Author Topic: did anyone FIRE much quicker due to special event?  (Read 8054 times)

rob in cal

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did anyone FIRE much quicker due to special event?
« on: September 11, 2018, 10:24:29 AM »
   I'd be interested to know if anyone had a special circumstance that enabled a much quicker FIRE timeline than expected. This could be an inheritance, home equity skyrocketing which enabled geographic fire arbitrage, spouse deciding to get paid employment unexpectedly, company stock going through the roof etc.
   Some more peculiar ones might be children winning awesome scholarships for college, children not going to a four year college (in both of these cases then money earmarked for huge tuition bills shifted to FIRE), or perhaps marrying someone well on their way to fire already and then being able to join them on the ride.
 

DeskJockey2028

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Re: did anyone FIRE much quicker due to special event?
« Reply #1 on: September 12, 2018, 07:34:58 AM »
Didn't happen to me, but someone who I now recognize as being proto-FIRE before this movement had gained a lot of traction.

At my job, about 9 years ago there was a big shift at voluntary early retirement. One of the folks I worked with jumped at the chance, took a very good package and left the workforce about 3 years earlier than they had planned. Last I heard, he and his wife were living in an RV for a few years and meandering across the country before the moved into their home in a LCOL (that they were renting out at the time).

So if anyone's listening, I'd love for that to happen to me in oh... about 7 years.

Linea_Norway

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Re: did anyone FIRE much quicker due to special event?
« Reply #2 on: September 12, 2018, 07:38:48 AM »
Last weekend I talked to a lady who ruined her arm and now has a disability pension because of that. She thought that was a good outcome of an otherwise negative event. She really enjoyed her new freedom. And she can still use her arm a bit, to hold a dog's line or a mushroom basket.

singpolyma

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Re: did anyone FIRE much quicker due to special event?
« Reply #3 on: September 12, 2018, 08:12:21 AM »
I am in this boat. Halfway through a 4-year set of golden handcuffs that I estimated would take me to bare-minimum-FI but has already passed that.

It's a bit unfortunate because it seriously damages my ability to evangelise for FIRE concepts -- since I'm "cheating". My frugality is still essential to making this work out, but all people see is the piles of "surprise" money that they could never get.

Apple_Tango

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Re: did anyone FIRE much quicker due to special event?
« Reply #4 on: September 12, 2018, 08:27:57 AM »
When you get the “quick event” money, or know you will very like get this money, it gives a weird flavor to FI. I’m doing as much as I can savings wise and am saving as if there is no windfall coming my way. I don’t expect this money for 20 years or so, and I expect to be FI by that point anyway so it won’t really make any difference to my lifestyle at that point. If it comes in the next 5 years it would be a different story and I can see people discounting any hard work/effort and just seeing me as lazy for “retiring” upon a windfall (likely 7 figures). It’s just a weird situation to think about.

CCCA

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Re: did anyone FIRE much quicker due to special event?
« Reply #5 on: September 12, 2018, 10:57:00 AM »
I was lucky to have invested a modest amount in AAPL before the iPhone was released and added more shares after they released the iPhone. 
the chart below shows AAPL gaining about 2500% while the S&P500 gained about 127% in the same amount of time. 
« Last Edit: September 12, 2018, 10:58:55 AM by CCCA »

LifePhaseTwo

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Re: did anyone FIRE much quicker due to special event?
« Reply #6 on: September 12, 2018, 12:38:48 PM »
When I first started my career, I assumed I’d retire at 65 like my parents. Then after many years with the same organization, I found that I could retire at age 57 in 2021 with an unreduced DB pension. But I had always lived well below my means, so I had also accumulated a decent stache by the time I was 52, which was 2 years ago, and my own research and my financial advisor both confirmed that I was FI and likely had been for a few years...

But I wasn’t ready at that point to retire, although my DH did. This year I began to think more seriously about retiring. The event that clinched it was the death of my mom a few months ago. There’s no big inheritance, maybe $50,000. But I realized more than ever that her best retirement years were her first 10. After that, she developed dementia and her quality of life deteriorated greatly.

