FI after 40 Podcast

This episode features a great conversation with Tom, a teacher who hosts the blog What the FI. Tom shares his story and explains how he has more than doubled his net worth in the last few years, through better budgeting, increased savings rate, and investing in real estate. Despite not starting his path to FI until after turning 40, Tom has his family on a trajectory to hit several lofty personal and financial goals in the next ten years.

Lives in the Chicago area, got into the teaching profession based on his family

Followed the American Dream – go to college, get a job, get married, have kids

Was doing okay financially, but had no clear goals and started to accumulate debt

Found themselves living paycheck to paycheck, not tracking their spending

By the time he got to his 40s realized retirement wasn’t far off and felt trapped in his job

Wife recognized he was unhappy but he wasn’t ready to listen to advice

Eventually started reading more and listening to podcasts and began to turn the corner

Heard interview with Jemal King, https://www.instagram.com/9to5millionaire/, and that was an inflection point to pursue passive income

Books/audio books have been a significant source of education (50+ books)

• Rich Dad Poor Dad – Robert Kiyosaki
• Set for Life – Scott Trench
• Millionaire Real Estate Investor - Gary Keller
• Book on Rental Property Investing – Brandon Turner
• Long Distance Real Estate Investing – David Greene
• Total Money Makeover – Dave Ramsey
• Retire Before Mom and Dad – Rob Berger
• Little Book of Common Sense Investing - John Bogle
• Simple Path to Wealth - JL Collins
• The 10X Rule – Grant Cardone
• Start with Why – Simon Sinek
• You Are a Bad Ass – Jen Sincero

These have helped with mindset shifts as well as learning about investing and real estate

Much more educated now with how to invest in index funds

Discusses the importance of getting on the same page with your partner

Started to find savings in their monthly budget, increased savings rate from 5% to 50% in a few years

Increased net worth from $150k to $315k

Has outlined long term goals: to become financially independent, getting his time back, own 12 rentals, give back to the community, have $1 million in retirement savings

Has become comfortable with setting lofty goals and not settling

Real Estate Investing:

• Looking to build a portfolio as a way to accumulate wealth rapidly
• Considered a range of options, ultimately found a cash flowing property within an hour
• Went with a SFH (single family home) to rent out as a safer option
• Works with a realtor who also invests in real estate
• Uses a few simple rules to quickly evaluate deals: 1% rule, 50% rule, cash-on-cash ROI
• Blog post: https://whatthefi.com/3-simple-rules-to-quickly-calculate-rental-deals/

Need to forgive yourself for past mistakes, starting at 40 or older is not too late

You can make up a lot of ground by changing your habits

Blog: https://whatthefi.com/

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/whatthefiguy/

Today we have Jessica from The Fioneers. She’s a co-founder of https://thefioneers.com/ along with her husband Corey. Their financial independence blog was a 2019 Plutus Award Winner for Best New Personal Finance Blog. We discuss a wide range of topics, including an overview of the Slow FI concept she developed with her husband. We also dive into how she overcame several limiting beliefs in order to become an entrepreneur and launch a new business. Finally, Jessica shares why Slow FI is an ideal option for people pursuing financial freedom later in life.

• Jessica lives in Boston and works in nonprofit, in her mid-30s, learned about FI when she was 30
• Husband had learned about FI but didn’t feel like it applied to their situation
• She started to feel burned out in her job, toxic environment, but had doubled her income
• Felt like she needed to stay in her job for 10+ years to reach FI, traditional FIRE path didn’t fit
• Ended up taking a 6-month leave due to anxiety and ultimately left her job
• Decided to work part-time, which was an option based on their savings
• Was able to focus on passion projects and find a work/life balance
• Came up with the concept of Slow FI: https://thefioneers.com/slow-fi-yolo/
• “The journey to financial independence should be as remarkable as the destination.”
• Even with her pay cut they were able to maintain close to a 60% savings rate
• Read the book Work Optional by Tanja Hester, https://ournextlife.com/work-optional/, and was introduced to the concept of mini, or semi-retirement
• Decided to start a Slow FI Interview series: https://thefioneers.com/slow-fi-interview-series/
• Found examples of people pursuing financial freedom while still living their lives

Seven Limiting Beliefs blog post: https://thefioneers.com/limiting-beliefs-entrepreneur/

• Started a coaching business to help people design an ideal life
• Ran into internal challenges and barriers that held her back and felt it was important to share these challenges with others
• Belief #1: I should be able to figure all of this out by myself.
• Belief #2: I should know that something will be successful before trying it.
• Growth mindset vs a fixed mindset
• Belief #5: I need to feel totally confident before moving forward.
• Why people struggle with overcoming fears to face a challenge

How imposter syndrome holds people back

• Challenges that I’ve faced with my blog and podcast
• The importance of people sharing their stories and inspiring others
• The challenges of sharing FI concepts with people who are not pursuing FI

Advice for people starting to pursue FI later in life: slow FI makes a lot of sense for people in their 40s

Where to follow The Fioneers:

• Twitter: https://twitter.com/thefioneers
• Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/thefioneers/
• Facebook group: https://thefioneers.com/fb

When is it okay to say “F*ck it” and spend money when you haven’t budgeted for it? As someone who still struggles to save money, I dive into a checklist I use before splurging on an unplanned purchase. I also wrap up the second half on my list of 21 pieces of advice for my 21-year old self, covering items 11-21. Finally, I walk through some recent milestones I’ve hit with the FI after 40 blog and podcast after 50 days of producing content and connecting with people in the FI community.

Note: I marked this episode as "Explicit" although I don't actually use explicit language.

