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Good morning!<\/p>\n
You know those people who quit their jobs and jump right into retirement, only to find out it\u2019s the worst thing in the world and now they\u2019re stuck and freaking out and don\u2019t know what to do with themselves?!<\/strong><\/p>\n Don\u2019t be like those people \ud83d\ude42<\/p>\n There\u2019s a better way! And the Wealth of Geeks<\/em> just interviewed an The original article has now been taken down, but it was a really well written and concise piece, and really couldn\u2019t say more about how smart \u2013 and good looking \u2013 the interviewee seemed, lol\u2026 Sources say, however, it was only a fraction of the brilliance captured from the interview, so I had my team dig up the entire 4 page Q&A email for you because that\u2019s the kind of thoughtful person I am.<\/p>\n May it help you retire faster, and even happier! You\u2019re welcome!!<\/p>\n *****<\/p>\n J$: I don\u2019t know if I ever made it \u201cofficial\u201d, but I mentally started pretending I was retired in January of 2023<\/a> \ud83d\ude02 I honestly don\u2019t think I\u2019ll ever be retired-retired as I\u2019ll always be working or thinking about *some* project out there, but financially-speaking I don\u2019t need to make any more money to survive.<\/p>\n J$: $2 Mil+<\/p>\n J$: Oh wow \u2013 never been asked that question before! I\u2019m sure my parents at some point opened one up for me when I was a kid to teach me about banking stuff, but the first one I personally remember opening was in the start of college, so probably like around 17?<\/p>\n J$: Nope \u2013 never even thought about it or KNEW it was an option really. Even when I was blogging! It wasn\u2019t until the blogs Early Retirement Extreme<\/a> and Mr. Money Mustache<\/a> came onto the scene that something stirred in me. I of course knew that saving more would give me more freedom in general, but never put the two together or strategized it out until reading them. Then I was hooked!<\/p>\n Lots of yoga! (5-7x a week)<\/p>\n Lots of working out<\/a> (3x a week)<\/p>\n Lots of volunteering\/helping out friends (2-3x a week)<\/p>\n Lots of wrangling my 3 boys (24-7!!!)<\/p>\n Since I stopped working an official \u201cjob\u201d I became the defacto Parent-In-Charge as my wife still very happily works \ud83d\ude42 So lots of taking kids back and forth from school or soccer practice or doctor appointments or the pool when we\u2019re in the heat of Summer.<\/p>\n I\u2019ve also started doing the laundry<\/a> every day and taken over grocery shopping<\/a> as well as anything else that makes me look good to my wife for a better chance of continuing this Good Life, lol\u2026<\/p>\n I don\u2019t know where I heard this or if it\u2019s even the right words, but this mindset really hit home the first time I heard it:<\/p>\n Millionaires don\u2019t become millionaires by spending money, they become millionaires by saving money.<\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n You always assume people with fancy cars or mansions are rich, but to get those fancy things you actually have to SPEND YOUR RICHES! Lol\u2026 Becoming a millionaire is much more boring.<\/p>\n #1. Never go cold turkey into retirement without testing it first!<\/strong><\/p>\n You know those horror stories of people retiring and then being bored out of their mind and either wasting away a few short years later or going back to work just because they don\u2019t know what else to do with themselves?! Don\u2019t let that be you!!<\/p>\n Test it out by taking weeks-long, or months-long, sabbaticals and pretending you\u2019re retired. Then what do you do with your time? How does it make you feel? Are you lonely? Do you have hobbies you can get into?! Are all your friends working and can\u2019t come play with you because they still have jobs?? (more than likely, esp if you\u2019re retiring EARLY!).<\/p>\n These are all things you can test a little and figure out *before* pulling the chord as you want to KNOW what you\u2019re getting into and not leaving it up to fate. And if you can\u2019t take weeks or months off at a time, practice on the nights and weekends! Start joining clubs and going on adventures with friends\/family\/church members. Start building a life NOW that\u2019s exciting to ease into and not a scary unknown one for later \u2013 even if you don\u2019t think it\u2019ll be scary.<\/p>\n (And btw, if you DO end up going back to work? So what! Retirement is not for everyone \u2013 a better thing to measure is whether you\u2019re happy or not<\/i><\/b> in the stage. If you enjoy working, don\u2019t stop working! The trick is staying as true to yourself as possible, and by practicing \u201cretirement\u201d early you\u2019ll get a sense of this much sooner before entering Freak Out Mode.)<\/p>\n I naturally started doing this the second I learned you could blog for a living \ud83d\ude09<\/strong> I started building my ideal life and then eventually over the years I started working less and less<\/a> (and less) until eventually I was accidentally \u201cretired\u201d haha\u2026 And even then I still struggled a bit! Then I came across this quote and it got me back on the path<\/a>:<\/p>\n When you\u2019re stuck, just sit down with a notepad and start writing\u2026 your brain has things it wants to say even if you don\u2019t know what they are.<\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n #2: Don\u2019t assume all your friends and family will be available at all times!