Average household income of FIRE success stories?

[bmjohnson35]

I have read the stories of many FIRE success stories and I notice a trend that many if not most had $200k household incomes that accelerated their path to ER. I'm not criticizing, it's just an observation.  We will likely start ER next year, but I can assure you that we never had a combined income of more than $125k. Our income didn't even hit 6 figures until around 10 yrs or so.  I wonder how much earlier we could have reached ER if we had higher incomes over our careers. Of course, we have also made our share of financial mistakes over the years as well.  We do live in a lower income and lower cost of living area of the country, so that has to be considered as well.  It also seems that many ER success stories come from IT professionals, maybe it seems this way because they are more likely to create online sites/Blogs?  Anyway, has there been a study covering the demographics of FIRE success stories?

BJ

[BicycleB]

Not sure about a study, nor whether I'm eligible for "success"...but FIREd in late 40s after slack career that averaged maybe $19/hr gross earnings in today's dollars, top after-tax income about 45k (today's 50k) for a year.

One person, not a family. Had several sabbatical years along the way but also substantial real estate appreciation. The majority of savings were mine, but did inherit a fraction at the end after leaving job and caring for an ailing parent.

For a while we had a poster who was FI, single parent, on significantly smaller stash than that IIRC. She wrote a book on going from homeless or the brink of it to FI on low and intermittent income, including situations where for medical reasons the person(s) does not work. One of the points of her book was that many people experience some sort of windfall during their lifetime, but people only gain advantage from it if they know how. Anyway, I guess definition of success varies. IIRC, she put serious energy into finding pleasant suitable housing, but generally had a thriving life and was being a very good mom.

There are lots of techies and other prosperous professionals here (lawyers, accountants, doctors) but $200k incomes are not needed for FIRE. To stretch a little, consider reading the FIRE stories on the ERE forums, where $15k retirement incomes are more common!

http://earlyretirementextreme.com/

https://forum.earlyretirementextreme.com/viewforum.php?f=9&sid=9e615233f99c8a42c2cf40d17a5a6dfb

[bmjohnson35]

Thanks for the links BicycleB, I will definitely look at those links.

Keep in mind, there is no question in my mind that anyone single or married can achieve FIRE, especially if they start at an early age.  I am just surprised how many stories where I read $200k+ incomes from people, many in their 20's.  It may be perception or simply the sample of articles/blogs I'm reading. 

BJ

[BicycleB]

There's also a lot of self-selection going on, probably. It's a lot easier to talk (brag) about a $200k income than a 20k one.

[Zikoris]

I don't find my own FIRE story particularly interesting, but a lot of people seem to because of how "out there" it is - summarized, we're a receptionist/freelance editor couple, live in a major city, generally make around 80K, save 65%, travel to five or six countries a year, and have some... unusual hobbies and habits, to say the least. Current projections have us retiring around 35, and possibly building a remote island homestead. We have a blog and I have a MMM journal as well.

[Prairie Stash]

The super fast $200k income and race to FIRE stories are attention grabbers.

Regular stories aren't as exciting, but likely far more common. I think of the $200k people as the gold medalists in a marathon, the rest of us also finish the marathon but no one celebrates except ourselves. If I finished a marathon in 100th place, I'd still be proud but the newspapers wouldn't mention my name, nor would you find a blog about me.

[secondcor521]

FIRE is more a result of high savings rates rather than high income.  Although it is easier to have a higher savings rate if one has a high income, since the bare necessities of life cost something.

You might be interested in the following article:

https://retireearlyhomepage.com/mbti.html

It turns out that the personality types of people who tend to FIRE also make those people well suited to be engineers.  Since engineers also often get paid well (and probably have more blogging capabilities and interest than the typical person), it's not surprising that a lot of the FIRE blog people are engineers.

[wageslave23]

I have a relatively high income, but I think if my income was 200k+ I would have a harder time FIREing.  If you are FI and you can keep working and make $20/hr for your time or $100/hr for your time - the $100/hr seems more tempting.  So I think the medium-high salary range is going to have the most FIREees.  High enough to make reaching FI easy, but low enough to not make wasting more of your time worth it. 

