Personal Finance Archives - Page 9 of 10

May 20, 2019May 20, 2019

Job Security: Our Catalyst to Financial Independence

There are many reasons why people choose to pursue financial independence. And then of course, financial independence isn’t for everyone. Some folks experience discontent in their jobs, some want to spend more time with their children, and some want a life of international slow-travel across the globe. The list goes on. For us, this journey started as one of financial security during times of limited job security. In this post, we’ll examine the catalyst that made us re-tool our financial situation, and we’ll also explore why job security is virtually non-existent in the modern world.

March 11, 2019August 9, 2021

Tracking Your Spending: The Ultimate Task

I realize that only some small subset of the folks who end up on this website are likely to pursue financial independence. It’s not for everyone. But if we can make a single small impression on you, dear reader, it would be to invest time in tracking your spending. It doesn’t matter if you are clawing your way out of debt or nearing retirement in your late 20s, you must know exactly how much money is being spent. The more specific you can be in tracking your spending, the more power you have in making change.

March 4, 2019June 21, 2019

Personal Finance: Not Very Sexy, huh?

In terms of interests, I’ve always strived for simplicity. Drawn to the outdoors at a very young age in the dense Appalachian forests of western North Carolina, and later to rock climbing, I believed fully that a life in pursuit of simple pleasures was good enough. I didn’t need a big salary to buy nice things to impress others. Sadly, this is the rhythm and life of too many people. I never considered the utility of a personal finance strategy. So why should you?

February 18, 2019May 6, 2020

Regrets: Any Day Could Be Your Last

I’ve been sitting on this concept for a while, but I lacked the inspiration until it hit me like a sack of bricks early last week. I stumbled upon a must-read news article with an unbeatable title: Colorado trail runner attacked by mountain lion choked cat to death with hands, arms and feet. Yes, that is the actual title. Regardless of your religious or agnostic leanings, we have one shot at this life. I know nothing about this man — clearly the stuff of legends — but a peaceful run in the mountains very nearly came down to his final moments. It begs the question: if your life ended today, would you have any regrets?

February 11, 2019February 11, 2019

Financial Independence: So Who is This For?

We’re almost five months in on this project, but I’ve never clearly defined the intended audience for this content. As mentioned here, this site was launched to link the seemingly unrelated topics of personal finance and rock climbing. No doubt, the overlap on the Venn diagram of these two communities is going to be slim. So who is both willing and able to achieve a life of financial independence?

January 28, 2019May 4, 2019

Dogs and Your Money: An Ode to Man’s Best Friend

The pursuit of financial independence is a pursuit of happiness. Money is not the goal. Money is the vehicle that allows for a life centered around happiness. We write here about a philosophy centered around simple living and simple investing, but at the end of the day the entire goal is to provide more time to acquire true and meaningful fulfillment in our lives. Writing about this stuff often makes me feel like a bit of a used car salesman — convincing people to invest in stocks and open up credit cards — so I’m happy to take this opportunity to write more freely about, well, life. And dogs.

It’s very exciting to get wrapped up in all the ways to optimize, all the short-cuts and refinements, but I’m sometimes reminded of how quickly all the joys in life can be suddenly upended.

January 7, 2019October 28, 2019

Five “Essentials” That Are Destroying Your Savings

Well folks, new year, new goals. Are you looking to increase your savings rate this year?

Are you really interested in saving? “No” is a completely acceptable answer, by the way. If you prefer to answer no, you can largely disregard what’s written below and carry on with a plan more suitable for you. We fully recognize that a frugal existence is not for everyone. We cool? Cool.

However, if you’re really interested in saving tens of thousands of dollars, it’s going to require not only change, but a complete re-framing of your lifestyle.

These sort of changes will require a degree of discomfort — whether it’s physical, social, or otherwise — until you become accustomed to a new normal. That’s the beauty of the human condition; we’re adaptable. Take it from us that perceived discomfort can, with time, result in a new-found appreciation for a more simple existence. And the benefits are not purely financial. Building a new life of simplicity brings the benefits of a difficult-to-describe feeling of place in the world. A place you’ve earned, not bought. If you trust us in that, let’s read on.

December 31, 2018December 30, 2018

Getting Down with Charlie “Brown”

Charlie is indeed his first name, but I playfully made up the “Brown” part. Isn’t that fun?! Charlie has asked to remain partially anonymous (as we do here), because he’s discussing some stuff that his bosses might not like. We get it — nothing says I want a big bonus this year like “save money, retire early, blah, blah” on the internet.

The real Charlie Brown is kind of a downer, but not this Charlie. He and his wife are gaming out their life, and that’s pretty cool.

December 3, 2018December 26, 2018

Keeping the “Safe” in Safe Withdrawal Rate

Musings on How We Plan to Live off our Money

The question we are asked the most about financial independence — and especially the “retire early” portion of the equation — is how we plan to live off the money we’ve saved and invested. Are we even going to retire early? What will we do with our time? What if the market goes down? Sorry, that’s more than one question, isn’t it? The first critical aspect to address in a post-FI life is the safe withdrawal rate. Let’s take a look…

Continue reading “Keeping the “Safe” in Safe Withdrawal Rate”

November 12, 2018January 22, 2022

Part 2: The CC Family Investing Strategy

Investing Strategy: Where Exactly is Our Money?

This is Part 2 in a series. Check out Part 1 for our investing strategy and asset allocation.

Now you have a sense of our investing strategy in terms of asset allocation, but that’s not helping you get started. Let’s take a look at some common investment “buckets” and how we are dividing out our investments.

It’s easy to get lost in the details, so let’s break it down to the basics right up front. No more paralysis by analysis. Below are our top five pillars of a sound investing strategy.