Early Retirement Extreme Forums

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classical_Liberal wrote: ↑

Fri Nov 16, 2018 4:07 am

Maybe a really bad contract experience will push me over the edge?… At least that’s my theory. Maybe I’m just stupid?

Kotter's model of change management has create a sense of urgency as the first step. Sounds like you are just following classic practice in a different order (since capital accumulation is a requirement first).

Step 1 - Create a sense of urgency (what you are potentially manufacturing)
Step 2 - Build a core coalition (You)
Step 3 - Form a strategic vision (what you've been doing as your journal progresses)
Step 4 - Get everyone on board (sounds like you've been doing that too)
Step 5 - Remove barriers and reduce friction (this would be your money in da bank)
Step 6 - Generate short term wins (this will be key when you move into Semi-RE)
Step 7 - Sustain acceleration (keep following through physically)
Step 8 - Set the change in stone (keep following through mentally)

Makes sense to me.

You could also check out Bridge's transition model. Talks more to productivity throughout the change. I also like the picture it makes.

I vote again that you should pull the plug and go into Semi-ERE. 75% savings rate means you could get half the salary and still have a a 50% savings rate, so... do it!!!!

I'm with J+G, after your contract is over in Feb, maybe it's time to give this ERE thing a shot?

Your career makes it easy to jump back in to the working world if things out of your control happen.

I think classical_Liberal's combination of being in a relationship with somebody who is still working full-time and being in a location that is just transitory might make this a difficult time to best appreciate the benefits of semi-ERE. For instance, if he takes a road trip while GF is working, he can't enjoy sex on his road trip, but since he also doesn't own his residence, he also can't amuse himself by building a home-made sauna.

@7W5

I'm surprised with both your polyamory and peripateticism you haven't stumbled upon these:

https://custommobilesaunas.com

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7Wannabe5 wrote: ↑

Sat Nov 17, 2018 8:27 am

he also can't amuse himself by building a home-made sauna.

I have done this. Building a thing is more fun than having a thing. Haven't used it in like 6 years. And I'm a Finn!

When I was a child, I always wanted my parents to put an aquarium underneath the car. I don't mean like a gold fish bowl but a complete Sea World type of thing so I could go there when I got bored sitting in the backseat listening to my douchebag brother whine on for hours. I don't know why I thought that as I never really cared for water or what lives in water. As I've matured, I've moved onto the sauna concept. If they have these self driving cars, why can't you sit in a sauna during the drive.

@c_L:

1) Market conditions are why you should pull the trigger now. If your target were stationary I could see following through (though I still believe this is a mistake). I do this too. However, you're playing a game wear the odds are currently stacked against you. What if there is a 25% market crash before you hit your goal? What if it happens right after you hit your goal? Many people would argue that it's much better to have a fulltime job when the shit hits the fan. I argue the opposite, it's much better to have the lifestyle you want when shit hits the fan. Otherwise you're just going to get trapped for another 5 years.

2) I think this is a bad reason, but I don't place much value on romantic relationships. Lovers are replaceable. It sounds like you've got a good thing going here, but why does your gf need to ERE for you to ERE? That's a major red flag to me. It's good that you are addressing it, having more time off than a romantic partner is going to create conflict, but that conflict shouldn't be insurmountable.

3) Numbers and math. I like them too, but don't let them fool you. $x doesn't make you free. You make you free. Money is just one of the tools you can use.

I face the opposite problem, I am PRN. I could retire faster if I worked parttime. If I could go fulltime without increasing expenditures, holding onto my side income and still avoiding all but SS taxes (unlikely, but if it was my only goal not totally impossible) I could probably be retired in 3 years. However, I'm not often tempted by this. The option of fulltime work always exists if I really want out, for me that's enough.

I also work at a garbage hospital. I've never really worked at another but they treat everyone like shit and we are delayed all the time because they won't hire people to clean the surgical instruments properly. It doesn't bother me that much because I don't spend most of my time working. I don't know how anyone does it for 40+ hours a week without a serious heroin addiction.

