Author Topic: Just reached $50k!  (Read 2761 times)

wageslave23

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Just reached $50k!
« on: April 05, 2019, 07:50:57 AM »
I just reached $50k in after tax investments.  It might not be much compared to some, but I feel like I should start celebrating smaller victories on my way to FI.  What milestones do you celebrate?  And how do you celebrate?  I'm thinking I might celebrate with a cheap bottle of wine.

Valvore

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Re: Just reached $50k!
« Reply #1 on: April 05, 2019, 08:58:09 AM »
Small victory?! That's a huge victory! You earned that wine.

My milestones are every 50K. I'm only at 100K now, but I am goal orientated and it needs to be achievable. I don't really celebrate, I just am super happy for a while and love talking about FIRE plans with the DH.

brute

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Re: Just reached $50k!
« Reply #2 on: April 05, 2019, 09:16:57 AM »
Congrats! It's a milestone worth being proud of.

Wolfpack Mustachian

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Re: Just reached $50k!
« Reply #3 on: April 05, 2019, 10:47:32 AM »
The way things tend to go, the pace of savings increases as wealth increases, so don't hesitate to celebrate the "smaller" victories early on. The bigger victories will keep coming and come faster as you continue down the path. A cheap bottle of wine sounds great. I just found my favorite at my local discount grocery store for $5. Enjoy!

Parizade

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Re: Just reached $50k!
« Reply #4 on: April 05, 2019, 11:11:53 AM »
CONGRATULATIONS! Celebrate every step along the way I say, make joy a daily habit.

EngagedToFIRE

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Re: Just reached $50k!
« Reply #5 on: April 05, 2019, 12:42:36 PM »
Getting in to the plus side is huge.  Getting to $50k is massive.  It's like the old saying, the first million is the hardest.  Scale that down.  The first $50k is the hardest.  Keep going!

wageslave23

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Re: Just reached $50k!
« Reply #6 on: April 05, 2019, 01:13:24 PM »
Thanks everyone.  I used to only focus on years left to FIRE but that goes so slow.

Much Fishing to Do

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Re: Just reached $50k!
« Reply #7 on: April 05, 2019, 02:21:08 PM »
I just reached $50k in after tax investments.  It might not be much compared to some, but I feel like I should start celebrating smaller victories on my way to FI.  What milestones do you celebrate?  And how do you celebrate?  I'm thinking I might celebrate with a cheap bottle of wine.
All of them! 

When we hit net worth of zero (trust me, it was not easy to get to zero) we had a kid...you may not want to celebrate quite that hard....

Celebrated all things along the way generally with dinner out at the local pub ($40 meal and $20 of babysitting) as we dont care much for stuff, so that's our extravagance.

I still really remember these big celebratory purchases along the way...1) real early when I bought myself a $25 cheesecake, I mean, I still remember thinking, yeah, man , wtf, $25, wtf ....2) and then a bit later when I bought my father (who was a really really good photographer) a very early and his first DLSR camera with additional lenses for like $1K that I had just show up on his birthday.  This man (who like me, doesnt really care for 'stuff')  later told me one day he remembered two great presents in his life, the rifle his father gave him when he turned 18 and that camera...3) After we paid off the house we took the next $70k and did all the remodel we wanted to to make our 'starter' home our 'forever' home (heck, we loved our neighbors, our town, and our schools, we knew we'd be here until at least the nest was empty).... 4) At $500k I started a business (having this amount of money in the bank, plus a paid off house gave me the guts to do it...)....5) At $1M I bought my wife the next family car brand new.  6) At $2M I made sure to get EACH of my now 3 kids 529s up above $100k.... 7) At $3M we started spending, which is mainly giving away the money we made past that realizing we didn't 'need' it (I'm not like many on this site that can't figure out what to do with money past X amount....I can find ways to spend it...but in the end it seems weird and unfulfilling). The business I started due to not worrying about money anymore had 3 huge years during which to alleviate taxes I set up a DAF that goign forward I can make large donations from.

So these numbers may seem ridiculous (they still do to me) but its really about the beauty of 1) compounding  Plus 2) gain from getting oneself into a place to be able to take a risk.

DO celebrate. DO spend money doing so in fulfilling ways (I really worry about those on this site I read that can't enjoy money, much more than I worry about how I can waste a little bit of what I have).  You'll still come out way ahead.