[A Fella from Stella]

Yeah, this is pretty accurate. Enough income to sock a good portion away, but incredible habits to actually save it.

When my wife and I morph from the current situation to the next, I estimate it'll be with combined incomes of about $250k and we'll cut it back to make $150k, like $150k of total income ($100k earned) will be our chilled out time.

[DadJokes]

It just takes longer with a lower income.

It all depends on what percentage of your income you are able to save. Lower income means a lower percentage available to save, assuming that there is a level at which expenses can get no lower.

You don't hear about it because it takes longer. The same principles apply, because the math is the same, but it's still possible.

[rantk81]

It's important to emphasize that "The Shockingly Simple Math...." concept is applicable to NET INCOME after taxes.  As income increases, the drag of taxes increases at a much faster rate.  A higher gross income (relative to expenses) is not directly proportional to a faster path to FIRE, as those with lower gross incomes.

[bluebelle]

It's important to emphasize that "The Shockingly Simple Math...." concept is applicable to NET INCOME after taxes.  As income increases, the drag of taxes increases at a much faster rate.  A higher gross income (relative to expenses) is not directly proportional to a faster path to FIRE, as those with lower gross incomes.

THIS!!!!!!!!!!!!!.....
I got a nice pay bump this year and combined with my annual bonus and small stock incentive, I've been bumped into the top tax bracket.   In some ways I have OMY syndrome, that's a big fire-hose, and in others, it's fuck this - the government is getting more than half of my last dollar earned - that is not an incentive to keep working.
But I will be the first to admit that it is easier to save 65-70% of our net income when that is well over 6 figures.....if you exclude taxes, we live on 45-50K a year.  I'm just happy that we built our rough budget when we were making half our current income, and we've just floated along.   I've never been impressed by folks who can be impressed by 'things'.   As Groucho Marx said, “I don't want to belong to any club that will accept me as a member.”

I'm always impressed with folks that are making an 'average' income and are socking it away.  They're the true masters.   What I do is easy.

I just want to say bravo to the folks that have hit FIRE or are approaching FIRE on a modest income - you're rock stars in my book!

[remizidae]

I think it's obvious that one should strive to make as much money as possible, consistent with other goals. Deciding to pursue a lower-paying career, drop out of the workforce, have multiple kids or multiple pets, is obviously going to hold you back. Yet, if you consciously make those sacrifices because they are consistent with your values, I can't judge you too hard.

[bluebelle]

I think it's obvious that one should strive to make as much money as possible, consistent with other goals. Deciding to pursue a lower-paying career, drop out of the workforce, have multiple kids or multiple pets, is obviously going to hold you back. Yet, if you consciously make those sacrifices because they are consistent with your values, I can't judge you too hard.

very true....we all live in our own world, with our own values.   If you're living true to your values and happy with your place in the world, none of us should judge another.   It's the people 'living their best lives', and then complaining about being broke (think 'influencers' looking for money to fund some trip), or looking for hand-outs because they have 10 kids, they're the jerks.

[bmjohnson35]

I certainly don't intend to take away or diminish those with higher income who have achieved FIRE.  Those who say that their story is boring because they had lower or more average income, I find this to be the opposite for me.  These are the true inspirational stories that I can relate to. Yes, it may take longer, but I find these stories more inspirational.

My parents were my early inspiration.  My father called it the get rich slow plan.  They always watched their spending closely, was careful about their use of credit and always tried to save what they could.  He retired at 55, largely because of a good pension plan and his employer offering free healthcare in retirement.  Unfortunately, he invested much of his investments into company stock early on and when he took a beating for a few years, he moved his money into "conservative" and "safe" choices.  He still did well and my mother is still comfortable after his recent passing, but if he had understood market fundamentals, they could have been even better off. 

BJ

[afox]

The important thing to know is that mathematically reducing your spending has more impact than increasing your income. The high wage earner was only able to FIRE by reducing their spending, not just saving but reducing the amount they need to save in order to FIRE.

This reminds me of the joke:

How do you make a million dollars  with real estate?... 

