Why are you even interested in doing this?

[puglogic]

I am trying to get my mind around why it's so important for me to live The Mustachian Way, if for no other reason than to be able to explain it in less than a thousand words to someone who asks.  I know we all have a lot in common, but we also have different motivations.

For example, for ME, the changes I'm making in my lifestyle have to do with:
---Having time freedom, getting off the murderous treadmill of commutes, to-do lists, and somebody else's expectations
---Working less but having that work be producing something that matters, something I'll be proud of when I look back
---Building a community, including family, friends, neighbors, etc., instead of never even having time to say "hi"
---Having my life MEAN something....rather than dying with nothing to show for it but a bunch of crap in the landfill

I'm interested in why other people do this - in what they're hoping to change, how they're hoping to be happier.

Care to share?   Got a minute?

[Cwadda]

All of those. Also, getting enjoyment out of the things I already have - so buying more consumerist things isn't necessary.

[jscott2135]

I want to live the Mustachian way because I want to have memories instead of things.  I want to be closer to my own food and the food I feed my family. I want to make a positive impact on the earth before I leave and I want to raise my kids to respect it as well.  I want to place a much high value on people and personal relationships rather than consume more and more goods.  Mostly because I feel like we were conditioned to exploit one another and our planet, leading to lives devoid or starving from lack of personal relationships and a connection with the planet around us.  The financial security aspect is important but its the whole picture and how these interlace that make me feel this is economically sound, environmentally sustainable and personally rewarding path.

[Ms. Peachfuzz]

I'm doing this so I can work for myself and actually be proud of what I produce. Working for my company everything always comes in last minute and I have to cut corners to get the projects done on time which leaves me tired and stressed at the end of the day. Right now I don't even want to work on my own projects since work is souring me on the field I (used to) love.

[dragoncar]

Mostly to meet women

[Tyler]

Simply put -- to maximize freedom of choice in my life by eliminating common obligations (debt, work schedules, etc) that do not consistently contribute to my personal happiness and well being. 

[soccerluvof4]

 as Mel Gibson said in Braveheart- FREEDOM!!!!!!

[dragoncar]

Mostly to meet women

I thought you had a Lady Dragoncar already?

Ha I do.  Thems the jokes

[MrFancypants]

freedom

[dodojojo]

FIRE is pretty much not going to happen for me.  Unless I win the lottery/treble my income soon/go extreme and live in a very low cost area.   I'm city-folk through and through so the latter isn't happening any time soon or ever.

No, I've always been financially moderate because I grew up poor and I'm pretty much on my own since I stand to inherit zero.  I also support my mother on an ad hoc basis and in a couple of years, will likely become her primary source of income as she retires on a meager social security income.  I also have a financial deadbeat sibling who I partially support via my mother.

So I've turned to this site to further hone my financial moderation in hopes I can retire in my mid-late 60's.  Prior to coming on this site, I thought working to my dying day was basically my future.

I'm also financially moderate as I can't bear the thought of being stressed by or trapped in a financial hole.  I have been out of work a couple of times in my life for longish durations (3-6 months) and though it wasn't great to be unemployed, I didn't have to talk myself off a ledge since I had saved enough to see me through unemployment.  I was underemployed for over a year as I chose to intern and was then hired on as a lowly paid assistant in a field of interest (I then left to do my masters in the field).  Don't think it would have been feasible without living low on the hog and having savings in the bank.

[mh1361]

Spend more time living out my faith, time with family, kids, traveling, just having fun in general, doing work that I look forward to and get excited about.

[jscott2135]

Ahhh, I forgot, I value efficiency! And to me the Mustachian lifestyle is all about maximising efficiency (income, savings, home energy, etc etc)

[Cheddar Stacker]

-I take the path/road less traveled. Always have, and always will. I don't like rules or expectations, so I want to make my own.

-I want the freedom to enjoy life however I see fit. The commitment to my job gets in the way and uses up most of my energy.