So I decided to hand in my notice, with my FIRE date of Nov 2 coming up - I want to do what I can to maximize the amount of time I have to enjoy an active retirement. I know that age 54 isn’t a super early retirement, but it’s substantially earlier than I had ever planned on.

CindyBS

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Re: did anyone FIRE much quicker due to special event?
« Reply #7 on: September 12, 2018, 05:10:03 PM »
I am not really FIRE, more out of work with FU money and don't have to take a job I don't want.  DH still works.

It is due to my son becoming ill and me having to give up work to take care of him a few years ago.   He is doing much better and I am pretty close to being able to go back to a desired job.  I spend a lot of days home alone while he goes to school, so I am not sure what to call that - a sabbatical?  SAHM? I can't do things like travel yet, but I do some of the things I think I will do in FIRE.  Like this fall I am checking out a bunch of little nature preserves hiking trails I have never gone to despite living in the area for years, projects around the house, etc.

Anyway, I anticipate being able to start applying for jobs in the next few weeks.  I am returning to work to speed up when DH can retire. 

Trudie

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Re: did anyone FIRE much quicker due to special event?
« Reply #8 on: September 17, 2018, 06:16:09 PM »
We're somewhat in this boat.  Last summer we hit our low-end fire number, which was enough for us to contemplate me quitting my job.  We accomplished it through frugality, serious saving, and 7-10 years of serious "nose to the grindstone" investing. We knew that we would inherit someday, but had little idea of the timing.

This summer my MIL passed leaving inheritance which will almost double our retirement investments.  My husband hopes to give notice at the end of this academic year.

I don't consider it "cheating" or anything of the kind.  We lived our lives the way we felt we needed to before the inheritance happened to become financially independent.  But, it will almost double our retirement investments and it has freed up cash which will allow us to buy a house for cash as we ease into FIRE.  We had little control over our in-laws' savings habits and their decision to leave it, so I don't associate anything negative with it.  Without taking the steps we did on our own it wouldn't be enough for us to FIRE.  But now it's a game changer... it's tipped the scale.

Mostly I feel gratitude.  My MIL died with dementia and never knew that my husband had a chronic condition that could limit his mobility someday.  This money will help us enjoy our life together and she would want him to be happy and healthy.

smoghat

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Re: did anyone FIRE much quicker due to special event?
« Reply #9 on: September 19, 2018, 08:51:27 AM »
I wound up losing my teaching job when the entire division of my university was eliminated. Being a late 40s white male, I knew the odds were stacked against me in the job market, notwithstanding a distinguished career; a job as a Dean or Department Chair, both of which would come with lots of stress, would be easy, but teaching and research, forget it.

Just then, I got a call from an investment fund that wanted to buy a building that I had been managing for my family (at that point my mother and myself, wife and two kids, although my mother died within a month of the building sale and had been ill for years...no way of knowing or we would have saved $600k in taxes) for double the price it had been appraised for in 2012. I wound up selling it to him and putting the money in the market. We get a lot more income now and have less stress. I suppose I’ll be nervous when the market collapses, but I’ve seen that before. No worries about my aging building manager having a heart attack, being sued by someone who falls down the stairs, or having the furnace break down in the middle of New Year’s in Chicago winter, all of which happened to myself or my family with that building.


ol1970

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Re: did anyone FIRE much quicker due to special event?
« Reply #10 on: September 21, 2018, 07:43:55 AM »
I hadn't planned on FIRE'ing super early but had always known I wanted to be in a position to do so whenever I wanted.  Hit the Lean Fire number around 33, the full to chubby FIRE around 38, FatFIRE at 41, then had an opportunity and sold of my share of a business that resulted in a large windfall of cash more than doubling my FatFire savings at 43.  So 4 years later after adjusting to a life post work, I've started another business that I put in roughly 100 hours a month to build it up.  Its fun, doesn't seem like "work", challenges me, and is already throwing off $15k a month which is more than my FatFire number to begin with...so life it good and a lot of fun these days : )  It is funny because I started reading all of the blogs about early retirement, and every single blogger has ended up in essentially the same spot.  They are earning money doing something that they enjoy doing anyway and the entire premise of the 4% rule is out the window.

smoghat

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Re: did anyone FIRE much quicker due to special event?
« Reply #11 on: September 21, 2018, 08:11:45 AM »
I'm probably in a minority in this, but I wish that this forum wasn't so oriented toward quitting one job and pursued another but rather toward FIRE. I do have things I do, but I hardly expect to make any money at them. If people are making more money at their job than off their investments, it's really an entirely different thing.