Start with two million.

[2Birds1Stone]

BJ, your $125k income is far above "lower" or "average".

It's ~2X the median US household income, which makes you upper middle/ bordering upper class. Then you mention you live in a LCOL area, which likely amplifies the effect vs. your geographical peers. You also cracked $100k a decade ago! Those dollars adjusted for inflation were worth even more than today, significantly.

Don't compare yourself to the $200k+ earners, or the $50k earners. Your journey is your own, but you have a very healthy income within the US, and that's one of the richest countries in the world, just to put things in further perspective.

This forum is very heavily skewed to rich people who consider themselves middle class, and many of the FIRE stories are uninspiring because it can be a giant circle jerk of people living above average lifestyles with tremendous incomes to compensate for lack of any real sacrifice.

[bluebelle]

This forum is very heavily skewed to rich people who consider themselves middle class, and many of the FIRE stories are uninspiring because it can be a giant circle jerk of people living above average lifestyles with tremendous incomes to compensate for lack of any real sacrifice.

Ouch

[bmjohnson35]

BJ, your $125k income is far above "lower" or "average".

Agreed.  It was not my intention to focus on my personal situation so much. I was simply pointing out what I now realize others perceive, that FIRE info on the web is often tilted toward those with higher incomes. 

BJ

[kendallf]

This forum is very heavily skewed to rich people who consider themselves middle class, and many of the FIRE stories are uninspiring because it can be a giant circle jerk of people living above average lifestyles with tremendous incomes to compensate for lack of any real sacrifice.

Ouch

This made me LOL, literally.  I'm in the circle..

[dandarc]

This forum is very heavily skewed to rich people who consider themselves middle class, and many of the FIRE stories are uninspiring because it can be a giant circle jerk of people living above average lifestyles with tremendous incomes to compensate for lack of any real sacrifice.

Ouch

This made me LOL, literally.  I'm in the circle..

2Birds1Stone bringing the truth.

[SwordGuy]

The super fast $200k income and race to FIRE stories are attention grabbers.

Regular stories aren't as exciting, but likely far more common. I think of the $200k people as the gold medalists in a marathon, the rest of us also finish the marathon but no one celebrates except ourselves. If I finished a marathon in 100th place, I'd still be proud but the newspapers wouldn't mention my name, nor would you find a blog about me.

I think of the low and medium income folks who FIRE to be the real heroes.  It's much harder for them.

Those of us at the higher incomes?  Hell, we've got a chauffeured limo stuffed with cash getting us close to the FIRE finish line.  There's nothing to brag about at all.

[41918]

I'm in the high income, not much sacrifice camp. I've got a nice NW. Anyone want to circle jerk later?

[2Birds1Stone]

I'm in the high income, not much sacrifice camp. I've got a nice NW. Anyone want to circle jerk later?

As long as you bring the biscuit.

[OtherJen]

I think it's obvious that one should strive to make as much money as possible, consistent with other goals. Deciding to pursue a lower-paying career, drop out of the workforce, have multiple kids or multiple pets, is obviously going to hold you back. Yet, if you consciously make those sacrifices because they are consistent with your values, I can't judge you too hard.

Why would you judge me at all?

(For reference, husband and I both have STEM degrees. Our household gross income is $75–80K depending on how much work I take on and whether husband gets overtime. Could we make more? Sure. It would mean giving up too many things we love about our life together.)

[BTDretire]

 I expect you wanted some actual dollar amounts.
So I'll give you mine, I hope they don't discourage you! :-)
 We started our journey when we married in 1982.
 We had $1M at the end of 2011. Our combined average income for those 30 years was $41,243.
Some of those years were low income, 11 years were under $25,000 a year.
 We continued working 7 more years, and, with 2012 to 2018 being such a great time to be in the market,
we more than doubled our net worth 2012 to 2018.
 Our average income for the full 37 years was $47,522.
 Clearly it can be done on a lower income, it just takes longer, (numbers are like that).
 We were frugal, but not absolute MMMer's.
 Now retired, we can spend more than we ever did while working. Probably won't though!