-Happiness. Reading MMM and the forums has made me realize how unhappy I'd recently become on the treadmill of life. I have a new outlook, and it feels great. If you haven't read BNL's post on 2/24/14 http://www.bravenewlife.com/02/financial-independence-enabling-a-life-worth-living/ this won't make sense, but I feel like my first "life" has been over for a couple years and I'm ready for the next one. The MMM lifestyle is providing my next life, and FI will provide the next one after that.

-I've always been afraid of failure of all kinds (fail a test, lose a game, don't get the job, get fired, etc.). FI should provide enough cushion that any financial failure would just a blip on the radar.

-I've known people pushed out of jobs when they weren't ready for retirement or prepared for a lack of income. I don't want to be one of those people.

[Beridian]

as Mel Gibson said in Braveheart- FREEDOM!!!!!!

You beat me to it!   Picture Mel Gibson with blue paint on his face, long hair down to his shoulders, holding a sword up in the air, and wearing a tartan kilt...FREEDOM!...FREEDOM!....FREEEEEEEEEDOMMM!

I am 54 years old and I think I am finally beginning to get it.  I am tired of fearing that my job will be eliminated.  I am tired of jumping through hoops to please other people in the name of maintaining some semblance of security.  I want to be free.   In the past I used to feel like a circus performer spinning plates on sticks, jumping around from plate to plate and giving them some extra spin lest they all crash to the ground.  And for what?   Mostly for stupid silly crap that now clogs my closets and garage.  I finally get that I can attain FREEDOM by freeing myself from all the stupid spending and wasteful habits that kept me enslaved for all these years.

[horsepoor]

Because being badass is... badass.

I'm not really looking to FIRE, though I want to be set up to take advantage if there are part time work or early retirement opportunities for me when I'm 50 or so.  For the short term, I want to get closer to surfing the front of the financial wave - getting rid of payments that suck up a good portion of my pay each month, and start splitting that money between a nice 'stash and some more meaningful things/experiences like traveling with my husband and doing fun things with my horses.

It is also a worthwhile exercise for me to work on streamlining and not having a lot of crap weighing me down and complicating my life.

[puglogic]

-I take the path/road less traveled. Always have, and always will. I don't like rules or expectations, so I want to make my own.

Here here.

And here:



Ah, but I do.   I do.

[Milspecstache]

I've always been pretty frugal as I try not to value 'stuff' nor do I want to be valued by others for my 'stuff'.

Lately I've been focusing more on trying to reach FI for myself and for the benefit of my family.  This site really helps in that regard.

Lots of smart, got-it-together (or at least getting-it-together) individuals on this forum so it is a very refreshing change from the conversations I have with nearly every other person in my life.  Everyone else seems content to go with the flow, maxing out credit cards and working forever.

[Kriegsspiel]

I'm going to achieve FI early as the ultimate practical joke. They'll never see it coming.

[Zikoris]

Unwillingness to participate in a consumer society.

I'm not willing to hire people to do things I can easily do myself, like cook, clean, make and repair clothes,or transport me around.

I'm not willing to contribute to that Garbage Plastic Island thing in the middle of the pacific ocean.

I'm not willing to participate in the high-rent nonsense that's common in Vancouver. I won't pay more than $800 for an apartment. I simply won't. Paying outrageous rents tells landlords it's acceptable for them to charge outrageous rents.

The fun side effect of opting out of consuming is that you end up with a whole lot of money.

[jscott2135]

Cheddar Stacked, it's possible we were separated at birth.  Couldn't have said it better.  Now off to read the link!

[Chuck]

I hate working and am a generally lazy person. FI sounds like heaven.

[Khao]

I've had many good examples of being a normal consumer adult with a life centered around his career and I know that it doesn't bring happiness so I want to do what brings me happines instead.

[pachnik]

I am doing it because I don't know what my future holds.  I am a middle-aged woman with job skills that are in demand.  But i do know that people can get laid off and older workers have a harder time finding work.   I am definitely in the older workers category now.  If this happens to me, I want to be prepared and I don't want to look back and say to myself "Well, if I hadn't been spending $2.00/day on coffee for the last 10 years, I could have had an extra $10,000.00 in my RRSP".