DS

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Re: did anyone FIRE much quicker due to special event?
« Reply #12 on: September 21, 2018, 08:21:57 AM »
I'm probably in a minority in this, but I wish that this forum wasn't so oriented toward quitting one job and pursued another but rather toward FIRE. I do have things I do, but I hardly expect to make any money at them. If people are making more money at their job than off their investments, it's really an entirely different thing.

http://www.mrmoneymustache.com/2013/02/13/mr-money-mustache-vs-the-internet-retirement-police/

smoghat

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Re: did anyone FIRE much quicker due to special event?
« Reply #13 on: September 21, 2018, 08:29:31 AM »
Fair enough, I suppose.

RelaxedGal

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Re: did anyone FIRE much quicker due to special event?
« Reply #14 on: September 21, 2018, 10:36:03 AM »
it's raining money on us right now.  Like, 1x my salary in un-planned-for money coming in every 6 months thanks to lucky timing of my husband's job change and good business decisions by his new employer and RSU's vesting in an amazing stock market.

We're 40 now.   We've been targeting 52 for a comfortable early retirement.  Wednesday we met with our financial adviser and asked about drawing that date in to age 50.  He countered with "How about 41?"  I panicked.

What's ahead for us?  The forecast is for the passing money showers to taper off to a drizzle in 2019, "merely" a sensible used car worth of cash every 6 months instead of a full year's salary.  In the shorter term, we're going to do a cashflow worksheet to figure out how much we really spend now.  Once that's dialed in we'll figure out how much we really want to spend in retirement; what life would look like at $5,000/month, $8,000/month, $11,000/month.    How much longer do we want to work to hit those numbers? 

YHD

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Re: did anyone FIRE much quicker due to special event?
« Reply #15 on: September 24, 2018, 04:13:38 PM »
@RelaxedGal --go for the gusto.  $11k/mo all in.

Dicey

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Re: did anyone FIRE much quicker due to special event?
« Reply #16 on: September 25, 2018, 06:16:17 AM »
Hmmm, I would ask where you are now before I'd suggest going for such a crazy amount. This isn't the Bogleheads forum.

RelaxedGal

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Re: did anyone FIRE much quicker due to special event?
« Reply #17 on: September 25, 2018, 06:40:21 AM »
@Dicey the 5, 8, 11 numbers came from the advisor.  Our portfolio can support 5 at 5% withdrawal rate right now.  We outflow $9K/mo right now, but after excluding mortgage, college savings, and childcare we might be at 5.  We honestly haven't run the numbers in a long time because everything is on autopay and we don't feel a need to spend more.  The higher numbers from the advisor let us figure out what One More Year looks like.  And my husband who has always said he wants to travel more has been dreaming of a Delta Private Jets membership, which is insane ("But free empty legs!"). 

DoNorth

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Re: did anyone FIRE much quicker due to special event?
« Reply #18 on: September 26, 2018, 03:37:00 AM »
yes, i had served in the military for 14 years and was then diagnosed with a pretty significant chronic, but managable illness.  I was medically retired with full pension and benefits when I was 36 so I FIREd a year later and then a cool overseas job came up about 3 years after that so I went back to work.  Planning on going right back to FIRE when this job is done though.  My job is super easy, low stress and pays alot and I live in a really nice area of Europe, but I miss the freedom and having complete control of my time too.

Dicey

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Re: did anyone FIRE much quicker due to special event?
« Reply #19 on: September 26, 2018, 07:45:30 AM »
@Dicey the 5, 8, 11 numbers came from the advisor.  Our portfolio can support 5 at 5% withdrawal rate right now.  We outflow $9K/mo right now, but after excluding mortgage, college savings, and childcare we might be at 5.  We honestly haven't run the numbers in a long time because everything is on autopay and we don't feel a need to spend more.  The higher numbers from the advisor let us figure out what One More Year looks like.  And my husband who has always said he wants to travel more has been dreaming of a Delta Private Jets membership, which is insane ("But free empty legs!").
I was reacting to the number 11. Any advisor who targets in such a way...no, wait! Using an advisor at all isn't considered particularly mustachian.

