COASTFIRE- anyone?

[MisterTwoForty]

Is anyone here currently or planning to coast fire?  I've been reading a lot about it lately.
Since I plan on working (even in retirement) - but in more flexible and interesting roles - I feel I could be a candidate for coasting.

[Metalcat]

Yup.

I love work, but not very much of it, and I have/am developing skills that allow me to get paid very well for very part time work. So I see no reason to ever fully retire from paid work.

If I did, I would just take on more volunteer work. So if I enjoy working, then why not continue to get paid?

I actually fully retired during the pandemic due to medical issues, and it was ridiculous how much unpaid work I took on. And a lot of it was below my professional skill level. So I was working really hard, doing very difficult work, with less positive impact on the world than my professional work would have, and I wasn't getting paid.

So now I'm retraining in a new skill set that allows me to do more interesting, more beneficial work and get paid for it. I'll be able to maintain a <0% WR indefinitely as long as I enjoy it, while filling one day a week of my ample free time with interesting societal engagement.

[chillyphilly]

Yes definitely. I started with a over-time packed high stress, low paying job I learned to dislike about 10 years ago with MMM. After working the job and reading so much on here, I thought it was normal to hate your job and want to get out of it as quickly as possible. Then I started to see a trend among the FIRE crowd…now that I’ve sucked it up for some amount of bad years and got to this point, what do I do with my life now? Seems like more often than not, they volunteer/pick up side work. (This is not everyone, I just noticed it was a fairly common theme).

I realized that the life I wanted was not retiring early (I get bored easily), it was working less hours, making more, and being able to do things I want to do NOW. So I quit cold turkey and contracted for a short while to get trained in a different field, and self employed the following year. Now 7 years later I make 4x as much in a year and only work 1/3 of the year. Life is way less stressful, I get tons of time off to enjoy life and save a ton. I don’t know when I will ever fully retire because I can keep the business and hire out my job if I need to, and still make income. I would recommend this path to anyone.

[nick663]

Yes but my FIRE date I'm "coasting" to is still a very early retirement by most standards.  I don't hate my job and they offer a part time option (with proportionate reduction in pay) so my plan is to do that for a few years as a transition to early retirement.

[GilesMM]

Within a month of retiring I couldn't figure out how I ever had time for a job! 

[mucstache]

@chillyphilly can you tell us more - which industry and services are you in with your new occupation? Congrats on the achievement!

[ixtap]

Sort of. We are actually FI, though, so there is no waiting for the stash to grow. It's just that DH is very in demand and his manager begged him to stay part time. My skills tend towards the non profit or low pay segments, so I haven't been earning money consistently for several years.

DH is super burned out and still hemming and hawing over how long he will work part time. He likes being an engineer, but the burnout manifests itself physically with the slightest aggravation. His team allowed/encouraged him to work part time when this first started in 2018, but as he still had full salary and benefits at that time, as soon as he saw any improvement he tried to make up for lost time. Now that he is officially part time, that pressure is reduced. Too bad so many of his work hours are spent trying to straighten out COBRA benefits.

[chillyphilly]

@chillyphilly can you tell us more - which industry and services are you in with your new occupation? Congrats on the achievement!

Thank you.

We started a pest control business. Because we live in a colder area, I work part time through the summer and take the winter months off. Though I am not necessarily saying this business is for everyone, I am saying that self employing and working less hours while making owner’s pay is what I would recommend to anyone. With very rare exceptions, I have found with our clientele that across the board, the people that are the most well off/financially free were either self employed or in real estate. Yes, you can retire early by saving in almost any job, I realized I didn’t want to have to pinch pennies and grind through something I didn’t like.

There are plenty of businesses one can start with very little capital. Yes you can take time to get off the ground, but if done right, it is time well spent. The further into this I go, the more I hear people say, “Well, it must be nice.” What people are seeing is only a snapshot of where we are at right now. They don’t see the stress of the first year in business of not knowing how you are going to feed your kids, or not even breaking $20k the entire first year. They see what it has become and think somehow it was given on a silver platter (not saying you are, I have just seen it more recently). It takes a lot of planning and dedication, but like anything hard, “Nothing in the world is worth having or worth doing unless it means effort, pain, difficulty...”

We live in a small home on acreage, but it is new and was paid for in cash. We have no debt whatsoever. We are able to float around with our time (the family is across the country now, I am planning on a Central America excursion this winter), and that is what we bought…time. There is nothing wrong with the FIRE crowd in wanting to retire early, I have just seen an unhealthy theme of grinding it out and saving for an early out. There was a thread here recently of tomorrow not being guaranteed. This resonates with me. I have seen people put off what they want to be doing, only for health issues to get in the way of doing them as they age, or even worse yet, not making it to that age at all.

I will get off my soapbox, it is just something that I feel strongly about after living it. Life is too short to do things you don’t like now in order to live a way you want in a future that is not guaranteed.

[mistymoney]

@chillyphilly can you tell us more - which industry and services are you in with your new occupation? Congrats on the achievement!

Thank you.

We started a pest control business. Because we live in a colder area, I work part time through the summer and take the winter months off. Though I am not necessarily saying this business is for everyone, I am saying that self employing and working less hours while making owner’s pay is what I would recommend to anyone. With very rare exceptions, I have found with our clientele that across the board, the people that are the most well off/financially free were either self employed or in real estate. Yes, you can retire early by saving in almost any job, I realized I didn’t want to have to pinch pennies and grind through something I didn’t like.

There are plenty of businesses one can start with very little capital. Yes you can take time to get off the ground, but if done right, it is time well spent. The further into this I go, the more I hear people say, “Well, it must be nice.” What people are seeing is only a snapshot of where we are at right now. They don’t see the stress of the first year in business of not knowing how you are going to feed your kids, or not even breaking $20k the entire first year. They see what it has become and think somehow it was given on a silver platter (not saying you are, I have just seen it more recently). It takes a lot of planning and dedication, but like anything hard, “Nothing in the world is worth having or worth doing unless it means effort, pain, difficulty...”

We live in a small home on acreage, but it is new and was paid for in cash. We have no debt whatsoever. We are able to float around with our time (the family is across the country now, I am planning on a Central America excursion this winter), and that is what we bought…time. There is nothing wrong with the FIRE crowd in wanting to retire early, I have just seen an unhealthy theme of grinding it out and saving for an early out. There was a thread here recently of tomorrow not being guaranteed. This resonates with me. I have seen people put off what they want to be doing, only for health issues to get in the way of doing them as they age, or even worse yet, not making it to that age at all.

I will get off my soapbox, it is just something that I feel strongly about after living it. Life is too short to do things you don’t like now in order to live a way you want in a future that is not guaranteed.

Thanks Chilly! Sounds like you are right where you want to be.

I'm wondering about your phrase "There are plenty of businesses one can start with very little capital. " and what these might be? if you had a list or resource or something. And also wondering what does it take to get them off the ground?

