Financial Independence Archives - Page 10 of 18

November 23, 2020August 9, 2021

Help! My Significant Other Is Terrible with Money!

I stand up on my bike pedals in the fading sun of a late spring afternoon. Facing what feels like gale-force winds, I can’t wait to get home and have a discussion with my significant other, who just so happens to be my wife.

We’ve been texting all day, popping off with ridiculous reinterpreted and borderline inappropriate emojis. I told her about how my boss, who in a very important meeting discussing a new research project, explained to a company executive from Houston…

“Well Gary, this stuff is complicated. It’s like trying to figure out your wife.”

Fortunately, I understand my wife fairly well. She is rooted in a strong desire for security, so something like financial stability is very appealing to her. This day at work in 2015, I’ve been reading Mr. Money Mustache, like all day. I’m convinced that we can now super-charge our path to a corporate exit, and we can make work an optional part of our lives, forever. Now, I just have to do some convincing.

This should be easy, right?

November 16, 2020November 16, 2020

Four Months on the Road: Can This Really Last?

We’ve moved from high mountain valleys and ridge lines, to coastal tide pools and arid western expanses. As much as this journey has been the best lesson in the school of life, after four months, how much longer can we go? Today, we find ourselves at a crossroad and we’re lookin’ to make a deal.

So dude…where to?

November 2, 2020November 1, 2020

Moving Forward With This Website: A Request of You

Well folks, I have a confession. After two+ years of posting here every single Monday, trying to keep a weekly schedule on this website is starting to be draining, for reasons I’ll discuss below. But I have a request of you. Please read on to see some of my thoughts and ideas on how to make this a better resource.

October 26, 2020October 25, 2020

Contentment: The Greenest Grass of the Them All

I’ll admit. I thought that quitting my job would lead to hours of newfound productivity. I will write for hours. Now I’ll double down on web design skills. I’ll climb more, and I’ll rest more. I’ll dust off my 15-year-old gear and start writing and recording music again. Once I don’t have a job I’ll truly find contentment.

The truth is, I’m largely the same guy I was in January, weeks before I walked away from my job.

Is that a bad thing?

October 19, 2020October 18, 2020

Relocation: A Guide to Moving and Housing Affordability

We’re out on the road in search of our next home, our sights set on home ownership once again. In this post we examine the complicated process of relocation and the sticky, tangled spiderweb of housing affordability. Is housing in America becoming less and less affordable?

In this post we discuss:

Costs to consider during relocation
Home price and income metrics to affordable housing
National trends on housing affordability
How much a retiree should spend on a home
Our process for evaluating relocation options
Ways to make housing more affordable

October 5, 2020October 4, 2020

Is Healthcare Insurance About to Get a Lot More Expensive?!

With the passing of Supreme Court Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg, the nation is thrust into an unexpected and incredibly time-sensitive debate on the future of the Supreme Court. The court is suddenly on a fast-track to a hard right turn, and hanging in the balance are pivotal social issues including abortion rights and healthcare programs. Relevant to us is the continued existence of the Affordable Care Act.

Other (understandably huge) social issues aside, changes in—or elimination of—the Affordable Care Act could mean colossal changes in the cost of healthcare insurance. What should we know and how can we prepare?

September 28, 2020September 27, 2020

Mike Personick: Dirtbag Entrepreneur

Two interviews in a row?! Why the hell not? This week I am exceptionally pleased to bring you this thought-provoking interview with Mike Personick. Mike is a 5.14 rock climber, husband, dad, and former business owner. And now, like me, Mike is living the financially independent rock climber life.

In this interview we delve into the early days of Mike’s climbing in tandem with a remote job. We learn how Mike managed to become a nails-hard climber while simultaneously honing a craft that led to a breakout business, and in time, a lucrative buyout. We hear Mike’s fascinating story of meeting his future wife and traveling in Europe for a year, eventually adding a third human to the equation. Perhaps most importantly, we discuss the simple investing methods that can build financial freedom for us all, as well as the psychological challenges that can topple any kingdom.

Read this one all the way to the end. Mike delivers.

September 14, 2020September 14, 2020

There’s No Way I’m Investing in this Economy!

On August 18, 2020, against all odds, the S&P 500 hits a new all-time high. Almost exactly six-months prior, the voices of consternation—from all corners, mind you—are inciting fears of Depression-era financial instability in the global economy. Well-minded folks are selling equities for gold and cash, and the more troubled are lining up at the bank, six feet apart, to withdraw their money. Much of the devastation of the pandemic hasn’t changed, yet the stock market is back on top. Or is it?

What in the hell is going on, and should you be a part of it?

Let’s go!

September 7, 2020September 7, 2020

In Contrast: The Reality of Life on the Road

What follows is an essay outlining the stark contrast of life on the road. It’s frankly easy to get really frustrated out here. Social media, blogs, and YouTube channels often paint a masterpiece of life on the road as an effortless, pillowy dream state and hall pass from reality. We’d certainly spent enough nights outside prior to this trip to know the ridiculousness of these claims. However, I like to be an honest guy on this website.

My mother nailed it when she said that the struggle for meeting basic needs and the lack of external social interactions can be a very real challenge. That said, might this be the very best place to be in the summer of 2020?

Let’s see why…

August 31, 2020July 11, 2023

This Just In: The Real Cost of Home Ownership

In August, we closed on our home of seven years in Denver, Colorado. And against all odds, with a raging pandemic, unprecedented unemployment, and a very uncertain future, we sealed the deal on an offer far better than we anticipated.

In this post I run the final numbers on the economics of our seven years of home ownership. Despite the often-touted rule-of-thumb that home ownership is a great investment….well…was it for us?

This is part 3 in a series. To see other posts on the subject, check out Part 1 and Part 2.