If your lifestyle really requires eleven thousand dollars each and every month*, I'd posit that you might not be all that mustachian yourself, and that you are going to have to work more years than necessary just to support that level of spending. If private jets are that important to you, it's your choice to make.

*Plenty of people on this site may earn that or more, but they're squirreling it away like mad,  not spending it. If you really, really need $11k/month to support your lifestyle in retirement, we may not be your tribe.

ol1970

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Re: did anyone FIRE much quicker due to special event?
« Reply #20 on: September 26, 2018, 08:29:13 AM »
@Dicey the 5, 8, 11 numbers came from the advisor.  Our portfolio can support 5 at 5% withdrawal rate right now.  We outflow $9K/mo right now, but after excluding mortgage, college savings, and childcare we might be at 5.  We honestly haven't run the numbers in a long time because everything is on autopay and we don't feel a need to spend more.  The higher numbers from the advisor let us figure out what One More Year looks like.  And my husband who has always said he wants to travel more has been dreaming of a Delta Private Jets membership, which is insane ("But free empty legs!").
I was reacting to the number 11. Any advisor who targets in such a way...no, wait! Using an advisor at all isn't considered particularly mustachian.

If your lifestyle really requires eleven thousand dollars each and every month*, I'd posit that you might not be all that mustachian yourself, and that you are going to have to work more years than necessary just to support that level of spending. If private jets are that important to you, it's your choice to make.

*Plenty of people on this site may earn that or more, but they're squirreling it away like mad,  not spending it. If you really, really need $11k/month to support your lifestyle in retirement, we may not be your tribe.


Geez, such a welcoming tribe Dicey has!  I definitely am not your tribe then lol, my frugal $10k month budget has me and my girlfriend doing very unmustachian things this month like...hiking Yosemite, hanging out at Mammoth Lake, and spending two weeks sailing from St. Vincent to Grenada. Don't worry RelaxedGal I say go for the gusto if you are still enjoying your current situation...if not $5k month is more than fine too!

smoghat

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Re: did anyone FIRE much quicker due to special event?
« Reply #21 on: September 26, 2018, 05:14:32 PM »
I spend about $15-20k a month. Then again I have 5+ million invested and a paid off house so why the hell shouldn’t I? We spend some money upgrading the house (can’t do everything but I do the vast majority of that work), have pretty high taxes because this area is expensive but the kids are in high school and it’s way cheaper than NYC which I can be be in in half an hour. Different strokes for different folks. I spend a bit in my pricey hobby of making art, but I’ve been in two of the top museums in NYC, so it’s paid off ego wise. We give over 1k to our congregation of atheists to support the good works they do. I can’t see working in a bug box store for “fun,” but then other people think that’s the bees knees. The spend level will go down to $12-$15k as the house renovation is finished but will go back up when the kids hit college.

Now as for financial advisors, the last one we were considering asked if I might consider cutting back by $5000 a month or get a part time job making $50k? Next time I talked to him, I explained that I took his advice to heart and figured out how I could save 1%. I told him we would be going all Vanguard all the way and saving his 1% commission. Bwa ha ha.

ysette9

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Re: did anyone FIRE much quicker due to special event?
« Reply #22 on: September 26, 2018, 10:22:38 PM »
-Snip-

Now as for financial advisors, the last one we were considering asked if I might consider cutting back by $5000 a month or get a part time job making $50k? Next time I talked to him, I explained that I took his advice to heart and figured out how I could save 1%. I told him we would be going all Vanguard all the way and saving his 1% commission. Bwa ha ha.

That is gold

bwall

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Re: did anyone FIRE much quicker due to special event?
« Reply #23 on: September 27, 2018, 03:48:06 AM »
Then again I have 5+ million invested and a paid off house.