[DadJokes]

BJ, your $125k income is far above "lower" or "average".

It's ~2X the median US household income, which makes you upper middle/ bordering upper class. Then you mention you live in a LCOL area, which likely amplifies the effect vs. your geographical peers. You also cracked $100k a decade ago! Those dollars adjusted for inflation were worth even more than today, significantly.

Don't compare yourself to the $200k+ earners, or the $50k earners. Your journey is your own, but you have a very healthy income within the US, and that's one of the richest countries in the world, just to put things in further perspective.

This forum is very heavily skewed to rich people who consider themselves middle class, and many of the FIRE stories are uninspiring because it can be a giant circle jerk of people living above average lifestyles with tremendous incomes to compensate for lack of any real sacrifice.

Just curious, for perspective, where do you view the cutoffs?

I’m all for not comparing to others, except to get tips and strategies.

[avrex]

I applaud everyone that ultimately achieves FIRE.

However, the FIRE stories that resonate the most with me, is from members like this...

I don't find my own FIRE story particularly interesting, but a lot of people seem to because of how "out there" it is - summarized, we're a receptionist/freelance editor couple, live in a major city, generally make around 80K, save 65%, travel to five or six countries a year....

My story is boring as well. Just a lower income blue collar worker who lived below my means,  never got into debt other than a short term mortgage, and had a high savings rate and low expenses....

No, your stories aren't boring at all.  They are inspiring!

Your modest income level fits a narrative that a larger portion of the working population can relate to.  You have proven that....

Even with a modest income, yes, FIRE is attainable.

[Buffaloski Boris]

This forum is very heavily skewed to rich people who consider themselves middle class, and many of the FIRE stories are uninspiring because it can be a giant circle jerk of people living above average lifestyles with tremendous incomes to compensate for lack of any real sacrifice.

Ouch

Truth hurts sometimes. That one's gonna leave a mark.  LOL. 

[Bloop Bloop]

This forum is very heavily skewed to rich people who consider themselves middle class, and many of the FIRE stories are uninspiring because it can be a giant circle jerk of people living above average lifestyles with tremendous incomes to compensate for lack of any real sacrifice.

Ouch

Unnecessarily snarky, in my view. There are different types of sacrifice - some sacrifice is required to save lots of money, but often some sacrifice is also required to earn lots of money. Unless you're tremendously lucky or tremendously naturally gifted, a high-earning career doesn't fall from the sky.

I think it is enough to say that there are different ways of achieving FIRE and each person can forge his or her own path. Comparison is the thief of joy.

[RWTL]

...There are different types of sacrifice - some sacrifice is required to save lots of money, but often some sacrifice is also required to earn lots of money. Unless you're tremendously lucky or tremendously naturally gifted, a high-earning career doesn't fall from the sky.

I think it is enough to say that there are different ways of achieving FIRE and each person can forge his or her own path. Comparison is the thief of joy.

Amen.

[DadzillaGorilla]

Dad (57)has been fire for last 4 years before I even came across the FIRE movement, Mum has died at 56.

Life income never exceeded £30k between them and for large parts they lived on much less with 3 kids to support.

If you can save on your current income then the maths works.  He has grown net worth in the 4 years of FIRE so far and doesn't look remotely close to failing.

Granted we live in UK so free health care and he has social security pension to be paid in next 10 years.

Lots of high income people here but he is living very comfortably without needing to work.

[MrThatsDifferent]

This forum is very heavily skewed to rich people who consider themselves middle class, and many of the FIRE stories are uninspiring because it can be a giant circle jerk of people living above average lifestyles with tremendous incomes to compensate for lack of any real sacrifice.

Ouch

Bullshit! I sacrificed a lot for my high income and worked my ass of to get it and keep working my ass off to keep it. Ever since discovering FIRE I’ve made saving and increasing my income priorities so I can FIRE as quickly as possible and make up for the years when I didn’t have the income and/or didn’t have strategies or a plan to save and invest. I don’t feel guilty about shit. It’s all a journey and no one, unless they win the lottery, has an easy path. If you get there, you earned it.

[Loren Ver]

Interesting.