I offer services on the side similar to my day job career, and I do charge a nice fee. My clients fell into my lap due to professional contacts "you know anyone who woud want to...." and I said me!! But I don't see any more of these coming along, unfortunately. Or fortunately - as it is quite a burden with my dayjob, but I have hopes to build it out to be enough for a coast fire situation. Not that I am actively looking for more at the moment! If I could put together one or more other small companies that could potential grow, that would be great. I wouldn't mind investing some money into the start up, and making a ton the first year or two wouldn't be necessary, but relatively low cost and not too labor intensive to start up would be key.

I have lots of business I would like to start up! none of them are low cost/low risk or low energy though! Niche manufacturing, cat cafe, juice bar, restaurant, etc. So of course I don't pursue those......only think of them when I buy a lotto ticket :)

But I do have an entrepreneurial itch!

[ixtap]

The further into this I go, the more I hear people say, “Well, it must be nice.” What people are seeing is only a snapshot of where we are at right now. They don’t see ...

We earned our money through salaries and RSUs. Admittedly, DH had a very high paying job, but we didn't spend it. Although we get it it from slight acquaintances, it is most frequently from his sisters. One has a McMansion with more square feet per person and pet than we have total and the other has 10 kids. Yeah, you do realize that y'all spend more in your LCOL areas than we do in a HCOL? Not saying you would be FI by now, but at least you might be able to visit us once in awhile rather than waiting for us to visit you then saying it must be nice to be able to travel across the country.

He doesn't always bother explaining that he is part time because of the reactions that gets in a getting to know you situation. But he had to go part time to get permission to work remotely and he is enjoying the lower stress and extra free time.

[chillyphilly]

@mistymoney Pretty much any mobile service industry is a safe safe bet for low start up costs, but the tradeoff is you do need to put time into it to get it started and going. Landscaping, pest control, auto detailing, cleaning services, window washing, marketing/SEO, etc. Anything that doesn’t require you to buy/lease a building and expensive equipment. Some will pay more than others. A lot of it has to do with how the business is structured. How streamlined are your services, how tight is your route, did you go in debt to start, etc? For every person I know that has done well in each of these, there is a person that is scraping by in the same business. There are solo pest operators netting $250k+ per year focusing on higher paying one time services, while others are hardly making any profit hiring sales guys and staff. And vice versa, I know solo marketers that are struggling right now trying to cash in on high paying one time gigs while others with staff that are doing well with recurring revenue. It is all on catering to your target clientele and the market you are in.

As a side note, I am not a huge fan of “investing” in other people’s businesses (even in a partnership). You can do ok or even well, but it is high risk and you can get burned in the search for “easy money.” It is easier to fork over cash and let someone else deal with the stresses of business ownership, but you don’t know how they will manage it and you have little to no control. I have been there and been burned doing the same thing. I recently turned away an investment opportunity in a small energy related biz. Once you have invested in your own biz and have control over your own pay, there is little reason to invest in others. I’d rather spend the time/money in mine to grow it if desired, and the returns can be pretty easily measured in relation to how much effort is put in.

[FIRE 20/20]

Just as people have different definitions of FIRE, there are a lot of different definitions of CoastFIRE.  I worked an engineering / management job and reached a fairly senior level in my late 30s, and then moved into a lower level role for my last 2+ years with megacorp.  I was able to use my accrued PTO to work about 30 hours a week during that time.  My partner officially went down to 32 hours a week (for lower pay rather than using PTO) and she worked less than that because she could use her accrued PTO as well. 
So if that counts as CoastFIRE to you, then yes.  Those last 2 years were BY FAR the best of our careers.  After working the normal 40 hours a week plus the expected extra hours for a senior position, it was a revelation to just cut out at 2pm if the work was finished and/or skip coming in on Fridays.  We made the switch somewhere around hitting 20x our planned FIRE expenses and I wish we had made the change much earlier.  Our company was one where people thought no one ever would be allowed to work part time, but it was actually really easy to do.  We both maintained full benefits and since I was in a role leading a much smaller team than I was used to it was easy to excel while working a lot fewer hours than full-time. 

If I could do it over again, I'd switch to part-time after accruing about 10-15x my planned FIRE expenses.  It extends the number of years working a lot less than one might think for a few reasons.  First, the extra money you're giving up is your taxed at your top marginal rate, so the pay cut is more tax and less actual income relative to your overall income.  Second, the 'stache at that point is doing a lot of the work pushing you towards FIRE.  Third, it was so much easier doing the little things that reduce expenses, like fixing things around the house, cooking meals, and we spent less on convenience.  I will still take longer to get to full-FIRE, but not that much longer and it's a much more enjoyable time.  I think we added about 3 months or so (if I remember correctly) by coasting those last 2 years, but our lives were so much better during those years that it was definitely worth it. 

[mistymoney]

@mistymoney Pretty much any mobile service industry is a safe safe bet for low start up costs, but the tradeoff is you do need to put time into it to get it started and going. Landscaping, pest control, auto detailing, cleaning services, window washing, marketing/SEO, etc. Anything that doesn’t require you to buy/lease a building and expensive equipment. Some will pay more than others. A lot of it has to do with how the business is structured. How streamlined are your services, how tight is your route, did you go in debt to start, etc? For every person I know that has done well in each of these, there is a person that is scraping by in the same business. There are solo pest operators netting $250k+ per year focusing on higher paying one time services, while others are hardly making any profit hiring sales guys and staff. And vice versa, I know solo marketers that are struggling right now trying to cash in on high paying one time gigs while others with staff that are doing well with recurring revenue. It is all on catering to your target clientele and the market you are in.

As a side note, I am not a huge fan of “investing” in other people’s businesses (even in a partnership). You can do ok or even well, but it is high risk and you can get burned in the search for “easy money.” It is easier to fork over cash and let someone else deal with the stresses of business ownership, but you don’t know how they will manage it and you have little to no control. I have been there and been burned doing the same thing. I recently turned away an investment opportunity in a small energy related biz. Once you have invested in your own biz and have control over your own pay, there is little reason to invest in others. I’d rather spend the time/money in mine to grow it if desired, and the returns can be pretty easily measured in relation to how much effort is put in.

Thanks for this. I agree with what you are saying completely. I do think the service types of businesses you mention are outside my wheelhouse, things I'm not particularly good with on my own! Likely to be different business-wise, but if starting off with just yourself to establish a base clientele, risking for someone like me.

[Freedomin5]

Yes. We are coasting. I worked several years in a high paying high stress job with long hours. We were also working multiple side hustles. We were burning out. Then we hit $200k in our investment accounts, and we realized that if we left that $200k alone and let it grow, it would be enough to fund our retirement by the time we hit age 65. We only needed to work enough to cover our annual expenses for the next 30 years until we hit 65. That was when we felt comfortable dropping our side hustles, which cut our income by $24k a year. That was five years ago.

We also felt more comfortable looking for other jobs. I applied for a part-time position (1 day a week), and DH also switched jobs. As luck would have it, I was offered a full-time position, but only working regular office hours. Ironically, coast fire didn’t really drop our income by much, because DH got a huge raise after switching jobs again. I think our income dropped by around another $12k a year. That was three years ago.

