Gilberto de Piento's Journal

Where are you and where are you going?
Farm_or
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Re: Gilberto de Piento's Journal

Post by Farm_or »

Awesome! Especially over these last two months might be the most difficult of the year?

Gilberto de Piento
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Re: Gilberto de Piento's Journal

Post by Gilberto de Piento »

Farm_or wrote:Awesome! Especially over these last two months might be the most difficult of the year?
Thanks! It's hard to avoid spending at Christmas. Though my recent success is attributable to the stock market moving up more than anything.

Farm_or
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Re: Gilberto de Piento's Journal

Post by Farm_or »

I can relate to the market earnings. This was a first for me where my equity investments outpaced my ag equity return.

One day, feeling frustrated with farm stuff, I asked myself "why in the hell do I bother?" If i sold out, invested alll the equity, I would have more passive income than active. But then I thought about capital gains and that this run up is more likely going to moderate. And most of all, I would would​miss my surroundings and the purpose it gives me...

mxlr650
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Re: Gilberto de Piento's Journal

Post by mxlr650 »

@GdP I saw consulting income in the previous page, so have you considered getting more consulting gigs which can accelerate wealth accrual?

Good job on your 170k achievement!

Gilberto de Piento
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Re: Gilberto de Piento's Journal

Post by Gilberto de Piento »

And most of all, I would would​miss my surroundings and the purpose it gives me...
There's more to it than just having money. Purpose is important too.

Gilberto de Piento
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Re: Gilberto de Piento's Journal

Post by Gilberto de Piento »

@GdP I saw consulting income in the previous page, so have you considered getting more consulting gigs which can accelerate wealth accrual?

Good job on your 170k achievement!
Thanks!

I've actually been thinking about telling them I'm not interested in more work. The money is good ($35 per hour) but they are a pain to work with. The are disorganized, they want me to use old fashioned methods, they second guess everything, I have three bosses that contradict each other, and I find it stressful.

The difficulty is that I don't think it can be replaced. They found me rather than me going looking for work. I've looked for other similar opportunities but I'm in a very narrow niche. Really, if I knew I would do the work, I should get back into internet marketing. Websites I made years ago are still making money. If I had carried on with that work I'm sure I'd be making $1000+ per month by now. And that money is passive once the sites are built, unlike the by the hour consulting work. I'm still thinking about what to do.

Farm_or
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Re: Gilberto de Piento's Journal

Post by Farm_or »

I can relate to the three bosses. My experience was with the tin Man, the Lion and the scarecrow. Uncanny how their actions matched those traits. It almost made me crazy (maybe it did?)

It's not very comforting when you are going through it, but just remember "this too will pass".
And you are progressing rapidly to a goal! That in itself should make you feel a lot better than a lot of the poor hopeless slobs around you?

Gilberto de Piento
Posts: 1942
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Re: Gilberto de Piento's Journal

Post by Gilberto de Piento »

January 2017

January was a really good month! I had a record low for spending at $1541.07 resulting in a savings rate of 65%. My net worth is also up about $6000 over last month, mostly due to the market moving up. In my opinion, we're due for a correction but for now it's fun to watch the numbers increase (even though I know it's better for me to have lower stock prices since I am buying not selling them right now).

The low spending and high net worth this month mean some of my metrics have really improved. SWR is at 10.5%, my lowest ever. If the internet marketing income from this month is included SWR is now (barely) in the single digits at 9.9%! Correspondingly, years remaining to FI is in the single digits for the first time at 9.3 years. If interest of 8% is included (hypothetical stock market gains) there are only 6 years remaining.

Over the past few months my savings rate has been up 3-5% due to consulting income. I decided to leave the consulting job. At one point my day job was taking up 60 hours per week and the other organization needed an additional 20 hours on short notice. I had a hard time making it work out. I can't risk my real job for a few hundred dollars a month. I didn't like the work but I'm sorry to see the money go. I'm going to try to replace that income somehow but it won't be through consulting in the same way.