My family is FIREd (April 1st 2019) live in a lowish/medium cost of living area and have always had below 200k income.  If you cut out the college jobs where I made a few thousand a year (horribly skewing the averages), our family income averaged just shy of 89k per year (pretax) looking from 2006 (when I graduated, got married, and got a job) to 2018.  In 2013 we actually hit the 100k mark, exciting times.  Our lowest year was bring in 36K, our second year of marriage.

There were a lot of factors in our success, but the largest was having a consistent income high enough to live below our means.  Even at our lowest of 36k we were paying off student loans, paying for private health insurance, and had no access to 401ks.  Once you start getting into the median income ranges the process can accelerate and you know how to live on the lower income side.

Loren 

[A Fella from Stella]

This forum is very heavily skewed to rich people who consider themselves middle class, and many of the FIRE stories are uninspiring because it can be a giant circle jerk of people living above average lifestyles with tremendous incomes to compensate for lack of any real sacrifice.

Ouch

Truth hurts sometimes. That one's gonna leave a mark.  LOL.

Frugalwoods

[OurTown]

FWIW:  Mr. Google tells me median household income is about $61,000 and average household income is about $86,000.  https://dqydj.com/united-states-household-income-brackets-percentiles/

[afox]

So what if this forum is filled with high income earners who are saving and retiring early? Does that make a less good crowd than if it were low income earners aspiring to retire early? Dont lower income earners want want to get advice about getting higher incomes from people with high incomes?

High income earners consuming less is a worthy aspiration!!!

I dont agree with this statement: "If you get there, you earned it." A few have earned it, most had it spoon fed to them.

 

[mathlete]

This forum is very heavily skewed to rich people who consider themselves middle class, and many of the FIRE stories are uninspiring because it can be a giant circle jerk of people living above average lifestyles with tremendous incomes to compensate for lack of any real sacrifice.

Exactly. I don't begrudge anyone their success, but this community (not the forum specifically) is full of people trying to sell you the secret to success when it's so obvious that steps 1 and 2 of their own story were: be a top 10% talent; marry another top 10% talent. Everyone is on their own journey.

[DadJokes]

I dont agree with this statement: "If you get there, you earned it." A few have earned it, most had it spoon fed to them.

You have that backwards. A few had it spoon-fed, and most have earned it. Studies of millionaires show that the vast majority are self-made.

[mathlete]

So what if this forum is filled with high income earners who are saving and retiring early? Does that make a less good crowd than if it were low income earners aspiring to retire early?

Nothing is wrong with it. I'm one of those people. The median household income is about $60K. My household makes more than double that and we're 15 years away from what is typically considered to be "peak earnings age". We're doing very well to save over half of our income, but the fact is that we spend between $50K and $60K a year. We lead a life that's more luxurious than most. I have no secrets to offer someone making a median income. Lots of people in my situation pretend they do though. And they sell themselves as gurus. That reads as obnoxious.

Dont lower income earners want want to get advice about getting higher incomes from people with high incomes?

My advice for a higher income is to be like me. That is, be born with a high aptitude for math.

For real, I can and do give advice to high school and college students. But for your average adult in the workforce, I'm not sure what value can come from advice from the software engineer kids.

[OurTown]

I know that what I'm doing is nothing special.  Attorney, live in LCOL area, with a comfortable middle class suburban lifestyle.  Done.  All I have to do is not spend like the other attorneys!

[rantk81]

1) Know how to use office/productivity software. Inside and out.  Be competent with presentations/powerpoint, wordprocessing/word, shreadsheets/excel. 

2) Learn how to code in order to automate repetitive tasks.  Know at least python, macros in a spreadsheet application, and potentially javascript.

3) Be an effective communicator.  Be able to clearly speak and write, in order to convey thoughts effectively.

IMO, those three things are the most important things for "Getting a good job"

[Philociraptor]

Sounds like selection bias on the part of other posters and availability heuristic on your part: high income earners are more likely to post about their income, and you are remembering those cases more.

I know personally we are not average. When we got our first house our household income was about $62k and now it's about $160k. Most couples that are intentional about their careers can make similar progress, and neither of us are very ambitious IMO. Our greatest ambition is early retirement.