Our work-life balance is so much better. Work-related stress levels are down, and because we are coasting, we feel comfortable setting and holding onto firm boundaries and not putting up with office politics because we know that we don’t NEED this job.

Throughout the last five years, we’ve continued to save a huge chunk of our income. COVID helped in that respect because we couldn’t really travel which is where we typically spend a large chunk of our money.

We are actually pretty much FI now, though I’m pretty sure we will continue earning money in some fashion. We enjoy what we do. We have in-demand skills, and DH has several projects he wants to devote time to. I also have a few other things I’m interested in that I would like to try out. And I could always work as a contractor in my field if I feel like it.

It’s nice to have the freedom to only choose interesting roles and to move into something else once the work is no longer interesting.

[Malossi792]

Oh absolutely.
I'm in a junior role ATM, can't wait to acquire certain certifications and fatten the stash a few more years and then I'm going to coast the hell out of here.
I'm also in a high -stress, long-hours field, and can't imagine going really part time without a healthy amount of FU money (nobody does around here).

[Dicey]

Just as people have different definitions of FIRE, there are a lot of different definitions of CoastFIRE.  I worked an engineering / management job and reached a fairly senior level in my late 30s, and then moved into a lower level role for my last 2+ years with megacorp.  I was able to use my accrued PTO to work about 30 hours a week during that time.  My partner officially went down to 32 hours a week (for lower pay rather than using PTO) and she worked less than that because she could use her accrued PTO as well. 
So if that counts as CoastFIRE to you, then yes.  Those last 2 years were BY FAR the best of our careers.  After working the normal 40 hours a week plus the expected extra hours for a senior position, it was a revelation to just cut out at 2pm if the work was finished and/or skip coming in on Fridays.  We made the switch somewhere around hitting 20x our planned FIRE expenses and I wish we had made the change much earlier.  Our company was one where people thought no one ever would be allowed to work part time, but it was actually really easy to do.  We both maintained full benefits and since I was in a role leading a much smaller team than I was used to it was easy to excel while working a lot fewer hours than full-time. 

If I could do it over again, I'd switch to part-time after accruing about 10-15x my planned FIRE expenses.  It extends the number of years working a lot less than one might think for a few reasons.  First, the extra money you're giving up is your taxed at your top marginal rate, so the pay cut is more tax and less actual income relative to your overall income.  Second, the 'stache at that point is doing a lot of the work pushing you towards FIRE.  Third, it was so much easier doing the little things that reduce expenses, like fixing things around the house, cooking meals, and we spent less on convenience.  I will still take longer to get to full-FIRE, but not that much longer and it's a much more enjoyable time.  I think we added about 3 months or so (if I remember correctly) by coasting those last 2 years, but our lives were so much better during those years that it was definitely worth it.

Where is the damn Like Button? Forget like, I love every word of this post.

[GilesMM]

Just as people have different definitions of FIRE, there are a lot of different definitions of CoastFIRE.  I worked an engineering / management job and reached a fairly senior level in my late 30s, and then moved into a lower level role for my last 2+ years with megacorp.  I was able to use my accrued PTO to work about 30 hours a week during that time.  My partner officially went down to 32 hours a week (for lower pay rather than using PTO) and she worked less than that because she could use her accrued PTO as well. 
So if that counts as CoastFIRE to you, then yes.  Those last 2 years were BY FAR the best of our careers.  After working the normal 40 hours a week plus the expected extra hours for a senior position, it was a revelation to just cut out at 2pm if the work was finished and/or skip coming in on Fridays.  We made the switch somewhere around hitting 20x our planned FIRE expenses and I wish we had made the change much earlier.  Our company was one where people thought no one ever would be allowed to work part time, but it was actually really easy to do.  We both maintained full benefits and since I was in a role leading a much smaller team than I was used to it was easy to excel while working a lot fewer hours than full-time. 

If I could do it over again, I'd switch to part-time after accruing about 10-15x my planned FIRE expenses.  It extends the number of years working a lot less than one might think for a few reasons.  First, the extra money you're giving up is your taxed at your top marginal rate, so the pay cut is more tax and less actual income relative to your overall income.  Second, the 'stache at that point is doing a lot of the work pushing you towards FIRE.  Third, it was so much easier doing the little things that reduce expenses, like fixing things around the house, cooking meals, and we spent less on convenience.  I will still take longer to get to full-FIRE, but not that much longer and it's a much more enjoyable time.  I think we added about 3 months or so (if I remember correctly) by coasting those last 2 years, but our lives were so much better during those years that it was definitely worth it.

Where is the damn Like Button? Forget like, I love every word of this post.

Come to think of it, I planned and executed something similar although perhaps not quite as cushy.  I had observed early in my career a number of senior HQ advisory positions which appeared to be low-stress, high compensation "sunset" roles.  I planned to land one as my last gig, especially since I would need to repatriate somehow and I wanted to land and get setup, establish spending patterns before pulling the ripcord.  So, I moved from a high stress foreign office VP position, with a raving lunatic boss and long stressful hours to a domestic HQ job.  I had a team of four at HQ, the nicest boss anywhere, and an easy job doing data analysis of all our global assets with a team of 4.  Very low stress, Fridays off, few meetings or arguments, long lunches, etc.   I could have done a couple more years of this but the pandemic struck, WFH sucked, a huge package was offered, so we bailed.  I have "retired" friends who do consulting but they seem to want the income because they have frugality disorders preventing them from spending their savings. We are spending like drunken sailors, compared to working years.

[Gin1984]

I'm coast FI in that if I did not put another penny away we could retire at 65.  However, I want to be able to retire sooner and I have some extra expenses I want to pay (kids' schooling) and have chosen to keep working.  We put enough in retirement to get the match (and a little extra if we get a bonus or such to keep us tax optimized) but this allows us options.

[Simpli-Fi]

Once you coast…you’ll never be happy if you find yourself back to a high stress job.

[SpareChange]

I've been PT for over 3 years now. I still invest a high percentage of my income, and I don't plan on retiring at a traditional age, so not technically coast-fired I suppose. My career and employer make it fairly easy to reduce hours, so I knew this was the way I'd eventually go.  I waited until I was about 80% FI to rip the cord, IIRC. I would second all the benefits others have already noted. I will add that when I was FT my systolic averaged about 120. Now it stays around 105 :). At some point I'll likely change to PRN and lower my hours further. At that point I could see myself working indefinitely.