DO IT!!
« Last Edit: April 05, 2019, 02:24:30 PM by Much Fishing to Do »

Unionville

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Re: Just reached $50k!
« Reply #8 on: April 05, 2019, 04:43:35 PM »
That is so great!  You deserve to celebrate. That means you are already developing habits for successful FI.  Whether you reward yourself by buying something or not - I'd do something that is creative.   Instead of going to a basketball game, get a backyard net.  Instead of buying wine, take a beer brewing class.  Maybe not the greatest examples -- but if you start exploring what are things that are really fun and "outward-focused" (vs of playing video games) you will know so much more when you get to FI, of how you want to spend your time.

11ducks

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Re: Just reached $50k!
« Reply #9 on: April 06, 2019, 02:55:28 AM »
Well done! Most people never have $50k saved in their life! It’s too easy to feel like you aren’t making progress compared to some of the crazy well-off people here, but $50k is awesome!!

Kay-Ell

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Re: Just reached $50k!
« Reply #10 on: April 06, 2019, 11:27:31 AM »
Congratulations! So happy to hear when people celebrate along the way, as it’s so easy to let discontent grow while FIRE looms on the horizon. 50k is huge, and I bet you’ll be at 100k before you know it wondering how it was so much easier than the first 50k. That’s how it has worked for me. Honestly I remember when I reached 10k in the bank in a savings account. That was all the money I’d ever saved except for the recommended 3% 401k contribution that had grown to a few thousand and was invested somewhere that I didn’t understand. Getting to 10k had taken me about 5 years!! I was damn proud of myself. Fast forward another 5 years and I had a net worth of abut 230k. You’re doing awesome! Keep celebrating!

PoutineLover

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Re: Just reached $50k!
« Reply #11 on: April 06, 2019, 01:32:52 PM »
Congrats!! I'm about to hit 50k soon and I'm so excited. Hoping each subsequent 50 comes easier. Definitely a milestone worth celebrating!

MoneyTree

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Re: Just reached $50k!
« Reply #12 on: April 06, 2019, 04:09:58 PM »
Great job, you are well on your way! I think you'll find you begin to hit milestones faster than you expect (assuming Mr. Market cooperates).

Next milestone might be something I heard on the ChooseFI podcast: the Personal Capital call.

If you track your net worth via Personal Capital, you'll start getting phone calls from one of their financial advisors for a "free consultation" (they want to manage your money for you) once you hit $100K. I ignore it every time, but its a nice tangible affirmation you're on the right track.

Other fun milestones are found on the FI 180 site: https://fi180.com/2017/06/26/the-milestones-of-fi/

1. FU Money - you can walk away from your job and cover 1-2 years of expenses
2. Half FI - 50% of your number
3. Lean FI - Essential expenses covered
4. Flex FI - 20x annual expenses
5. Financial Independence - 25x annual expenses
6. Fat FI - 30x annual expenses

I would try to add some additional milestones earlier in the journey. The early years are the longest, and the later years fly by so its helpful to get some motivation early on.

CheapScholar

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Re: Just reached $50k!
« Reply #13 on: April 06, 2019, 06:19:10 PM »
Congrats! I love milestones, although you get some party poopers here saying these are all just round numbers and the only milestone that matters is being FI.

I think 50K is actually a huge one.  Obviously 100K is big.  I read on another thread that 300K is big because you’re safely spinning off 12K per year (1K per month).  I’m almost at 150K and I keep thinking, wow - $500 in earnings per month!

I’m all about milestones but I admit I over do it.  I’m always looking at my next round number, next monthly return, or adding my wife’s retirement stash and doing the same.  Kind of like the movie, The Number 23.  If you look hard enough you will find any number on your mind.

PDXTabs

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Re: Just reached $50k!
« Reply #14 on: April 07, 2019, 10:04:52 AM »
Congrats, you have more after tax saved than I do! 100k will feel amazing, at least it does pre-tax.

ApacheStache

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Re: Just reached $50k!
« Reply #15 on: April 07, 2019, 10:24:56 AM »
Most people never have $50k saved in their life! It’s too easy to feel like you aren’t making progress compared to some of the crazy well-off people here, but $50k is awesome!!

Definitely. $50K is by no means chump change. I don't know the OP's backstory, but accumulating that amount of money isn't just a lump sum in an account somewhere — in most cases this accumulation encompasses intense self-discipline as well as significant and deliberate lifestyle change. That's certainly something worth celebrating.

HBFIRE

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Re: Just reached $50k!
« Reply #16 on: April 07, 2019, 10:40:04 AM »
That's awesome, congrats!   I didn't get out of the negative territory until pretty late in life (37).  Earliest savings are by far the hardest.  Just realize it gets easier as you go, as you start having a nice tail wind from your investments.