I recently had a history-focused post. It seems that I’ve been gathering historical information for some reason.  Actually, the most likely reason is that I’m getting old and it seems that as people get older they become more interested in history—as they become historical figures themselves.

Today’s thoughts are on the very interesting Benjamin Franklin. 

Ben FIREd

Here’s one fact I took from my video course on Ben—he was an 18^th century FIRE proponent.  Ben retired early from his hugely successful printing business at 42 years-old in 1748. 

Ben was an influencer, much like a blogger (an anonymous blogger) as he published his both factual and the often sensationalized Poor Richard’s Almanac.

Passive Income:

Ben develop passive income, the golden ring of personal finance.  Ben took on a partner for his printing company and in 1748 retired from the day-to-day business letting his partner take over and splitting the profits 50/50 with Franklin…a PASSIVE INCOME franchise for the next 18 years.

Followed Passions:

This is where things continue to get more interesting.  Ben, as I like to call him, then transitions to new passions.  His “early retirement” from his daily career was not a path to leisure, but rather an opportunity to delve deeper into his passions. 

It’s believed Ben planned to dive into science—which he did of course— but he took on a huge civic role and was part of creating a new country.  I would also like to add, he clearly was enjoying his FIRE (wealth/status/lifestyle/ladies) on slow travel to France, etc.

More Powerful:

Can you accomplish more in FIRE than in your career?  Could your passion include scientist, inventor, politician, philanthropist ) and being a founding father of a country (or company)?

The power of FI/RE can allow anything to happen.  The possibilities are endless.  Maybe you just choose to become a better, happier person within yourself, or toward your family and friends, and community or on a much larger scale. 

So many FIRE internet police state that people retiring young hurt the workforce and degrade the country’s economy.  I can tell you that my company didn’t skip a beat when I left.  They simply placed another person (who was looking for work) in my position and the work was completed.  Maybe the two of us performed differently or even different tasks, but nothing stopped, not at all.

I can tell you that I give of myself and my time a LOT more than I ever did when I was working.  I feel I contribute to society more than I did when I was “a worker.”  Benjamin Franklin showed on a massive scale what could be done when your time and brain are dedicated to the larger picture.

Find your Benjamins!

Source 1 Source 2 Source 3

*** Nothing in this article is to be construed as financial advice.  I am not a financial planner, nor do I pretend to be.  You should always consult your own professional when seeking advice.

Today I had a nice moment of full relaxation, calm, clarity, extreme gratitude and maybe pure zen.  This is the kind of moment so many of us enjoy but experience so rarely.  How do we create these moments for ourselves and our loved ones?  What should we do to bring this experience to light?

My moment of pure zen, so ironically, occurred when I was sitting in traffic where FIVE red stoplights in a row (<1500 ft)delayed my travel.  Let me explain—I’m not crazy. 

I was riding my scooter home from the gym, just as I do a few times per week.  I had just ridden down a semi-windy hill to encounter the second red light in a row.  As I sat at the red light full of gym exercise-exhaustion-induced-endorphins, I felt pure happiness.  It was just the best feeling of accomplishment, freedom, flexibility, and gratitude.

It was a Thursday morning about 11am when I realized my zen.  Recap: I woke up from a nice relaxing sleep at 7:30a, I hung out around the house for a while, and I then rode my scooter to the gym about 9am.  Upon entering the gym, I noticed the normal group of people who can work out at 9a on Thu, the gray-hair gang.  I pushed through my work-your-body routine before hopping on my scooter to head home for a wide-open rest of my day.

So here I was sitting at my second red light with the sun shining and the warm breeze blowing from the ocean a few blocks away, and I immediately thought, “I can’t ask for anything more than this.”  I looked at the cars (and trucks) around me and wondered how many of those people were having to perform a planned activity, or worse, a work-related activity.

To be fair, I used to have plenty of enjoyable days at work.  Days where I accomplished something satisfying and some days where I accomplished something I was surprised it actually worked out.  But the power of FI/RE is that you have so much control over your day/time/energy that it’s truly priceless.  To have that power of FIRE when you are young-ish and healthy is exponential.

I’ve noticed I write “enjoy every day” quite frequently in posts or comments and I don’t know where that came from.  That phrase was never in my lexicon, in any way that I can think of until recently.  Yet, it has become the cornerstone of my current state of mind.  A state of gratitude.  A goal of giving part of that “enjoyment” to others as much as I can.  Maybe enjoying and trying to help others enjoy is multiplicative in nature.  That would make sense, right?  Helping others because you feel good, may help you feel even better.

Side note: I notice I have a lot of enjoyment when the air around me is moving.  It may be on my scooter, my bike, running, in a convertible, sitting on a patio with a breeze, a rooftop deck.  I wonder if the energy from nature, the power of air moving, translates in some way to a higher state of enjoyment.  Maybe that’s why people say “get outside, get moving.”

It is my sincerest hope that you find these moments of gratitude and zen in your life as often as possible.

*** Nothing in this article is to be construed as financial advice.  I am not a financial planner, nor do I pretend to be.  You should always consult your own professional when seeking advice.