FYI, there's a related thread that's been going on for a few years...https://forum.mrmoneymustache.com/post-fire/calling-all-downshifters!/

[ixtap]

[nvrmnd

[JupiterGreen]

I'm glad you started this thread because I though COAST fire was something else. I think we are technically COAST FIRE since we have enough saved now to retire at 65 and cover our expenses (and then some). We are planning to retire early but not that early (50s). We may pick up some part time work once we pull the trigger, I'm almost certain my partner will. Our current plan is to retire in 2027, we could leave now if we wanted to count on the COAST $ to grow, but we'd have to pick up part time work to fund the in between time. My philosophy is that I want to be done when we are done, if we decide to work that's fine, but I don't want to have to rely on it. The truth is, we love our current jobs and our schedules are already really good (but we hate where we live). We get a good break every year so the drama etc. is easy to shake off with some time away from work so that part is okay. With that said, it feels really good to have our COAST number, it helps us not invest too much in the office politics. COAST FIRE is great because it give you peace of mind. We are going to try to have a bit more fun with these last 4 or so years and not be so stingy and take advantage of any opportunities our work offers before we separate.

[mizzourah2006]

I guess you could say we will coast FI in the sense that we will continue working far after we reach our FI #. We actually should hit our FI # in about a year or so, but our kids will still both be under 8 and we both enjoy our work, so in our minds it doesn't really make sense to actually RE.

[mistymoney]

I'm glad you started this thread because I though COAST fire was something else. I think we are technically COAST FIRE since we have enough saved now to retire at 65 and cover our expenses (and then some). We are planning to retire early but not that early (50s). We may pick up some part time work once we pull the trigger, I'm almost certain my partner will. Our current plan is to retire in 2027, we could leave now if we wanted to count on the COAST $ to grow, but we'd have to pick up part time work to fund the in between time. My philosophy is that I want to be done when we are done, if we decide to work that's fine, but I don't want to have to rely on it. The truth is, we love our current jobs and our schedules are already really good (but we hate where we live). We get a good break every year so the drama etc. is easy to shake off with some time away from work so that part is okay. With that said, it feels really good to have our COAST number, it helps us not invest too much in the office politics. COAST FIRE is great because it give you peace of mind. We are going to try to have a bit more fun with these last 4 or so years and not be so stingy and take advantage of any opportunities our work offers before we separate.

Curious as to what you thought it was? retiring on the coast?

[JupiterGreen]

I'm glad you started this thread because I though COAST fire was something else. I think we are technically COAST FIRE since we have enough saved now to retire at 65 and cover our expenses (and then some). We are planning to retire early but not that early (50s). We may pick up some part time work once we pull the trigger, I'm almost certain my partner will. Our current plan is to retire in 2027, we could leave now if we wanted to count on the COAST $ to grow, but we'd have to pick up part time work to fund the in between time. My philosophy is that I want to be done when we are done, if we decide to work that's fine, but I don't want to have to rely on it. The truth is, we love our current jobs and our schedules are already really good (but we hate where we live). We get a good break every year so the drama etc. is easy to shake off with some time away from work so that part is okay. With that said, it feels really good to have our COAST number, it helps us not invest too much in the office politics. COAST FIRE is great because it give you peace of mind. We are going to try to have a bit more fun with these last 4 or so years and not be so stingy and take advantage of any opportunities our work offers before we separate.

Curious as to what you thought it was? retiring on the coast?

embarrassing to admit, but yes! I figured it costs more to live on the coast so maybe it makes sense to label the distinction. For whatever reason it just didn't register, but now it makes perfect sense.  Judge me as harshly as you see fit :)

[Metalcat]

I'm glad you started this thread because I though COAST fire was something else. I think we are technically COAST FIRE since we have enough saved now to retire at 65 and cover our expenses (and then some). We are planning to retire early but not that early (50s). We may pick up some part time work once we pull the trigger, I'm almost certain my partner will. Our current plan is to retire in 2027, we could leave now if we wanted to count on the COAST $ to grow, but we'd have to pick up part time work to fund the in between time. My philosophy is that I want to be done when we are done, if we decide to work that's fine, but I don't want to have to rely on it. The truth is, we love our current jobs and our schedules are already really good (but we hate where we live). We get a good break every year so the drama etc. is easy to shake off with some time away from work so that part is okay. With that said, it feels really good to have our COAST number, it helps us not invest too much in the office politics. COAST FIRE is great because it give you peace of mind. We are going to try to have a bit more fun with these last 4 or so years and not be so stingy and take advantage of any opportunities our work offers before we separate.

Curious as to what you thought it was? retiring on the coast?

embarrassing to admit, but yes! I figured it costs more to live on the coast so maybe it makes sense to label the distinction. For whatever reason it just didn't register, but now it makes perfect sense.  Judge me as harshly as you see fit :)

You're nowhere near the first person to assume this. No judgement, it happens all the time.

[SnipTheDog]

I guess I'm COAST fire'ing.  I think I have enough and this job is just icing on the cake. 

But, I'm not retiring early unfortunately.  I could retire now if I wanted to though.  Just too much uncertainties with the market at the moment.

[ixtap]

I guess I'm COAST fire'ing.  I think I have enough and this job is just icing on the cake. 

But, I'm not retiring early unfortunately.  I could retire now if I wanted to though.  Just too much uncertainties with the market at the moment.

I feel like coast FIRE implies a high level of optimism: "this will grow to enough by the time I turn 65, I just need to earn enough to support myself." And SWAMI implies a level of enthusiasm about one's work. Then there are those who are basically FI here and now, but don't fully trust the math or the expected spending, and so choose to cover expenses, but aren't going to be too worried if they can't from year to year...we have chosen this middle ground that best fits the term coast FIRE, but doesn't quite share in it's optimism.

[mspym]

I’m what I call “proofreader FI” - I’m 90% of the way there and can make enough from a combination of dividends, proofreading gigs, and cash in the bank that I can make it to the point where we move countries and my expenses halve, where I am fully FI.

[Metalcat]

I guess I'm COAST fire'ing.  I think I have enough and this job is just icing on the cake. 

But, I'm not retiring early unfortunately.  I could retire now if I wanted to though.  Just too much uncertainties with the market at the moment.

I feel like coast FIRE implies a high level of optimism: "this will grow to enough by the time I turn 65, I just need to earn enough to support myself." And SWAMI implies a level of enthusiasm about one's work. Then there are those who are basically FI here and now, but don't fully trust the math or the expected spending, and so choose to cover expenses, but aren't going to be too worried if they can't from year to year...we have chosen this middle ground that best fits the term coast FIRE, but doesn't quite share in it's optimism.

It's all pretty arbitrary.

I consider anything to be CoastFI if you continue to work because you aren't totally comfortable not having income anymore. Whether that is because you haven't hit your arbitrary FI target or because you have hit it but have decided to move the goal posts for whatever reason. Regardless, you choose to keep *earning*.

If someone is a SWAMI, they're just someone who is satisfied working. They might be coasting, they might just be working and donating every penny they earn, the point is they enjoy the work. You choose to keep *working*

Choosing to keep earning and choosing to keep working are related concepts, but not equivalent.

I consider myself to be Coasting until a point that I just don't care about warning anymore. At that point, I won't stop working, just might convert all of my work energy to non-profit work, or donate all of my additional income.

What you have described sounds like coasting to me. You have saved up a bunch of money, but not enough to feel safe enough to stop earning, so you're going to keep earning to a degree that allows your savings to grow to where you will be comfortable.