Plus, I now have goals and have become more goal-oriented since finding this website.  Having financial goals rather than just floating around wasting money is much more satisfying.  What I am trying to say is that MMM has given me financial direction.

I am too old to RE but being ready for what happens next can't hurt.

[MDM]

I remember 40 years ago it seemed I was frequently asked "what do you want to be when you grow up?"  Being your average kid, I'd mumble "I dunno" but it must have been a nosy neighborhood because the adults would usually persist for a specific answer.

Then, don't remember how, I came up with the answer "independently wealthy".  That was good for a laugh, and even better it stopped the questions.

Fast forward 39 years, during which I forgot about the "independently wealthy" thing, and did the go to college/get a job/marry/have kids/continue to make good money while doing  "ok" at the work-life balance thing.  At which time due to internal company politics, the job became more frustrating than fun so I shocked the family by retiring.

A year later I've had a perfectly wonderful time doing things I want to do instead of have to do.  The family is happily over the shock as well.  And finally it occurred to me that (due to saving a large fraction of income for most of those years) I had in fact fulfilled that flippant middle school response after all.

For a shorter answer to this thread's question, see the first sentence of the preceding paragraph.

[ShortInSeattle]

I want to feel secure as in "pretty much set for life." The need to earn money to survive is a source of pressure and worry I'd like to be without. I want to be "done" and breathe a huge sigh of relief.

I want to spend more time with my hubby.

I want that "summer vacation" feeling back. Permanently.

Life is short. Why not spend it doing the things you wanna do?

[bugbaby]

For me it's
TIME - to do what I like, be with my kids
FREEDOM - to work on my terms on things I believe in, to escape the life-sucking aspects of my job
MONEY - to give to causes I care about, provide for my kids

[steveo]

I hate working and am a generally lazy person. FI sounds like heaven.

I am basically like this but I'm not really lazy. I like to fill my days with stuff I'm interested in. My ideal day involves reading, posting on the Internet, playing chess on the Internet, doing jiu-jitsu, eating well and maybe getting laid.

I also don't really give a fuck about consumerism.

[Kriegsspiel]

chess.com, WesternWatch. Money, where your... mouth is... But not...

Ok, so imagine your teeth are. bills...... Ok, no, just, if you go there, it's all free.. Alright, it's like you DO have chess teeth, and you can chew up other stuff. As in, imagine the chess-bill-teeth are VERY STRONG, like a mineral.  And you just do, because FUCK ALL THOSE OTHER KIDS THAT MADE FUN OF YOU AT RECESS! NOW WHO LIVES IN A TRAILER!

[wtjbatman]

chess.com, WesternWatch. Money, where your... mouth is... But not...

Ok, so imagine your teeth are. bills...... Ok, no, just, if you go there, it's all free.. Alright, it's like you DO have chess teeth, and you can chew up other stuff. As in, imagine the chess-bill-teeth are VERY STRONG, like a mineral.  And you just do, because FUCK ALL THOSE OTHER KIDS THAT MADE FUN OF YOU AT RECESS! NOW WHO LIVES IN A TRAILER!

Kids, this is why you shouldn't drink and post. :D

[meadow lark]

I just wrote a post about this on my blog called "Why this is worth thinking about."    It is because social equality and economic equality are related.  And money is power and influence and I want my beliefs (about making the world a better place, or whatever) to have at least middle class weight.  And I think materialism is shallow and sad.

[Nudelkopf]

- I don't want to have to work while I have children.
- I don't want to have to stay stuck as a teacher my whole life. (It's not THAT great).
- I don't want to have to worry about money.

[mikecorayer]

For me, the top three are easily:

- Time Affluence - Time is our most precious resource. I'm not comfortable with other people controlling how I decide to use the most valuable thing I can possibly possess.

- Being able to pursue self-concordant goals - I want to be able to spend my time working on the things that bring me meaning, regardless of whether they also bring me income. 

- Reducing waste - Improving efficiency appeals to me and also aligns with cutting spending, particularly on "stuff" that doesn't actually improve well-being.

