Early Retirement Extreme Forums (est. 2010)

I think there is a continuum where there are better access to natural resources on the one end (real estate, water, game, fuel etc) and better access to social resources on the other (valuable waste streams, infrastructure, markets, networking). But there's also a quality component, so you have to b...

Well, there's a reason that "I went to the woods because I wished to live deliberately" works as a quote, and isn't dismissed as a meaningless statement. People generally don't live deliberately, but rather try to navigate themselves to as high a place as possible in the hierarchy they find themselv...

I recognize some of this. I think the extreme optimism and the anxiety are two sides of the same coin. The extreme attraction of the ideas lies in them being fictional - not in that you couldn't do them, but in that you know that you won't do them. There are no limits, because that thing you think a...

@Redbird, thanks for the link.

There's also a lot of permaculture/urban farming resources that seem like good examples of L6 and beyond (I guess I can tell because they seem inspiring?). For example https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=S5iJYVnw4ns

I'm over my acute sleeping problems, but there are still a lot of ground to cover in order to solve, or at least more robustly manage them. Thinking about it more clearly now without the insomnia clouding my brain, and without the frustration and panic of ”no sleep”, I feel it’s quite obvious that i...

I feel very much the same. I think this thread has made it very clear to me that my level is definitely Optimization. I've been proud of having a holistic approach, but I think that's rather been concentrating on individual nodes, and their effects, serially. I see positive and negative side effects...

Yeah, I guess ERE is about maximizing (given the particular constraints of the individual) skill in 1, 2 and 3 so that you select the most appropriate response in a given situation, whereas a some other strategies go all in one of them ("I'll save 5 million", "I'll make my own needles", "I need only...

A lot of great posts here! Regarding ERE and the recent discussion of adaptability, what struck me most in the ERE book was the focus on value creation (which also brings with it the desire to reduce waste, as waste virtually always carries some cost). I read it a bit later so I had already been exp...

I'm also struggling with my sleep as detailed in my journal. I'll share my plan here for accountability (and feedback, of course!) - I got an alarm clock so that I can keep the phone out of the bedroom. This will eliminate late night rabbit holes, or even quick checks that rev up my brain. Also it'l...

I tend to write headings for different parts of my life. I try to make the whole > (sum/product) of the different spheres and make sure my goals are aligned, but I need some structure that chops the chaos of life into manageable pieces. There are different ways of looking at the whole. It can be con...

Our cap rate is more like 3%. But that's comparing an apartment we could rent with the one we bought. The rental would not be in the same neighborhood as we'd only be able to rent new construction in certain areas due to housing market regulation (=long waiting lines for cheaper, older flats, say ar...

Here's a video on his Hawaiian property showcasing similar strategies: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wxGr9uloL9k

Great thread, questions and responses both! I've built a bit of social capital with the extended family, where we've traded favors (I'll help MIL with he computer and she'll mend my sweater etc). It's very small scale and the financial impact isn't huge, but I think it has deepened our relationship ...

I guess it depends a lot on the personality of those involved, but I would treat your low living expenses as a temporary windfall and enjoy it as such. In my experience people tend to become weary of such arrangements and others perception of them, especially when children are involved. That said, i...

The reasoning seems to be that the long term equity return is also always the short term equity return, making the ever lower discount rates a boon. I don't think we'll get our God-given 8% per annum going forward given what treasury yields are telling us about the economy, but perhaps that's only b...

I rediscovered this post last week, it seemed relevant to the topic: http://archdruidmirror.blogspot.com/201 ... rning.html

Fertility is already low in most developed countries. If you look at subsets of the population by education, income or wealth, it’s even lower for the educated and affluent. I see this line of reasoning more as a rationalization for people who have already decided not to reproduce. It’s not like the...

I have always been a bit fidgety, when I was I kid my imagination was too lively to allow me to concentrate for too long anyways, but I'm sure the easier kicks of blogs and forums have shortened my attention span somewhat. I think it's rather the constant presence of a smartphone that's done the mos...

I haven't read the book but going by the SSC article, I think Guyenet's and my views mostly overlap. Some would say that it's wishy-washy or blurry, I'd claim that it's rather the case that it's the nutritionistic drive to identify the bad nutrient (be it saturated fat, carbohydrates, sugar, meat or...

Mentally, I don't think it's wise to get to hung up on couldabeens. I remember reading some thread over at Bogleheads where some guy had planned out his salary and net worth 30 years out. Then -08 happened, but he was still comparing himself to the blueprint version of himself, a decade later. I don...