Since your FI number was made up in the first place, it's not a real target, hitting it doesn't actually mean anything. It's what you thought would make you feel secure enough, but it isn't, so you are working towards that target instead.

No different from someone who works towards their savings goal and finds an amount that they're comfortable with, whether that's more or less or exactly what their initial estimate from years ago was.

That was just an estimate, not a prediction.

But even then, the concept of feeling "safe" is completely relative to how safe the person feels continuing to work.  So even that isn't a number. It's the relative security provided by more money compared to the relative security provided by not working.

If you like your job, there's little risk in working. If you hate your job and it's destroying your physical well being (see the PT thread, the burnout threads, etc), then the risk of the work can easily outweigh the risk of more wealth, and can therefore move the goalposts down instead of up.

So coasting isn't about optimism, it's just the balance of factors. The person wants to continue growing their 'stache, is okay with continuing to work to do so, but doesn't want to work at their max capacity anymore.

Whether that's motivated by optimism, pessimism, or whatever doesn't matter. It's all about the balance of risks and benefits of both money and work.

[pdxvandal]

Hey, mspym ... sent you a quick PM.

I’m what I call “proofreader FI” - I’m 90% of the way there and can make enough from a combination of dividends, proofreading gigs, and cash in the bank that I can make it to the point where we move countries and my expenses halve, where I am fully FI.

[SnipTheDog]

I feel like coast FIRE implies a high level of optimism: "this will grow to enough by the time I turn 65, I just need to earn enough to support myself." And SWAMI implies a level of enthusiasm about one's work. Then there are those who are basically FI here and now, but don't fully trust the math or the expected spending, and so choose to cover expenses, but aren't going to be too worried if they can't from year to year...we have chosen this middle ground that best fits the term coast FIRE, but doesn't quite share in it's optimism.

I've hit my arbitrary number.  I'm making a good salary with health insurance paid for, so that's big thing.

I hit full retirement in about 8 years.  I have a lot of money tied up in my house, but it does provide me a fairly cheap place to live in HCOL area.  When I sell the house or rent it out, I'll be finally retire and move on to other interests.

[Telecaster]

I'm just going to throw this out there:  I'm self-employed and my work motivation for the last 15 years was 110%.  I worked nights, weekends, and vacations.  Throttle to the firewall.  My plan was at retirement I would work occasionally, basically CoastFIRE.   Keep myself a little busy, and the extra income really boosts the SWR.

Welp, now I am retired, the desire to work went to 0.0.   I am kind of shocked how I went from 110% to zero in almost no time.

[JupiterGreen]

I'm just going to throw this out there:  I'm self-employed and my work motivation for the last 15 years was 110%.  I worked nights, weekends, and vacations.  Throttle to the firewall.  My plan was at retirement I would work occasionally, basically CoastFIRE.   Keep myself a little busy, and the extra income really boosts the SWR.

Welp, now I am retired, the desire to work went to 0.0.   I am kind of shocked how I went from 110% to zero in almost no time.

This is interesting, my partner is a bonafide workaholic. It shall be interesting to see if he follows the same path as you. I’m not even convinced he’ll ever really retire.

Edit: thank you @Malcat that was kind!

[Metalcat]

I'm just going to throw this out there:  I'm self-employed and my work motivation for the last 15 years was 110%.  I worked nights, weekends, and vacations.  Throttle to the firewall.  My plan was at retirement I would work occasionally, basically CoastFIRE.   Keep myself a little busy, and the extra income really boosts the SWR.

Welp, now I am retired, the desire to work went to 0.0.   I am kind of shocked how I went from 110% to zero in almost no time.

This is interesting, my partner is a bonafide workaholic. It shall be interesting to see if he follows the same path as you. I’m not even convinced he’ll ever really retire.

Edit: thank you @Malcat that was kind!

Whether he retires or not will depend on what he gets out of work and what that means to him over time.

Being a "workaholic" has the distinct connotation though that the person is pathological and dedicates too much of their available resources to work projects to the detriment of their overall well being and the well being of their family.

If that's the case, then he's very likely to crash and burnout eventually.

It all comes down to *why* he works the way he does. What benefit goes he get from it. What does he think he would lose by not working this way?

I'm not actually asking these questions, just shooting the shit about what motivates people.

[Metalcat]

I'm glad you started this thread because I though COAST fire was something else. I think we are technically COAST FIRE since we have enough saved now to retire at 65 and cover our expenses (and then some). We are planning to retire early but not that early (50s). We may pick up some part time work once we pull the trigger, I'm almost certain my partner will. Our current plan is to retire in 2027, we could leave now if we wanted to count on the COAST $ to grow, but we'd have to pick up part time work to fund the in between time. My philosophy is that I want to be done when we are done, if we decide to work that's fine, but I don't want to have to rely on it. The truth is, we love our current jobs and our schedules are already really good (but we hate where we live). We get a good break every year so the drama etc. is easy to shake off with some time away from work so that part is okay. With that said, it feels really good to have our COAST number, it helps us not invest too much in the office politics. COAST FIRE is great because it give you peace of mind. We are going to try to have a bit more fun with these last 4 or so years and not be so stingy and take advantage of any opportunities our work offers before we separate.

Curious as to what you thought it was? retiring on the coast?

embarrassing to admit, but yes! I figured it costs more to live on the coast so maybe it makes sense to label the distinction. For whatever reason it just didn't register, but now it makes perfect sense.  Judge me as harshly as you see fit :)

You aren't alone! There was a thread awhile back about Coast FIRE, Barista FIRE, Lean FIRE, Fat FIRE and regular FIRE and many people thought Coast FIRE meant Working longer so they could retire to an expensive coastal town!

I have my own definition of each and think coast FIRE just means you have enough invested at an earlier age that, if left untouched and no new money is added to that stash, will grow large enough to provide a retirement income when older. So all you need to do is earn enough to cover you living expenses until then. I think Barista FIRE is basicly the same.

It is, but with the very specific implication that you will pick up lower-pay, lower-skill work as needed. I'm personally not a fan of the label BaristaFIRE because I think it was created by the same folks who are weirdly convinced that if they leave their careers, the only options available to them to make money will be low-skill, entry level jobs.

I've lost count how many times I've seen people utterly convinced that their professional value will basically evaporate forever in a puff of smoke just because they wouldn't have the option to go back to their specific, highly compensated career.

It drives me batty how limiting so many people's thinking is. Meanwhile, the world of casual/part time/flexible paid work is absolutely, astronomically massive to the point of being essentially limitless.

[weebs]

Depending on the day, we're SWAMIs or coasting.  I recently wrapped up an engagement with a financial planner in which the primary goal was to have a second non-biased pair of eyes look over our numbers and vet my plan.  TL;DR - we could pull the plug now at our current burn rate.  Working another 2.75 years and saving at our current rate puts us in a position to spend 2.x our current burn for the first 12 years of our retirement, after which our pensions and social security kick in, enabling us to rely on something other than the stash for income.  DH is most definitely not ready to call it quits, nor am I (for different reasons).  At this point, we're working to pad our travel and toy budget.  I realize having more stuff runs contrary to the MMM manifesto, but we recently traded my wife's bougie car on a truck that we'll use to tow a camper.  It was a reality check (in a good way) to cut a check for the difference and not worry about it impacting our plan.  However, it showed me that I need to work on unwinding certain behaviors.  Despite being in a good place to write that check, it still stressed me the hell out.