Expenses
Bills & Utilities 5 (Annual checking fee)
Business Services 17.98
Charity 45 (Some annual donations)
Gas & Fuel 49.26
Groceries 267.57 (A little high)
Gym 51.7
Internet 23.29 (Sharing with two others)
Laundry 20
Mobile Phone 12.23
Mortgage & Rent 970
Pharmacy 27.29 (Had a cold, needed some medicine)
Restaurants 47.25 (A little high)
Travel 4.5
Total -FI 1541.07

Income

Paycheck 2454.96
Amazon 99.58
Consulting 420 (actually 320 from consulting, 100 from selling ads on a website)
Checking 19.32
Gift 80 (Some income related to Christmas)
457b 1384.6
Total +FI 4458.46

Savings 2917.39
% Spent 35%
% Saved 65%
SWR 11%
SWR with IM Income 10%
Years Remaining 9.3
Years Remaining with Interest 6


"Luck is where the crossroads of opportunity and preparation meet."
Seneca

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Gilberto de Piento
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Re: Gilberto de Piento's Journal

Post by Gilberto de Piento »

February 2017

Lowest spending ever! SWR under 10%! 10+ years of expenses saved (not counting interest)! :D :shock:

The above mentioned low spending and the resulting other stats are in part dependent on random variation. This month was easy because there were no large bills (car insurance, medical bill, etc.) but I think it still demonstrates that progress is happening.

Income
Alcohol & Bars 20.02
Business Services 17.98
Charity 45
Clothing 18.95
Gas & Fuel 28.77
Gift 39.88
Groceries 189.88 (Low!)
Gym 51.7
Internet 23.29
Mobile Phone 12.23
Mortgage & Rent 970
Restaurants 50.63
Sports 35.08
Total -FI 1503.41

Expenses
Paycheck 2454.96
Amazon 133.29
Google 105.17
CafePress 50.37
Checking 17.49
Gift 200 (Not sure what this is from. Did I sell something? I'll update if I figure it out.)
457b 1384.60
Total +FI 4345.88

Savings 2842.47
% Spent 35%
% Saved 65%

SWR 9.9%
SWR with IM Income 8.0%

Years Remaining 8.5
Years Remaining with Interest 5


I'm going to try tracking some other things here that I'm working on:
Meditate: 30 minutes completed out of 1 hour goal
Core workout: 0 minutes completed out of 1 hour goal
Internet marketing work: 8 hours completed out of 20 hour goal

It sounds outrageous, but if one is trying to jump across a chasm, it makes no sense to focus on first jumping half way across and then on jumping the rest of the way. Aim to jump all the way or don’t jump at all.
Jacob Lund Fisker http://earlyretirementextreme.com/using ... -fast.html

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Last edited by Gilberto de Piento on Wed Mar 01, 2017 10:07 am, edited 1 time in total.

cmonkey
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Re: Gilberto de Piento's Journal

Post by cmonkey »

Awesome! We achieved our lowest spending ever this month as well, and highest savings rate. I'll have an update out this week I think.

I bet the Trump trade is helping you get to 200K a lot quicker. :)

Good choice of quote this month.

Gilberto de Piento
Posts: 1942
Joined: Tue Nov 12, 2013 10:23 pm

Re: Gilberto de Piento's Journal

Post by Gilberto de Piento »

Awesome! We achieved our lowest spending ever this month as well, and highest savings rate. I'll have an update out this week I think.
Great! Nice job. I give you a lot of credit because you have changed the fundamental structure of your finances rather than playing around at the edges like I am.

Jason

Re: Gilberto de Piento's Journal

Post by Jason »

Good job although I admittedly don't understand your charts.

Plus "Gilberto de Piento's Journal" sounds like the name of a Best Foreign Picture nominee.

I too am wary of "My So Called Net Worth" with this insane market. I am actually keeping cash on the sidelines for the first time instead of just plowing it all in. I usually did that so I wouldn't have the money to spend on bullshit but now I have maintained some discipline which is miraculous.

Gilberto de Piento
Posts: 1942
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Re: Gilberto de Piento's Journal

Post by Gilberto de Piento »

Good job although I admittedly don't understand your charts.
Thanks! The first chart shows percent saved by month. Divide the amount of money I saved by the amount I earned.

