resolutions. They resolve to eat better, lose weight, save money, take up a hobby, and many others. It’s no surprise that by February or March, they have given up on their resolutions for any of countless reasons. So why are we so bad at sticking to our goals and what can we change to help accomplish them? First of all, many goals are really just wishes people have…
I just finished a 10-hour binge reading session of FIRE blogs and I’m ready to pull the trigger. I estimate I can retire in 10 ½ years, financially independent. All I have to do is increase my savings rate to 65% by cutting my expenses and increasing my income. The expenses will be easy. My biggest expense is housing, which I can almost completely eliminate. If I sell my house and move in with a friend, Boom!, huge savings. Also,…
In order to reach FI, many FIRE bloggers recommend setting aside a sum of investable assets equal to 25 times your expected annual expenses. That way, you can use the 4 % rule to provide the income you need for your anticipated expenses. There is some debate as to whether the 4% rule is an advisable strategy, especially for those seeking early “retirement.” But simply put, the 4% rule states that you can withdraw 4% of assets (adding inflation each…
My name is Jed, my wife’s name is Melissa, and we are the Pritchett family. We have two daughters, age 6 and 3, and a 1-year old son. We are a military family currently stationed north of Seattle, Washington. Both Melissa and I grew up in Ohio and met while attending college. After graduation in 2005, I was commissioned in the Navy and moved to Pensacola, FL to begin flight training. Melissa and I dated long distance for a year…