[Arbitrage]

We are coast-FIRE right now.  It wasn't the original plan (which was full FIRE), but has proved to be a godsend.  For us, coast-FIRE means that we kept our original jobs but switched to fully remote, moved out of state to the location we planned to retire in, and dropped down to part-time work.  It's pretty great.

We are in our mid-40s and do not plan to maintain the part-time work for the next couple of decades to get to traditional retirement age.  Coast-FIRE is a means to an end - we were not at the level of financial strength I really wanted to be for FIRE, but simultaneously I really wanted to move as quickly as we could to let the kids get re-established while they were still young.  Coupled with the market downturn and inflation spike, I'd be sweating bullets if we hadn't had the part-time work as a lifeline.  History says we probably would've been fine - we'll see - but I'm glad that I didn't have to deal with the financial stress on top of the stress of relocating my family. 

[mistymoney]

I'm just going to throw this out there:  I'm self-employed and my work motivation for the last 15 years was 110%.  I worked nights, weekends, and vacations.  Throttle to the firewall.  My plan was at retirement I would work occasionally, basically CoastFIRE.   Keep myself a little busy, and the extra income really boosts the SWR.

Welp, now I am retired, the desire to work went to 0.0.   I am kind of shocked how I went from 110% to zero in almost no time.

can you define in almost no time? days....weeks.....a few months? 6 months? assuming no longer than that.

[ixtap]

I'm glad you started this thread because I though COAST fire was something else. I think we are technically COAST FIRE since we have enough saved now to retire at 65 and cover our expenses (and then some). We are planning to retire early but not that early (50s). We may pick up some part time work once we pull the trigger, I'm almost certain my partner will. Our current plan is to retire in 2027, we could leave now if we wanted to count on the COAST $ to grow, but we'd have to pick up part time work to fund the in between time. My philosophy is that I want to be done when we are done, if we decide to work that's fine, but I don't want to have to rely on it. The truth is, we love our current jobs and our schedules are already really good (but we hate where we live). We get a good break every year so the drama etc. is easy to shake off with some time away from work so that part is okay. With that said, it feels really good to have our COAST number, it helps us not invest too much in the office politics. COAST FIRE is great because it give you peace of mind. We are going to try to have a bit more fun with these last 4 or so years and not be so stingy and take advantage of any opportunities our work offers before we separate.

Curious as to what you thought it was? retiring on the coast?

embarrassing to admit, but yes! I figured it costs more to live on the coast so maybe it makes sense to label the distinction. For whatever reason it just didn't register, but now it makes perfect sense.  Judge me as harshly as you see fit :)

You aren't alone! There was a thread awhile back about Coast FIRE, Barista FIRE, Lean FIRE, Fat FIRE and regular FIRE and many people thought Coast FIRE meant Working longer so they could retire to an expensive coastal town!

I have my own definition of each and think coast FIRE just means you have enough invested at an earlier age that, if left untouched and no new money is added to that stash, will grow large enough to provide a retirement income when older. So all you need to do is earn enough to cover you living expenses until then. I think Barista FIRE is basicly the same.

It is, but with the very specific implication that you will pick up lower-pay, lower-skill work as needed. I'm personally not a fan of the label BaristaFIRE because I think it was created by the same folks who are weirdly convinced that if they leave their careers, the only options available to them to make money will be low-skill, entry level jobs.

I've lost count how many times I've seen people utterly convinced that their professional value will basically evaporate forever in a puff of smoke just because they wouldn't have the option to go back to their specific, highly compensated career.

It drives me batty how limiting so many people's thinking is. Meanwhile, the world of casual/part time/flexible paid work is absolutely, astronomically massive to the point of being essentially limitless.

My issue with barista FIRE is that implies that service industry jobs are low stress...

[mistymoney]

I'm glad you started this thread because I though COAST fire was something else. I think we are technically COAST FIRE since we have enough saved now to retire at 65 and cover our expenses (and then some). We are planning to retire early but not that early (50s). We may pick up some part time work once we pull the trigger, I'm almost certain my partner will. Our current plan is to retire in 2027, we could leave now if we wanted to count on the COAST $ to grow, but we'd have to pick up part time work to fund the in between time. My philosophy is that I want to be done when we are done, if we decide to work that's fine, but I don't want to have to rely on it. The truth is, we love our current jobs and our schedules are already really good (but we hate where we live). We get a good break every year so the drama etc. is easy to shake off with some time away from work so that part is okay. With that said, it feels really good to have our COAST number, it helps us not invest too much in the office politics. COAST FIRE is great because it give you peace of mind. We are going to try to have a bit more fun with these last 4 or so years and not be so stingy and take advantage of any opportunities our work offers before we separate.

Curious as to what you thought it was? retiring on the coast?

embarrassing to admit, but yes! I figured it costs more to live on the coast so maybe it makes sense to label the distinction. For whatever reason it just didn't register, but now it makes perfect sense.  Judge me as harshly as you see fit :)

You aren't alone! There was a thread awhile back about Coast FIRE, Barista FIRE, Lean FIRE, Fat FIRE and regular FIRE and many people thought Coast FIRE meant Working longer so they could retire to an expensive coastal town!

I have my own definition of each and think coast FIRE just means you have enough invested at an earlier age that, if left untouched and no new money is added to that stash, will grow large enough to provide a retirement income when older. So all you need to do is earn enough to cover you living expenses until then. I think Barista FIRE is basicly the same.

It is, but with the very specific implication that you will pick up lower-pay, lower-skill work as needed. I'm personally not a fan of the label BaristaFIRE because I think it was created by the same folks who are weirdly convinced that if they leave their careers, the only options available to them to make money will be low-skill, entry level jobs.

I've lost count how many times I've seen people utterly convinced that their professional value will basically evaporate forever in a puff of smoke just because they wouldn't have the option to go back to their specific, highly compensated career.

It drives me batty how limiting so many people's thinking is. Meanwhile, the world of casual/part time/flexible paid work is absolutely, astronomically massive to the point of being essentially limitless.

My issue with barista FIRE is that implies that service industry jobs are low stress...

Interesting! I think there are a lot of points here to here to unpack. A few that are salient to me:

One of the appealing things for me in doing that kind of work is that after you clock out the shift is done and long ago when I had those types of jobs when the shift was done the only work related thought was when I had to punch back in again.

Also - if baristafire, rather than paycheck to paycheck, I would think the stress of those positions is a lot different.

