OMG Malcat - your first response is going on my fridge for those moments when I am a coward and decide to settle instead of making the effort and going for what I really want to do while I still can.
Fear of change is normal, we all experience it.
Whenever I am considering life-changing decisions the first question I ask is always "what might be the worst-case scenario?".
Then I make a plan to mitigate the risk and ask myself could I temporarily live with a disastrous outcome - is it fixable?.
Could I handle it financially and emotionally if it didn't work out well?
TRUTH - if you want it bad enough you will find a way to do it. Come hell or high water, consequences be damned.
Change is uncomfortable but it can be exciting and uplifting if you embrace it, revel in it instead of fearing it.
I have a sticker that says: No fear - no limits!
Can you imagine no limits to what you can do - scary, right? perhaps utterly preposterous but maybe not:).
It gives me that shove to contemplate and soar like a bird in the heavens.
No limits:) - frees up my mind to think without restrictions because for a moment everything is possible and may well turn into my new reality.
It leads to unconventional optimization.
It takes guts to act and both recognize and honor who you are at your core.
I always knew that I'd live my life on my own terms and that I would "retire" early.
FI was all I ever wanted.
The nuts and bolts I would consider - be practical, pragmatic, realistic then you have nothing to fear:).
I am not afraid of taking risks, but you know the story about the best-laid plans... sometimes backfire.
So, I'm assuming you are a responsible person with a big enough stash to move on to a coasting FIRE lifestyle.
You don't need to touch your stash while you coast, right?
You have a contingency to live on a sizeable EF for one year if everything goes to hell in a handbasket, right?
You have an affordable apartment or paid-for place to stay no matter what, right?
You know for sure what health insurance you can get and you can afford the premiums, right?
You have already tried living on minimum wage for six months, right? Was that comfortable and doable financially given your personal circumstances?
If not, was it easy to subsidize your income without depleting your stash beyond repair or doing damage to your future retirement?
You have already interviewed/contacted-scoped out several places you would like to work at in the future and received positive feedback, right?
The way the working world has morphed in the past ten years is brutal, especially minimum wage jobs, never mind the effects of COVID.
Flexibility is key.
So maybe now is not the best time to decide on coast FIRE yet, instead, plump up your stash for another year.
Unless of course you are satisfied that you can swing it financially and have practiced living on your new minimal wage income for at least six months.
In my mind coast FIRE is a decision that needs to be based on solid numbers so you don't destroy what you have already built. Giving yourself a full year EF gives you options and enough time to deal with whatever might go sideways - the rest is cake, you got this - embrace your new life.
Taking the plunge will be scary and exhilarating.
I'd say go for it once you have a good, solid plan in place, that is all anyone can do.
Life is so much better if you find a way to live according to your own values.
Good Luck!:)