[wageslave23]

Its all relative.  Some people choose to work hard at earning a high income.  Some choose to work hard at spending very little.  A few slightly insane do both.  None of it is easy or else everyone would do it.  Also average and median incomes mean nothing.  They include people in places where $40k a year is a lot of money and places where $100k is nothing.  It also includes meth heads and warren buffet.

[AlanStache]

1) Know how to use office/productivity software. Inside and out.  Be competent with presentations/powerpoint, wordprocessing/word, shreadsheets/excel. 

2) Learn how to code in order to automate repetitive tasks.  Know at least python, macros in a spreadsheet application, and potentially javascript.

3) Be an effective communicator.  Be able to clearly speak and write, in order to convey thoughts effectively.

IMO, those three things are the most important things for "Getting a good job"

"Getting a good job" - not quite.  Your list will help some advance in some jobs but wont necessarily get you in the door.

[MrThatsDifferent]

This forum is very heavily skewed to rich people who consider themselves middle class, and many of the FIRE stories are uninspiring because it can be a giant circle jerk of people living above average lifestyles with tremendous incomes to compensate for lack of any real sacrifice.

Ouch

Bullshit! I sacrificed a lot for my high income and worked my ass of to get it and keep working my ass off to keep it. Ever since discovering FIRE I’ve made saving and increasing my income priorities so I can FIRE as quickly as possible and make up for the years when I didn’t have the income and/or didn’t have strategies or a plan to save and invest. I don’t feel guilty about shit. It’s all a journey and no one, unless they win the lottery, has an easy path. If you get there, you earned it.

I don't think he meant that you haven't made sacrifices to get to a place with a high income. I think he meant that most here with high incomes don't have to make sacrifices in terms of lifestyle to get to FIRE. Most don't live in a tiny shared studio apt or with several roommate, they don't have to decide between fixing the roof or investing,  or have to go without a car,.cable tv, nice vacations, new clothes, and a Vitamix blender so that they can save for FI. Most high income earners can live a regular middle class life style AND still save for FIRE. Most of us lower income types could FIRE in a few years just by living like we do/did but had the high salary instead of it taking 20 years and having to go without all those little luxuries.

Well, I want to say most, but I’ll speak for myself here, I may not have to sacrifice some things lifestyle-wise but to have the high income, I’m definitely sacrificing some of my life for work and I would imagine that many high income people are doing the same. I don’t know too many high income people who aren’t working their asses off for that salary. And not that lower or middle income people don’t work their asses of as well. I just know I carry a lot more responsibility than my receptionist. Work doesn’t creep into his home life. I want to FIRE so badly and quickly so I can get a full life back without feeling like I’m carrying the weight of the world on my shoulders and work dominating my life. You know what people say when I talk about this, well, that’s why you get paid the big bucks. There’s no sympathies for us. So yeah, there is sacrifice, just from a different angle.

[EscapeVelocity2020]

Accumulated wealth really starts to shoot upwards once income exceeds the 75th percentile for your age range -



https://www.nytimes.com/interactive/2019/08/12/upshot/are-you-rich-where-does-your-net-worth-rank-wealth.html

[mathlete]

Its all relative.  Some people choose to work hard at earning a high income.  Some choose to work hard at spending very little.  A few slightly insane do both.  None of it is easy or else everyone would do it.

I generally disagree about the relationship between hard work and earnings. Hard work certainly helps, but the bulk of earnings is determined by other factors like aptitude.

Also average and median incomes mean nothing.  They include people in places where $40k a year is a lot of money and places where $100k is nothing.  It also includes meth heads and warren buffet.

I'm compelled to disagree again. For most of the USA's most populus metros, the median incomes are within the same $10K range.

San Francisco and DC are major outliers for obvious reasons, but if $100K is "nothing" there, than more than half of people there have nothing. Higher COL areas are often seen as more desirable. If you're paying to live in LA, you have great weather and beach access. If you're paying to live in NYC, you have world class museums and entertainment.