OTOH: sooooo many customers are flying off the handle these day. Like they are guaranteed perfect service at all times and no one else in the world is actually a fellow human being. So that is something that I think a lot of service workers are dealing with. That said - is it that much more than it used to be? or just videoed and posted and tending to go viral, so now rather than just witnessing whatever happens with starbucks customers for the 1-2 hours a week we may visit one - we now may witness any rude customer shananigans that may happen at any of the over 15000 starbucks that exist in the US. IDK!

[Metalcat]

I'm glad you started this thread because I though COAST fire was something else. I think we are technically COAST FIRE since we have enough saved now to retire at 65 and cover our expenses (and then some). We are planning to retire early but not that early (50s). We may pick up some part time work once we pull the trigger, I'm almost certain my partner will. Our current plan is to retire in 2027, we could leave now if we wanted to count on the COAST $ to grow, but we'd have to pick up part time work to fund the in between time. My philosophy is that I want to be done when we are done, if we decide to work that's fine, but I don't want to have to rely on it. The truth is, we love our current jobs and our schedules are already really good (but we hate where we live). We get a good break every year so the drama etc. is easy to shake off with some time away from work so that part is okay. With that said, it feels really good to have our COAST number, it helps us not invest too much in the office politics. COAST FIRE is great because it give you peace of mind. We are going to try to have a bit more fun with these last 4 or so years and not be so stingy and take advantage of any opportunities our work offers before we separate.

Curious as to what you thought it was? retiring on the coast?

embarrassing to admit, but yes! I figured it costs more to live on the coast so maybe it makes sense to label the distinction. For whatever reason it just didn't register, but now it makes perfect sense.  Judge me as harshly as you see fit :)

You aren't alone! There was a thread awhile back about Coast FIRE, Barista FIRE, Lean FIRE, Fat FIRE and regular FIRE and many people thought Coast FIRE meant Working longer so they could retire to an expensive coastal town!

I have my own definition of each and think coast FIRE just means you have enough invested at an earlier age that, if left untouched and no new money is added to that stash, will grow large enough to provide a retirement income when older. So all you need to do is earn enough to cover you living expenses until then. I think Barista FIRE is basicly the same.

It is, but with the very specific implication that you will pick up lower-pay, lower-skill work as needed. I'm personally not a fan of the label BaristaFIRE because I think it was created by the same folks who are weirdly convinced that if they leave their careers, the only options available to them to make money will be low-skill, entry level jobs.

I've lost count how many times I've seen people utterly convinced that their professional value will basically evaporate forever in a puff of smoke just because they wouldn't have the option to go back to their specific, highly compensated career.

It drives me batty how limiting so many people's thinking is. Meanwhile, the world of casual/part time/flexible paid work is absolutely, astronomically massive to the point of being essentially limitless.

My issue with barista FIRE is that implies that service industry jobs are low stress...

Interesting! I think there are a lot of points here to here to unpack. A few that are salient to me:

One of the appealing things for me in doing that kind of work is that after you clock out the shift is done and long ago when I had those types of jobs when the shift was done the only work related thought was when I had to punch back in again.

Also - if baristafire, rather than paycheck to paycheck, I would think the stress of those positions is a lot different.

OTOH: sooooo many customers are flying off the handle these day. Like they are guaranteed perfect service at all times and no one else in the world is actually a fellow human being. So that is something that I think a lot of service workers are dealing with. That said - is it that much more than it used to be? or just videoed and posted and tending to go viral, so now rather than just witnessing whatever happens with starbucks customers for the 1-2 hours a week we may visit one - we now may witness any rude customer shananigans that may happen at any of the over 15000 starbucks that exist in the US. IDK!

There is a lot of work like this. My most high paying, most senior jobs were ones where I could clock out at the end of the day. In fact, every top, top executive I know religiously clocks out at 4pm and doesn't check their phone. So this lifestyle is not exclusive to low-skilled jobs.

As for customer facing roles being worse right now? Yes, since the pandemic began, they are objectively worse, there's no question. I've been in or around customer service my entire life, and I've never seen anything like what my parents (high end retail) and my health professional colleagues have been through for the past few years. Fucking total insanity.

It honestly makes me grateful that I lost my career when I did. If you have to lose your life's work, it's best to do it when that life's work suddenly becomes massively shitty.

[Telecaster]

I'm just going to throw this out there:  I'm self-employed and my work motivation for the last 15 years was 110%.  I worked nights, weekends, and vacations.  Throttle to the firewall.  My plan was at retirement I would work occasionally, basically CoastFIRE.   Keep myself a little busy, and the extra income really boosts the SWR.

Welp, now I am retired, the desire to work went to 0.0.   I am kind of shocked how I went from 110% to zero in almost no time.

can you define in almost no time? days....weeks.....a few months? 6 months? assuming no longer than that.

No more than a couple months.  I should say, I'm in a position where I can easily do reasonably paid part time work.   My plan was to slow down a bunch and then taper off gradually.   But I discovered somewhat accidently that I enjoyed waking up a lot more on days when I had no external plans than on days when I did, even if only needed to work a couple hours.   At that point, my motivation for external paid work just sort of evaporated.   

[Holocene]

I'm working part-time 20 hours a week, but probably more SWAMI than coast FIRE.  I hit my made up FI number at some point last year.  I had planned to try the RE part this year, but I was struggling with this a bit and this idea popped into my head after I'd given my notice.  I asked for 6 months off and then to switch to part-time in a new role that I thought I'd enjoy.  I'm still surprised they went for it but here I am... Just goes to show that when you don't really need the job and are willing to walk away, you can be a lot more picky in getting what you want.  I also had a good reputation of being a hard worker and getting stuff done in my decade+ with the company, so I'm sure that didn't hurt either.

The extended time off work was amazing.  I've been back for a bit over a month now and things are going well.  I'm enjoying the work so far.  The work week goes by quickly and then I get another 4 days off...every week!  It's more fun than my old job and I still feel like I have a lot of free time.  I can't imagine going back to a full-time job again.

I'm sure I could've downshifted to this part-time job quite a bit earlier before I actually hit FI and coasted the rest of the way.  I'd definitely recommend it to anyone who's burnt out or needs a change.  If you can find something you like that allows you to work less hours, coast FIRE makes a lot of sense.

[Purple_Crayon]

A few years ago, I started looking at the number of days I work per year (240), vs. the number of days I normally get (mostly) away from work (125). The proportion was not something I thought was psychologically ideal for me, considering that I have a fairly finite amount of time (he said, as he stared at the Rich, Broke, Dead calculator). I started toying with the thought of three days per week (closer to 230 days away vs. 135 days at work). I recently reached out to folks I've worked for before, told them I planned on making a switch in the next year or two, and asked them if they could hypothetically use me only Mon through Wed for 50% of my old salary. They quickly said if I'm serious, and I still feel that way when the time comes, they would absolutely be interested. I don't know why, but I thought it'd be much harder to find a good CoastFIRE situation. The only issue is, now I kinda want to do it right now! I'm currently at about 22x spending, but want to get to at least 25x before making any changes (cuz I'm a scaredy cat).