[HappierAtHome]

- I don't want to have to work while I have children.
- I don't want to have to stay stuck as a teacher my whole life. (It's not THAT great).
- I don't want to have to worry about money.

All of these.

I watch my siblings juggle young kids, work and childcare. It's insanely stressful. My sister was in tears about it just last night. I really, really value the financial stability that allows a family to have one stay at home parent, or two part time working parents.

I'm not a teacher, but boy do I hear you. Some days I love my job. Not enough to believe that I don't deserve options, though.

Chronic illness was mentioned earlier... I have an auto immune disease. Right now I can more or less work full time without it impacting my health too much. Later on in life, I may not be able to work at all.

[nottoolatetostart]

There are many reasons, but the first that I can think of is that I want our time to be, well, OURS. Our life M-F is pretty hectic and we only have a couple good hours every night to be together as a family. That seems crazy to me. We spend a disproportionate amount of our life doing what we actually want to do and most of it going to work. I want every day to be a weekend. Time is the only thing we can't make more of.

[quilter]

My life is like the one in cheddar stackers link. But we came in through the back door.

Back to the mid 90's. Two kids, two jobs, mortgage, car payments, speedboat, thought we were doing good because we were putting money in 401k's.

DH fell on the ice. Two back surgeries. I had to take time off work to take care of him. They found cancer. Cancer treatment. Lots of unpaid time off for me, luckily he had good short term disability.  We stayed afloat but had to put stuff on credit cards to support our lifestyle.

He got better.  We sat down with the kids and all made a plan- we had no idea how DH would progress but the money stress could not be helpful. We sold the boat and cars, and got two old beaters. The kids learned how to fix cars. We cooked everything from scratch and within a few years had no credit card or mortgage left. We payed an astounding amount of debt off rapidly.

Fast forward to today. Kids graduated from uni with almost no debt. We retired early. DH enjoys his stress free life.

We were lucky. We could still be working with a mountain of debt and stress if we hadn't figured it out. Our life is not deprived, it is fun, fulfilling, exciting and worthwhile. And the funny thing is, we are so used to not spending money we are able to do things like make contributions to our grandkids 529.  And our kids get it. 

[Ayanka]

I know FI will not be for me (at least not until normal retirement age or so, so what is the use then?) What I do want to reach is not entering disaster mode if I can't work anymore at age 60. Or maybe even some part time work if possible when I am in my 50s.
The reason I am doing is because I see my father delaying retirement (he will be 60 this year) even though his body can barely take it. Plus I want to make sure that the cost of having to send me to a full time care unit (dementia is in the family too), will not screw over the finances of my family members.

And on the more bright side: I finally found a group of people that doesn't think I am completely insane when I don't want to spend a lot of money ;).

[avonlea]

We like our current set-up in life, but it's nice to have the ability to create options for the future.

And on the more bright side: I finally found a group of people that doesn't think I am completely insane when I don't want to spend a lot of money ;).

Lol.  I understand that.  I am lucky in that we are not around many people who spend a lot of money. But I don't have anyone IRL that I talk with about saving/investing money other than my husband.  It's been nice to find people on this forum that have somewhat similar savings goals.

[matchewed]

It's simple. Money buys options.

[Frankies Girl]

I realized I wanted to retire super early after a particularly crazy couple of months where I was working til 1 or 2 am and weekends. I had a nightmare where I was at work (top floor of a very tall building) and a tornado was coming right at us. I couldn't stop to evacuate since I was on DEADLINE dammit, so I continued to work as the tornado fell over the building and ripped the roof off and swept me and all of the office up in its funnel. I did a movie-like slow motion fall towards the ground. I remember a slight feeling of regret that I wasn't going to finish, and then a calm descended over me that maybe was a good thing.

Upon awakening, I realized how utterly screwed up that idea that I had to finish my work no matter the cost, and I am determined to get out of the path of that fucking tornado as soon as possible.