<\/strong><\/p>\n You\u2019re the one retiring, not them, so more often than not you will have to figure out what to do with yourself from 9-5 each day \ud83d\ude42 And it\u2019ll take some getting used to!<\/p>\n But here\u2019s the awesome part: since everyone\u2019s working you get all the grocery stores and other shops\/places\/parks\/etc ALL TO YOURSELF! Which makes it a perfect time to do boring errands or housework or anything else you still need to do in life whether you have lots of money or not.<\/p>\n It also makes for a great time to do anything purely selfish for yourself too, like writing or fishing or yoga\u2019ing or working out, etc. Then by the time the afternoon rolls by you\u2019ll be freed up to play and hang out with everyone and feel equally as productive!<\/p>\n Another hint: people still do have to eat lunch every day, so on days you\u2019re super lonely or just missing friends, offer to come to their work and eat with them!<\/strong><\/p>\n One of the first things I did in retirement was to make a list of every single friend of mine I haven\u2019t caught up with in months and drove out to have lunch with them. Some were local so I knocked those out pretty easily, and then others I had to plan ahead of time as they lived 1-3 hours out. But every single person was thrilled to meet up, and they truly appreciated that I made the effort to visit THEM vs the opposite since I\u2019ve got all the time in the world, they don\u2019t!<\/p>\n #3. Don\u2019t over-schedule your days. Leave time for \u201cflow\u201d!<\/strong><\/p>\n One of the first things I came to realize in early retirement is that even when you free up 40 hours of work you still can\u2019t manage to get everything done you had planned to \ud83d\ude02 And if you ask any retiree they\u2019ll all say the same \u2013 there\u2019s still not enough time in the day!<\/p>\n So rather than scheduling out every free hour you have, build in some \u201cflow\u201d time<\/strong> <\/em>that allows you to more calmly go about your day and allowing for whatever life throws at you.\u00a0 Appointments running late, traffic jams holding you up, kids getting hurt or needing to be picked up from school early, etc. Even though you\u2019re retired, LIFE still happens.<\/p>\n On the plus side, it also happens for the better \ud83d\ude09 Running into an old friend on the street and having the time to grab an impromptu coffee, getting into a rhythm with a project you\u2019re working on and not wanting to stop since you\u2019re on a roll!, getting a phone call from someone important and being able to take it right then and there (hi mom!).<\/p>\n The more time you leave \u201copen\u201d the more opportunities you have to adapt to life\u2019s whims. Still plan and do your best to feel fulfilled of course, but those built in times of \u201cnothing\u201d can end up becoming some of the best \ud83d\ude4c<\/p>\n Yes \u2013 getting into minimalism<\/a> was a game changer for me\/my finances! I was doing fine before it, but when I realized having less \u201cstuff\u201d freed up not only more time but also $$$ it was like pouring gasoline on my FIRE plans!<\/p>\n I ruthlessly started decluttering my entire household, and then moved to digital clutter and responsibility clutter and then even (toxic) friends clutter! You can apply minimalism to ALL areas in life! And the less and less stuff I \u201cneeded\u201d, the less and less money I needed<\/a> which meant opening up more and more freedom.<\/p>\n One of my favorite mantras is below which still holds true today:<\/p>\n Freedom > Money > Stuff<\/strong><\/p>\n Print it out and put it on your fridge! \ud83d\ude01<\/p>\n \/\/ END<\/p>\n ******<\/p>\n UPDATE: <\/strong>Before I hit publish on this post, I randomly got this note from a friend (hi Anthony!): \u201cI\u2019ve been starting to think about what retirement will look like for me in three years. I\u2019ve started working with a coach to keep me focused and accountable. We meet once a month, and she\u2019s a good thought partner as I explore my desires and options. I come away from each meeting with \u201chomework\u201d for the next meeting, so it\u2019s not just a bunch of navel-gazing.\u201d \u2013 YESS!! There are a ton of places and experts out there that could help direct you better if you don\u2019t trust yourself enough to set aside the time for it!<\/p>\n In fact, I just caught this from Apex Money as well: How to Start a Retirement Planning Group or Club: Plan for a Happier Wealthier Future, Together<\/a> via Boldin.com. Fritz from Retirement Manifesto has started one with his friends, and you can find his thoughts on it so far here: What I\u2019ve Learned From My Retirement Mastermind Group<\/a><\/p>\n Lots of options! Start thinking about it today!<\/p>\nexpert<\/del> on this very same topic which can help steer you into a better future: ME.<\/p>\nHow old were you when you retired? What year was that??<\/h3>\n
What was your net worth when you retired?<\/h3>\n
How old were you when you opened your first savings account?<\/h3>\n
Did you always plan on retiring early, or did it \u201cjust happen?\u201d<\/h3>\n
What keeps you busy these days?<\/h3>\n
What is your favorite money quote?<\/h3>\n
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What are the top 3 things one should *never do* in early retirement? Did you learn these from experience or by observing other early retirees?<\/h3>\n
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Anything else you\u2019d like people to know about you, your situation, or anything else?<\/h3>\n