A version of CoastFIRE shaped like what I wrote above is definitely part of my optimal plan -- cover our expenses, work from different locales to see what areas may merit longer re-visits, pad the stash, AND get a 4-day weekend every week to spend time on all the things I fail to cram into the actual time I get now. Seems like the perfect way to feel comfortable (and guilt free) with giving myself the gift of time.

[Metalcat]

A few years ago, I started looking at the number of days I work per year (240), vs. the number of days I normally get (mostly) away from work (125). The proportion was not something I thought was psychologically ideal for me, considering that I have a fairly finite amount of time (he said, as he stared at the Rich, Broke, Dead calculator). I started toying with the thought of three days per week (closer to 230 days away vs. 135 days at work). I recently reached out to folks I've worked for before, told them I planned on making a switch in the next year or two, and asked them if they could hypothetically use me only Mon through Wed for 50% of my old salary. They quickly said if I'm serious, and I still feel that way when the time comes, they would absolutely be interested. I don't know why, but I thought it'd be much harder to find a good CoastFIRE situation. The only issue is, now I kinda want to do it right now! I'm currently at about 22x spending, but want to get to at least 25x before making any changes (cuz I'm a scaredy cat).

A version of CoastFIRE shaped like what I wrote above is definitely part of my optimal plan -- cover our expenses, work from different locales to see what areas may merit longer re-visits, pad the stash, AND get a 4-day weekend every week to spend time on all the things I fail to cram into the actual time I get now. Seems like the perfect way to feel comfortable (and guilt free) with giving myself the gift of time.

Why would there be any guilt?

[hollaynia]

The only issue is, now I kinda want to do it right now! I'm currently at about 22x spending, but want to get to at least 25x before making any changes (cuz I'm a scaredy cat).

A version of CoastFIRE shaped like what I wrote above is definitely part of my optimal plan -- cover our expenses, work from different locales to see what areas may merit longer re-visits, pad the stash, AND get a 4-day weekend every week to spend time on all the things I fail to cram into the actual time I get now. Seems like the perfect way to feel comfortable (and guilt free) with giving myself the gift of time.

Don't wait, do it now! Calculate how long it will push back your FIRE date. If you're at 22x, I'm going to guess it's going to be only a few months. Plus, I'm going to guess that because you call yourself a "scaredy cat" you will be very susceptible to OMY syndrome anyway. Start living your relaxed life now!

I work 3 days a week (20 hours total) currently. It is so much better than full time.

[StarBright]

Planning to cut the stressful job cord a year from now and coastFIRE. December 31, 2023!

For me, coastFIRE will probably look a lot like being a stay at home parent while I decompress. I know many people would not count that as coastFIRE but I absolutely do.

 I have been working since I was 13 and started my first retirement account as soon as I was 18. I was the sole and then primary wage earner in our household for years while my husband did multiple graduate degrees and then spent time finding a tenure track job. Now we are about 60/40 in earnings (maybe even closer to 55/45 since hubs took on a nice side hustle this year) and once we hit 50/50 we should be able to cover almost everything on his salary.

I need a break, and have sizeable retirement and college savings for the kids. So for all intents and purposes, once we can live off hus's income - I'm coastfi and will have more than I need retirement-wise when I hit 59.5. 

 

[weebs]

I recently reached out to folks I've worked for before, told them I planned on making a switch in the next year or two, and asked them if they could hypothetically use me only Mon through Wed for 50% of my old salary. They quickly said if I'm serious, and I still feel that way when the time comes, they would absolutely be interested. I don't know why, but I thought it'd be much harder to find a good CoastFIRE situation.

That's an ideal situation.  Would they provide health insurance?  I'd ask for 60% of your old salary if you're going to work 3 full days.  :-)

[Purple_Crayon]

A few years ago, I started looking at the number of days I work per year (240), vs. the number of days I normally get (mostly) away from work (125). The proportion was not something I thought was psychologically ideal for me, considering that I have a fairly finite amount of time (he said, as he stared at the Rich, Broke, Dead calculator). I started toying with the thought of three days per week (closer to 230 days away vs. 135 days at work). I recently reached out to folks I've worked for before, told them I planned on making a switch in the next year or two, and asked them if they could hypothetically use me only Mon through Wed for 50% of my old salary. They quickly said if I'm serious, and I still feel that way when the time comes, they would absolutely be interested. I don't know why, but I thought it'd be much harder to find a good CoastFIRE situation. The only issue is, now I kinda want to do it right now! I'm currently at about 22x spending, but want to get to at least 25x before making any changes (cuz I'm a scaredy cat).

A version of CoastFIRE shaped like what I wrote above is definitely part of my optimal plan -- cover our expenses, work from different locales to see what areas may merit longer re-visits, pad the stash, AND get a 4-day weekend every week to spend time on all the things I fail to cram into the actual time I get now. Seems like the perfect way to feel comfortable (and guilt free) with giving myself the gift of time.

Why would there be any guilt?

Mostly I feel like my family and friends would either think me lazy or braggy or some other adjective that would make me feel bad. I really really should learn to tune that all out.

The only issue is, now I kinda want to do it right now! I'm currently at about 22x spending, but want to get to at least 25x before making any changes (cuz I'm a scaredy cat).

A version of CoastFIRE shaped like what I wrote above is definitely part of my optimal plan -- cover our expenses, work from different locales to see what areas may merit longer re-visits, pad the stash, AND get a 4-day weekend every week to spend time on all the things I fail to cram into the actual time I get now. Seems like the perfect way to feel comfortable (and guilt free) with giving myself the gift of time.

Don't wait, do it now! Calculate how long it will push back your FIRE date. If you're at 22x, I'm going to guess it's going to be only a few months. Plus, I'm going to guess that because you call yourself a "scaredy cat" you will be very susceptible to OMY syndrome anyway. Start living your relaxed life now!

I work 3 days a week (20 hours total) currently. It is so much better than full time.

I have already been susceptible to OMY syndrome and other scaredy cat things. For sure. My actual spending for the last 3 years has been $28k, but I'm budgeting for $40k. So when I say I'm at 22x, it's 22x of a hypothetical budget that likely exceeds reality. So mostly, thank you for your encouragement. It's brave souls like you that make me feel better about the water being fine.

I recently reached out to folks I've worked for before, told them I planned on making a switch in the next year or two, and asked them if they could hypothetically use me only Mon through Wed for 50% of my old salary. They quickly said if I'm serious, and I still feel that way when the time comes, they would absolutely be interested. I don't know why, but I thought it'd be much harder to find a good CoastFIRE situation.

That's an ideal situation.  Would they provide health insurance?  I'd ask for 60% of your old salary if you're going to work 3 full days.  :-)

The former colleague I spoke to was the head of a subsidiary that a former employer owned, so he likely has a lot of hiring flexibility. He basically made it sound like they'd hire me as "full time" from a benefits perspective, but only expect me to be available and putting in time Mon through Wed. Also, 60% should likely be what I asked for, but I felt like they'd be doing me a pretty big solid just be accommodating my request. Perhaps I need to reframe my thinking there in general.