[quilter]

I realized I wanted to retire super early after a particularly crazy couple of months where I was working til 1 or 2 am and weekends. I had a nightmare where I was at work (top floor of a very tall building) and a tornado was coming right at us. I couldn't stop to evacuate since I was on DEADLINE dammit, so I continued to work as the tornado fell over the building and ripped the roof off and swept me and all of the office up in its funnel. I did a movie-like slow motion fall towards the ground. I remember a slight feeling of regret that I wasn't going to finish, and then a calm descended over me that maybe was a good thing.

Upon awakening, I realized how utterly screwed up that idea that I had to finish my work no matter the cost, and I am determined to get out of the path of that fucking tornado as soon as possible.

 I love this story.  Get out of the path of your own personal tornado.

Or as Chris Christie said when hurricane Sandy was approaching "get the hell off the beach"

[pac_NW]

To enjoy more time to
- be with my family
- explore locally and globally
- walk
- build community (I travel for work and being local is a giant goal)
- cook, read, sit by the fire, meditate
- to work slower
- to be "present"

[Blindsquirrel]

 Freedom, security, efficiency,

[countdown]

Mostly for security for the fam. I've always lived frugally, but used to take the savings for 1-3 month trips backpacking. After having our first child, I had huge anxiety about what would happen to baby if I couldn't earn a good amt. By second child (2012), I was devouring ere sites.

I want security in skills and savings, to eventually move to a lower col area and pay cash for a house, and to have time with my fam while kids are young. I'm only on year 3 of asset accumulation mode, but can see options opening which makes me a happier mommy.

[jordanread]

Affluence in general.
I want to want for nothing. Mustachianism seems like the most efficient method of getting to that point. I love my work, but I'd like it to be optional. :-)

[Dr. Doom]

Moving away from
- feeling like a job owns me and utterly defines me
- Everything else that comes with the job, e.g. paperwork, busywork, politics, reviews
- corporate and consumer culture
- being stuck on a treadmill
- defining my individuality through purchasing decisions
- highly inflexible scheduled days, the contents of which are largely non-optional


Moving toward
- greater efficiency and lessened waste, i.e. reducing my physical footprint on the earth
- freedom to do what I like, pursuing personal interests, traveling more often
- being a more well rounded individual, learning new things
- spending more time with family and loved ones
- contributing my skills to the world in ways that may not result in a salary but feel important and valuable to me
- never worrying about money, living a life with less stress, greater calm and awareness
- living a life that I believe is closer to what humans were evolved to experience, which results in greater happiness and satisfaction

I suppose I'm trying to maximize both utility and pleasure of life, and the whole FI mindset is one aspect of this higher level drive.

[lexie2000]

We are not as "hard core" as most, but....

When we were younger, it was all about financial security; as we got older, it was all about early retirement.

[innerscorecard]

I am different and weird and would like the freedom to be solitary and independent.

[fixer-upper]

I did it because people piss me off.

After picking up some debt in college, I worked hard for to pay it off.  Just about the time I got debt free, I bought my first house and felt trapped.  I knew I had to keep dragging my ass into a job where people tortured me with stupidity for 8 hours a day.  I couldn't stand the thought of putting up with them for 30 years.

I kept a mortgage principal jar in my desk drawer.   Every time some jerk pissed me off, I'd toss in some money to make myself feel better.  There was another jar next to the alarm clock.  Every time I dreaded going to work, I'd toss in some money to make myself feel better.  When I got a 3% raise while real inflation was 8%, I tossed in my whole bonus.  When they called me in from vacation to do stuff that I wasn't needed for (I was re-roofing the house, and a storm was on the way), I demanded salary on top of my vacation time.  It went in the jar.

The more they pissed me off, the faster I paid off the house...until the day I unexpectedly retired.

[Squirrel away]

I just want the freedom to know that we don't have to work but that we could earn money if we wanted to, having a paid off mortgage is going to be a relief too.

The fun side effect of opting out of consuming is that you end up with a whole lot of money.

Very true.:)

[MrsPete]

Mainly because I really, really crave financial security.

Me too.  I grew up without financial security, and I'm always a little paranoid about the possibility of returning to that lifestyle.