With $5m in the market, a 10% increase has a substantially greater impact on your lifestyle than if you only have $50k invested in the market.

Dicey

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Re: did anyone FIRE much quicker due to special event?
« Reply #24 on: September 28, 2018, 08:24:30 AM »
@Dicey the 5, 8, 11 numbers came from the advisor.  Our portfolio can support 5 at 5% withdrawal rate right now.  We outflow $9K/mo right now, but after excluding mortgage, college savings, and childcare we might be at 5.  We honestly haven't run the numbers in a long time because everything is on autopay and we don't feel a need to spend more.  The higher numbers from the advisor let us figure out what One More Year looks like.  And my husband who has always said he wants to travel more has been dreaming of a Delta Private Jets membership, which is insane ("But free empty legs!").
I was reacting to the number 11. Any advisor who targets in such a way...no, wait! Using an advisor at all isn't considered particularly mustachian.

If your lifestyle really requires eleven thousand dollars each and every month*, I'd posit that you might not be all that mustachian yourself, and that you are going to have to work more years than necessary just to support that level of spending. If private jets are that important to you, it's your choice to make.

*Plenty of people on this site may earn that or more, but they're squirreling it away like mad,  not spending it. If you really, really need $11k/month to support your lifestyle in retirement, we may not be your tribe.

Geez, such a welcoming tribe Dicey has!  I definitely am not your tribe then lol, my frugal $10k month budget has me and my girlfriend doing very unmustachian things this month like...hiking Yosemite, hanging out at Mammoth Lake, and spending two weeks sailing from St. Vincent to Grenada. Don't worry RelaxedGal I say go for the gusto if you are still enjoying your current situation...if not $5k month is more than fine too!
This is the MMM Forum, hosted by Pete Ademy, creator of the Mr. Money Mustache blog, where MMM calls people Spendypants and Consumer Sukkas. AFIK, he's the coiner of the term "facepunch". He throws them when people make really stupid life and/or spending decisions. He decries clown cars and clown houses. He is the king of optimizing, of hard physical labor to maintain personal fitness, of saving the planet by making more environmental and budget friendly choices, of spending according to your values. And stoicism. And God bless him, he swears like a sailor. If you want to follow along, even if you choose a "lite" version of mustachianism, you'll find this an amazingly supportive crowd. If you're looking to reinforce your decision to live a Spendypants lifestyle, you may not find this to be such a welcoming place, because that's not the purpose of this site. There are lots of other options out there, they're just not MMM.

Everything can be done in a spendy way or a less spendy way. There is a load of information about travel hacking here, for example. There is a steady stream of support and encouragement available to anyone who asks. You can write a case study and knowledgeable people will jump in to help you streamline your budget. Stumped for a frugal way to do something? Post your question and help will be quickly and abundantly available. There's also a cool thread where people share the most helpful thing they've learned here, and another where people post how they save money every day.

To clarify, I'm not responding to RG. This comment is directed at ol1970's perceived lack of welcome. Hey, if you need to have a lifstyle that costs ten grand a month (absent extenuating circumstances, such as high medical costs) that's fine. But I'm a mustachian, and I generally prefer the company of less spendy folks. That's why I like it here. I love to help people accelerate their path to FIRE. I love it when I give someone a tip and they use it to their benefit. It's possible that I have fed other mustachians at my table, and perhaps offered my getaway place gratis to others, none of whom I knew IRL. If a person embraces Mustachianism to even a small degree here, the support from the tribe is warm, and rich, and good. There's nothing to lose and much to gain by hanging out with us.

Finally, it's perfectly possible to "go for the gusto" at any income level. It's a mindset, just like mustachianism.
« Last Edit: October 02, 2018, 04:03:54 PM by Dicey »

Financial.Velociraptor

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Re: did anyone FIRE much quicker due to special event?
« Reply #25 on: September 28, 2018, 08:45:47 AM »
I pulled the plug about a year or so early because of a promotion at work.  The new work was miserable and boring.  I couldn't take it anymore.  I fully expected to pick up part time work after six months to supplement but my 5OCT2012 retirement date was auspicious.  Markets rallied and I never needed the extra cushion.