[ysette9]

I dont agree with this statement: "If you get there, you earned it." A few have earned it, most had it spoon fed to them.

You have that backwards. A few had it spoon-fed, and most have earned it. Studies of millionaires show that the vast majority are self-made.

I see a spectrum with two ends being “self made” and the other “not deserving it”. We work hard and are blessed with brains and good instincts, but as a top 10% married to another top 10%, I don’t believe we “deserve” what we earn even though we have worked hard to get here.

What I mean is that while I am incredibly grateful for what we have, don’t get me wrong, I really don’t feel like we are 4x smarter/harder working/more valuable than other people I see in other industries who are also smart and educated and work hard. Our society chooses to monetarily value some professions over others. That isn’t necessarily a reflection of how much good those jobs bring to society.

I have had this tickle in the back of my mind for a little while but doing our tax returns for 2018 really brought the feeling home. It was a high water mark for our household income, but still I felt it was silly high. Oh well. Be grateful and sock away as much of it as we can!

[wageslave23]

This forum is very heavily skewed to rich people who consider themselves middle class, and many of the FIRE stories are uninspiring because it can be a giant circle jerk of people living above average lifestyles with tremendous incomes to compensate for lack of any real sacrifice.

Ouch

Bullshit! I sacrificed a lot for my high income and worked my ass of to get it and keep working my ass off to keep it. Ever since discovering FIRE I’ve made saving and increasing my income priorities so I can FIRE as quickly as possible and make up for the years when I didn’t have the income and/or didn’t have strategies or a plan to save and invest. I don’t feel guilty about shit. It’s all a journey and no one, unless they win the lottery, has an easy path. If you get there, you earned it.

I don't think he meant that you haven't made sacrifices to get to a place with a high income. I think he meant that most here with high incomes don't have to make sacrifices in terms of lifestyle to get to FIRE. Most don't live in a tiny shared studio apt or with several roommate, they don't have to decide between fixing the roof or investing,  or have to go without a car,.cable tv, nice vacations, new clothes, and a Vitamix blender so that they can save for FI. Most high income earners can live a regular middle class life style AND still save for FIRE. Most of us lower income types could FIRE in a few years just by living like we do/did but had the high salary instead of it taking 20 years and having to go without all those little luxuries.

Well, I want to say most, but I’ll speak for myself here, I may not have to sacrifice some things lifestyle-wise but to have the high income, I’m definitely sacrificing some of my life for work and I would imagine that many high income people are doing the same. I don’t know too many high income people who aren’t working their asses off for that salary. And not that lower or middle income people don’t work their asses of as well. I just know I carry a lot more responsibility than my receptionist. Work doesn’t creep into his home life. I want to FIRE so badly and quickly so I can get a full life back without feeling like I’m carrying the weight of the world on my shoulders and work dominating my life. You know what people say when I talk about this, well, that’s why you get paid the big bucks. There’s no sympathies for us. So yeah, there is sacrifice, just from a different angle.

But you do have the option to retire much earlier than say the enlisted Grunt making $1500/month who's working 24/7 in a dangerous part of the world with no nights, weekends, and holidays off who hasn't seen they're family for months. Or the electrician who is repairing a high wire in a 20 below zero blizzard at midnight on Christmas. Or the first responder who's out rescuing a capsized yacht in a hurricane. Etc. Lots of low income people work a ton and have a different kind of weight on their shoulder. Not being snarky just trying to flow some perspective.

In any case you do have the ability to FIRE much much sooner then a lower income person and lift that weight from your shoulder. There's no trick just live like a low income person regardless.of your income for a few years and save the rest. If a lower income person earns an after tax income of $50k and saves 1/2 that and can manage on $25k a year for living expenses than surely a person making $200k a year can save $175k each year and live the same lifestyle as the $ 25k per year person does. Sure it'll require trade offs (I prefer the word  trade offs to sacrifices) but its doable unless you have extenuating circumstances. If you don't like your high income but soul and life sucking job then live like us "poor" a couple of years and free yourself from the.grind.

He has the option to spend less.  They have the option to earn more.  Most people have choices (not everyone).