Retire Early!  I’ve seen so many articles and podcasts popping up lately all being over sensitive toward the “not Retire Early” web trolls.  I guess it’s pretentious (?) enough to say you are “Financially Independent,” but you seem to cross the line when you say “Retire Early.”

Career Control

I know that I wasn’t working for a MegaCorp because my job changed the course of humanity or bettered the huge rock we’re floating around the universe on.  I worked because it was a great job that I enjoyed, that I was technically good at, and I was able to help other employees complete their assigned tasks so they could go home and enjoy their lives. 

I know MegaCorp didn’t care about my family or that much about me.  I know my employee ID number was listed as a cost center (“head count”) and as long as I performed enough tasks to get results that delivered enough value that it was worth keeping me over other employees.  I know this because I went through at least 5 or 6 rounds of RIFs over my 18 years.  It’s a shitty feeling knowing someone (or more than one) in a cube of 4 will not be there next Monday…or worse, 2-3 Mondays from now…the waiting sucked.

Acceptance

So, why isn’t it culturally acceptable to take my educated, skilled self and remove my presence from the working machine?  Or even a more enlightened position, why is it socially frowned upon that I take my limited time on the planet and not dedicate that time to myself?  What if I am working on mastering some out-of-body, positive energy for the universe?  Wouldn’t that be more socially acceptable than 9 to 5 to 65 at a laptop?

Hmm, this now makes me wonder if I should consider using more of my 168 hours per week for tasks other than “it would be cool if I XYZ today.”  That would at least give me an honest retort to “what do you do all day?”

When asked what I do, if you must know (my wife was right), I say “I’m a consultant” or “I teach technical courses.”  Those two answers help explain the flexible time/location schedule I maintain.  They are also technically true, but the hours required per month/semester are minuscule.  Yet, both of those activities are 100% helping others.

Academia

Today I saw a posting for an article where the author (is he even 30 yet, or spent 5-10 years in the labor market?) proudly states he’s not focusing on ‘retirement’ because ” I love my job. It motivates, inspires, and challenges me.”  That’s fantastic…for now.  How long have you been grinding in the corp machine?  Those attributes he loves can come from so many places, not just a job.

I think it comes down to: don’t knock RE until you’ve tried it.  It’s extremely possible that someone who’d driven enough to save/spend wisely and put themselves into FI status, that they will do something more exciting and gratifying outside of their previous “job.”

The author is wise and spot on with his personal logic of wanting Financial Independence to allow control and flexibility in his situation.  Yes, absolutely perfect.

Hard RE

Recently I spent some time with a physician who was a conscious saver and planner.  They worked long hours for probably 20+ years and were planning on leaving the medical field in the summer of 2020.  Well, their plan got thrown aside when it was all-hands-on-deck to treat thousands of people over the next year, year-in-a-half.

To make things worse, as they were looking to leave the pressure of the medical field, the pressure instead multiplied, and even worse, the patient deaths grew enormously.  It just gutted the physician, and as I’m told so many of their colleagues.  Most of the colleagues are not in a position to take control of their lives related to lack of Financial Independence.

The other consideration is that physicians often have their overall being wrapped up in being a physician and giving that up is very, very hard.  It’s 1) unimaginable to many that they could retire in their early 50s, and 2) that leaving the field is fair to society somehow.  I don’t think any of us non-physicians could ever understand the feeling of that pressure.  I know the ex-physician will find a great path forward and make a difference in the way that works for them.

Concerns

So, in closing, I say “REally?”  Is anyone out there REally going to question why I or anyone leaves a career and what we chose to do with ourselves, our savings, our families, and our self-sufficiency.  Shouldn’t people spend more time worrying about those who are not preparing for their financial future?

The number of people who leave a career in their 40s, or 30s to “retire” is minuscule.  But it’s intriguing, and it gets clicks and downloads.  Fewer clicks or downloads from me because I’m way too busy to sit and read/listen too much.  It’s like learning the rules to a game you’ve won, or at least a few rounds that you’ve won.

Just Better Yourself

I choose to challenge myself to learn, help, and prepare for my future more now than I ever did when I was working.  To me, that is what makes life important.

*** 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. This post is not a piece of literary mastery, just a random thought I had.

This post is all about how to increase the satisfaction in your days, and in your life.  If not satisfaction, then at least increase your optimization and decrease your level of annoyance.  Or is that just my strategy?

I constantly hear about “keeping up with the Joneses.”  I used to wonder who would spend their time wondering what other people were doing and most significantly, how the purchases of others would somehow affect me.

Do you keep score on the items of others in comparison to your own life (I mean possessions)?

[Insert thought}  I should say that I don’t use social media to view or highlight life (purchase) milestones.  I know I’m old, but I see those as a tool to share event/life happenings with “friends.”  I guess I’m the exact opposite of a social media influencer, whew, I’m damn happy about that.

Anyway, back to the masses.

So I was thinking about my LifeInFIRE.  I was thinking about the masses.  I was thinking about common daily activities and how I see those tasks/events.

• So, one of the (pre-pandemic) dreaded daily activities was the rush hour traffic jam.  Thousands or millions of people/cars packed together at the same time, heading in the same direction, all for the same purpose—to clock in at work.  You are literally following the masses, car after car.  LifeInFIRE has the option of avoiding the highways at rush hour.  It’s mostly possible to perform daily tasks off-peak (Mon-Fri: 9a-3p)

• Another example is the simple task of buying food.  I’ve seen the parking lots with cars swirling around at 5p.  If the parking lot looks like a hassle, I can’t imagine what the lines are like inside the grocery (food) store.    
• What about the screaming media force-feeding us information?  This can be “news” delivered from all sides with overtly opinionated positions.  What are the masses following here?  What are the sources, not the outlets, but the source of the news?  Even worse, are the masses consuming just the (click-bait) headline and not reading the full story, or checking the facts, or other opinions…or even another of their social media sites.  I didn’t realize news could be delivered accurately in 140 characters.  Maybe that’s why it was doubled to allow for the full story?

What if the media—and Hollywood blockbuster movies for that matter—provided “good news” say just 65-75% of the time?  Why does the first few minutes of the news designed to agitate the viewers?  Is that to keep them tuned in?  Is that the click-bait of television?

Take a trip to ANY other country in the world and then decide how horrible you think our country is.  Yes, we do have some of the same problems as elsewhere, yet we seem to be much, much…MUCH better off than most of the world.  Seriously how many types of cereal do we need to choose from?  Or go to a mall, how many different shirt options are required for our attire?

Of course, we have problems and there is room for improvement.  I agree in many ways, with lots of room for improvement.  The good news is that we have options from education from our youngest years through our entire lifetimes.  We have options to build skills and abilities our entire lifetime.  We have the option to use this knowledge, skills, and abilities to generate income and stability…even though it may be hard at the time.  Life is hard, everything is hard, that why the word “perseverance” was created.

I believe in being positive and driving the change within yourself, your family, those around you, and helping others.  Maybe that’s the power of thinking differently and not (always) following the masses.

Maybe it’s time to follow the FIRE. 

Being different is a great thing if you are comfortable with yourself.  Being better than average and making things better is amazing.

Step out of the line and do something(s) good.  When you’re FIREd, you have a clear path ahead of you.

*** 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. This post is not a piece of literary mastery, just a random thought I had.