Easing Into Early Retirement with Part-Time Work
For people pursuing financial freedom, reaching full FI can be such a temptation (even for myself at moments). This is why I’m always interested in hearing the stories of people who are choosing to downshift along the way to FI. I’m so excited to share Court’s story. Court and her family were less than 1 year from reaching full FI when she decided to downshift and take a part-time job.
What We Learned in our Second Year of Pursuing FI
There are so many things that we’ve learned in our second year of pursuing financial independence! One reason I love blogging is that it’s a great way to chronicle my own journey and mindset shifts. Writing also helps to solidify those mindset shifts for myself.
Our Plan to Financial Independence
Our plan to reach FI is not to deprive ourselves to build up a nest egg so that we can relax later. And to be clear, our journey to financial independence is not about early retirement. We are not looking to not work or sit on a beach for 50-60 years. Instead, this journey is about lifestyle design, freedom, flexibility and security. We plan to take very intentional actions so that we can adjust our lifestyle along the way. Here’s a detailed look at what our plan currently looks like.
Passion Hustle: the Fusion of Side Hustles and Passion Projects
My goal is to leverage my passion hustles to build our ideal lifestyle over time. Ultimately, I want to get to a place where when we actually hit our FI number, we don’t need to change anything. We will already be living our ideal life.
Financial Independence Is More Than a Number
Chris has a very unique story. According to the numbers, he actually achieved FI (25x his annual expenses) in 2015. However, financial independence wasn’t yet part of his vocabulary, and he didn’t realize what was possible. As you’ll see in this Slow FI interview, Chris refers to a moment when he “claimed his financial independence.” This was when he realized that he could start making decisions differently.
What You Must Do Before You Can Design Your Ideal Life
I’ve realized that the idea of finding a “dream job” is both flawed and woefully incomplete for building a fulfilling life. There are so many things that any of us could be happy doing. More importantly, focusing on career goals at the expense of the rest of our lives will not provide fulfillment.
How to Curb Emotional Spending
Spending is usually a response to some sort of trigger. Some triggers are helpful, and others are indicators that there’s something going on in our lives that needs to be addressed. When we address the underlying issue, curbing emotional spending becomes so much easier.
Why You Shouldn’t Ignore Active Income
Rebecca and Joe decided to quit their jobs 2 years before reaching their full FIRE target because they realized the power that a small amount of active income could have on their plans.
Why You Should Avoid the Two-Phase Path to Retirement
Despite what conventional wisdom may lead you to believe, there are many paths to retirement. Most people follow the same two-phase path to retirement. Instead, the Slow FI approach can help you make small changes over time.