Acastus

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Re: did anyone FIRE much quicker due to special event?
« Reply #26 on: October 02, 2018, 08:46:41 PM »
I planned to FIRE this year with a mortgage, college for the kid next year, and about 3 years expenses in taxable accounts. Overall we had about 23x expenses, but it was not as easy to use as I would have liked. I am flexible, so I figured it would work. Recently, the missus inherited 4x expenses, and that all lands in taxable accounts. Life is now much easier to figure out.

So I did not really FIRE earlier, but it is simpler, more solid, and will give us a fatter FIRE.

Frankies Girl

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Re: did anyone FIRE much quicker due to special event?
« Reply #27 on: October 02, 2018, 11:23:50 PM »
@Dicey the 5, 8, 11 numbers came from the advisor.  Our portfolio can support 5 at 5% withdrawal rate right now.  We outflow $9K/mo right now, but after excluding mortgage, college savings, and childcare we might be at 5.  We honestly haven't run the numbers in a long time because everything is on autopay and we don't feel a need to spend more.  The higher numbers from the advisor let us figure out what One More Year looks like.  And my husband who has always said he wants to travel more has been dreaming of a Delta Private Jets membership, which is insane ("But free empty legs!").
I was reacting to the number 11. Any advisor who targets in such a way...no, wait! Using an advisor at all isn't considered particularly mustachian.

If your lifestyle really requires eleven thousand dollars each and every month*, I'd posit that you might not be all that mustachian yourself, and that you are going to have to work more years than necessary just to support that level of spending. If private jets are that important to you, it's your choice to make.

*Plenty of people on this site may earn that or more, but they're squirreling it away like mad,  not spending it. If you really, really need $11k/month to support your lifestyle in retirement, we may not be your tribe.

Geez, such a welcoming tribe Dicey has!  I definitely am not your tribe then lol, my frugal $10k month budget has me and my girlfriend doing very unmustachian things this month like...hiking Yosemite, hanging out at Mammoth Lake, and spending two weeks sailing from St. Vincent to Grenada. Don't worry RelaxedGal I say go for the gusto if you are still enjoying your current situation...if not $5k month is more than fine too!
This is the MMM Forum, hosted by Pete Ademy, creator of the Mr. Money Mustache blog, where MMM calls people Spendypants and Consumer Sukkas. AFIK, he's the coiner of the term "facepunch". He throws them when people make really stupid life and/or spending decisions. He decries clown cars and clown houses. He is the king of optimizing, of hard physical labor to maintain personal fitness, of saving the planet by making more environmental and budget friendly choices, of spending according to your values. And stoicism. And God bless him, he swears like a sailor. If you want to follow along, even if you choose a "lite" version of mustachianism, you'll find this an amazingly supportive crowd. If you're looking to reinforce your decision to live a Spendypants lifestyle, you may not find this to be such a welcoming place, because that's not the purpose of this site. There are lots of other options out there, they're just not MMM.

Everything can be done in a spendy way or a less spendy way. There is a load of information about travel hacking here, for example. There is a steady stream of support and encouragement available to anyone who asks. You can write a case study and knowledgeable people will jump in to help you streamline your budget. Stumped for a frugal way to do something? Post your question and help will be quickly and abundantly available. There's also a cool thread where people share the most helpful thing they've learned here, and another where people post how they save money every day.

To clarify, I'm not responding to RG. This comment is directed at ol1970's perceived lack of welcome. Hey, if you need to have a lifstyle that costs ten grand a month (absent extenuating circumstances, such as high medical costs) that's fine. But I'm a mustachian, and I generally prefer the company of less spendy folks. That's why I like it here. I love to help people accelerate their path to FIRE. I love it when I give someone a tip and they use it to their benefit. It's possible that I have fed other mustachians at my table, and perhaps offered my getaway place gratis to others, none of whom I knew IRL. If a person embraces Mustachianism to even a small degree here, the support from the tribe is warm, and rich, and good. There's nothing to lose and much to gain by hanging out with us.

Finally, it's perfectly possible to "go for the gusto" at any income level. It's a mindset, just like mustachianism.

Dicey, I big pink puffy heart you. Never change. :)


 

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