Day 50 Milestones

• Podcast: 8 episodes, 200 listens
• Blog: 14 blog posts, 1300+ hits
• Social: 1000 Instagram followers
• How is this meaningful to me? Making connections with people has been the best part of this

21 pieces of advice – Part 2 (11 through 21): https://fiafter40.com/21-pieces-of-advice-part2/

• 11) Credit cards are dangerous.
• 12) People like you more than you realize.
• 13) Stay in touch with your friends.
• 14) Go to the gym.
• 15) Spend less time on fantasy sports.
• 16) Get an investment property as soon as you can.
• 17) Start saving for retirement as soon as you can.
• 18) Host a podcast.
• 19) Keep skiing. You live in NH, dummy.
• 20) Don’t become addicted to your smart phone.
• 21) Just because you’re thin doesn’t mean you’re healthy.

The F*ck it checklist for buying stuff

I’ve been super focused on paying off my debt

I have a rule in pace that I won’t spend money on discretionary items until I have my CC paid off

Considering buying kayaks since last summer

I live on a river and I've seen a steady stream of kayakers floating by

Recently opted to order kayaks for each other as birthday presents

I had an initial feeling of guilt – feeling like I was doing something bad

Instead of paying off my debt, I splurged on an expensive purchase

I thought about it for a bit and came to the conclusion that I’m ok with this decision

Here is a checklist you can run through to decide

Assumption – this is not a mandatory purchase and it’s not an emergency

• Is it an impulse buy?
• Will it improve your quality of life? Health, goals, experiences
• Will you enjoy it with others?
• Is it adding new functionality to your life?
• Is this the most affordable option? (In other words there a cheaper alternative?) Used, shop around

If you can answer yes to these questions, you can say “F it” and feel good about spending the money.

Examples that are “No” for me: new iPhone, new car, new bed

Examples that are “Yes”: new kayak

• This was not an impulse buy
• It’s something that will improve my quality of life – physical activity, gets me into nature
• It will be an activity I can enjoy with my girlfriend and my kids
• I did not have one prior
• Could have looked for used kayaks – but I did look around online and wasn’t seeing much

It was a compromise within my relationship

I asked this question online and most people responded with Travel opportunities.

For people who budget for travel, that’s really the best approach.

I’m still not good at saving for things. I expect that to come after my debt is gone.

Twitter: https://twitter.com/FIafter40

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/fiafter40/

Website: https://fiafter40.com/

If you’re new to the show, I wanted to spend a couple minutes letting you know exactly what this show is all about. Now I’ll be the first to admit, I am not a financial guru and I am not a money expert.

What I am though is someone who has turned his life around, financially, in the last year. So I created this podcast to tell my story and inspire others who are facing a similar situation to where I was not long ago.

Tell me if any of this sounds familiar:

• You’re mid-career, making decent money
• You’re married with kids, or maybe divorced
• You know deep down that you have not prioritized your finances
• The amount of debt your in is a source of stress or shame
• You feel stuck in a routine that is not fulfilling
• The idea of spending another 20+ years at your job in order to retire makes you nauseous

If any of those boxes are checked in your life, trust me, you are not alone. Each of those described my life over the last few years. But I’ve since changed my attitude, my mindset, and my behaviors. And I want to share that with you.

But I won’t be doing it alone. I’ll feature conversations with people from all walks of life, from all over the globe. You’ll hear where they’ve come from and what changes they’ve made to pursue financial independence.

And that’s what FI is all about. It’s about finding the freedom to do what you want in life. Whether that’s retiring early, changing careers to something you love, or setting up the financial future of your children.

It’s whatever you decide it is. It’s about having the freedom to make choices and call your own shots.

If that resonates with you and sounds like something you need to hear in your life, then take a listen to the show and hear from some extraordinary people.

I post new episodes every Thursday. So head over to FIafter40.com for all the details and to read my blog.

You can also follow me here:

Twitter: https://twitter.com/FIafter40

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/fiafter40/

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/fiafter40/

YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCFQkFacttqin787WNmDzqmg/

This week's guest is Mitchell from the FIRE blog Highway to Retirement. Mitchell is a 21 year old Aussie who has caught onto the FIRE movement and plans to become a millionaire through investing and passive income. Despite earning a modest salary, Mitch has prioritized a low cost of living and is aggressively saving and investing in the Australian stock market. If all goes as planned, Mitch has set himself on a trajectory to retire in his early 30s.

• Frugality and Freedom weekly roundup connection: https://www.frugalityandfreedom.com/australian-fi-weekly-36-with-highway-to-retirement/
• Located in Australia – central Queensland, north of Brisbane
• Dealing with corona virus pandemic lock-down, easing restrictions
• Initial interest in investing to generate passive income
• Learned about FI community and retiring early
• Started his FI journey before age 21
• Aiming for $1.25M in portfolio, yielding 4% dividends, or $40-$50K per year
• Should take 12-13 years based on current income
• Earning close to minimum wage currently
• Even if the market under performs for 15 years, should hit that target
• Doesn’t spend a lot on misc expenses, keeps expenses low
• Finds free and cheap activities to socialize and stay active
• Expects to continue traveling when he retires
• Recently went to Vietnam, very affordable trip, great cost value
• Also visited Lord of the Rings sets in New Zealand
• Investing focus on ASX (Australian Securities Exchange)
• Likes After Pay and Push Pay as stocks
• Focus on Healthcare stocks, minimal ETFs, reliable dividends
• Holdings have bounced back after recent dips with COVD-19 impact on market
• Real estate investing extremely expensive in Australia, hoping to afford a duplex within a couple of years in order to house hack
• After reading other blogs for 6 months decided to start writing his own
• FI community has been supportive and allowed connections that spread across the globe

Website: http://highwaytoretirement.net/

Twitter: @highway2retire, https://twitter.com/highway2retire

Facebook: @highwaytoretire, https://www.facebook.com/Highwaytoretire