The second chart shows my withdrawal rate by month. This is the amount I spent this month multiplied by 12 (to get to yearly spending) and then divided by my net worth. People often call 4% the benchmark for a "safe" withdrawal rate, meaning that you can spend 4% or less of your net worth each year and not deplete your net worth over time. Of course, this depends on stock market performance. The "SWR with IM Income" line is my withdrawal rate if I offset my spending with my internet marketing income before making the withdrawal rate calculations. This is risky since the internet marketing money could stop coming in sometime in the future - I don't want to count on it.

The third chart compares expenses against investment earnings. The investment income is "theoretical" since I am not actually withdrawing any money at this time.

The fourth chart shows how many years of expenses I have saved. One line is just dividing the amount I have by my monthly spending. The other includes a more complicated calculation that accounts for the money earning interest over the years while I'm spending it, resulting in more years of expenses being covered.

Jason

Re: Gilberto de Piento's Journal

Post by Jason »

Thanks for explaining your charts. Sorry I forgot to mention that I also have no desire to understand them.

I'm just rooting you for you, Gilberto de Piento. May the wind billow your sails and lift your ERE ship above the clouds and gently land it on the shores of your choosing, that is if you choose to land at all.

Gilberto de Piento
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Re: Gilberto de Piento's Journal

Post by Gilberto de Piento »

Ha! Thanks! You and BRUTE are going to get along great you have the same sense of humor. :)

Jason

Re: Gilberto de Piento's Journal

Post by Jason »

Gilberto de Piento wrote:Ha! Thanks! You and BRUTE are going to get along great you have the same sense of humor. :)
You can laugh all you want, but while you were busy explaining your idiosyncratic financial charts to a completely uninterested party, Jacob Lund Fister was busy analyzing historical stock market trends, developing technology that converts maple syrup into electricity, writing a journal article on string physics and it's utilizatizatipn in deep saltwater fishing, and lecturing a group of widows on how if they comport to the actuarial charts, they are currently dunking the last teabag they will ever need.

Gilberto de Piento
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Joined: Tue Nov 12, 2013 10:23 pm

Re: Gilberto de Piento's Journal

Post by Gilberto de Piento »

developing technology that converts maple syrup into electricity
NO! Maple syrup is delicious. Not worth it!

Gilberto de Piento
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Re: Gilberto de Piento's Journal

Post by Gilberto de Piento »

March 2017

This was an ugly month with very high spending because I went on vacation ($500), paid taxes ($337), paid car registration ($75), and paid a dental bill ($114). Look for more vacation expenses next month. At least it was a three paycheck month so the savings rate is still in the fifties. The high spending really messes up the SWR and years to retirement calculations but don't be alarmed.

Expenses
Alcohol & Bars 16.01
Auto & Transport 75 (annual auto registration)
Business Services 17.98
Charity 40
Clothing 22.29
Gas & Fuel 88.65 (travel related)
Groceries 243.8 (high)
Gym 51.7
Health & Fitness 114 (dentist bill - at least they figured out a way to get insurance to pay for most of it this time)
Internet 28.56 (sharing with two other people)
Laundry 20
Mobile Phone 12.23
Mortgage & Rent 970
Pharmacy 44.63
Sports 7.33
Taxes 336.98 (had to pay into taxes)
Travel 500 (went on vacation - not breaking this out because everything had to be paid in cash)
Total -FI 2589.16

Income
Paycheck 3713.38
Amazon 139.89
CafePress 50.37
Checking 19.4
457b 2076.9
Taxes 20
Total +FI 5999.94

Savings 3410.78

% Spent 43%
% Saved 57%

SWR 17%
SWR with Internet Income 15%
Years Remaining 40
Years Remaining with Interest 12


"Accept what is, let go of what was, and have faith in what will be."
Sonia Ricotti

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El Duderino
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Post by El Duderino »

An 'ugly' month with 57% savings rate, you're doing well friend. Hopefully you'll get a good month of normal type of expenses and get a nice, satisfyingly low SWR soon.

Great progress Gilberto!

Gilberto de Piento
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Re: Gilberto de Piento's Journal

Post by Gilberto de Piento »

Thanks Dude! It's good to get some outside perspective.

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