4) This is the most concerning obstacle. I think you have 1 more year syndrome. Any of the 3 reasons above are fine reasons to keep going, but how confident are you that any of these will actually be solved in 1 year? 2 years? 5?

I've burned out before and I don't recommend it. Safer to decrease savings rate and save your sanity, no?

I also know you have somewhat high expenses (only in ERE world). I don't recall what expenditure level your expenses are based on but high expenditures give you somewhat of a buffer if the rug is pulled out from under you. They also give you a way to expediate actual retirement should you find yourself needing it.

J+G dropping knowledge bombs over here, and in the meantime...I've reread your entire thread. What a ride over the past year and a half!

If you don't have a resource base to develop (for instance, homestead) and you don't have the freedom to move around, sometimes all you are left with the ability to develop is your physiology and your knowledge-base. So, it's not much different than being somebody in prison who can only focus on bodybuilding and reading about the law in the penitentiary library.

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This all sounds fairly normal - you have a handful of goals / considerations that are in tension with one another:

1. you want/need to work so you want to maximize the $/BS ratio, which is maximized with FT work
2. you want/need to work less so you want to minimize work
3. you want/need to be free to travel
4. you want/need to be with gf (who isn't free to travel as much)

Considerations 2 and 3 support each other and are the "permanent" plan, but are in conflict with considerations 1 and 4. Solving for all 4 at once is basically impossible, so you need to consider them in sequence. By doing 1 for OMY you also help 4 become resolved so that when gf is free to travel, you can then do 2 and 3. Is that the gist?

This also piqued my interest:

classical_Liberal wrote: ↑

Thu Nov 22, 2018 8:19 am

Part of my history I've yet to detail in this journal is a period in my life about 10 years ago when I walked out on my last career and normal suburban life. With virtually no savings I managed to make ends meet with odd jobs I enjoyed, make some major positive personal changes, and was much happier for it. As a matter of fact, one of the main images of semi-ERE that I hold in my head is a return to a similar life-style, except this time with enough self knowledge and maturity to know that this is the life I want permanently.

Story time!

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classical_Liberal wrote: ↑

Thu Nov 22, 2018 8:19 am

Part of my history I've yet to detail in this journal is a period in my life about 10 years ago when I walked out on my last career and normal suburban life. With virtually no savings I managed to make ends meet with odd jobs I enjoyed, make some major positive personal changes, and was much happier for it. As a matter of fact, one of the main images of semi-ERE that I hold in my head is a return to a similar life-style, except this time with enough self knowledge and maturity to know that this is the life I want permanently. Last time, I thought of it as a transition period. Evidently, I still had it in the back of my head I just needed to find the "right" career to rejoin all the normies.

Haha, in this way ERE is a curse. When your reference group is people who are drowning in debt and working six figure jobs just to pay the interest on their next credit card payment, you think you're a fucking financial genius when you have a few grand in the bank and quit your job with no prospects. When your reference group is a dude who literally wrote (part of) a book on peak oil and retired in his 30s from a post-grad job, all of the sudden anyone with less than a few hundred grand is irresponsible and probably going to die.

Before ERE the most I ever had was $10k which I saved to quit my job, travel for 3 months straight and then move to a city where I knew 2 people (one of them is now dead from a heroin overdose). Now I'm working a job I hate because it pays really well and has a ton of side benefits. Half of me is like, man, I used to be so irresponsible, even for me. The other half is like, when did I become a total fucking dullard pussy.



My libido goes into overdrive when I'm overworked. But not if I'm slightly (40-50/week) over worked, I have to be extremely overworked.

Jin+Guice wrote: ↑

Sun Nov 25, 2018 6:26 pm

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God that's so true. Great post.

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classical_Liberal wrote: ↑

Tue Nov 27, 2018 1:24 am

I constantly oscillate between: a) c_L you have a tolerable job that pays six figures, man the fuck up and do it for three more years and get to real FI. and b) c_L you have saved more money is the last 3 years than you even thought possible in a lifetime, why the fuck are you doing something that isn't bringing you joy, man the fuck up, quit and find a series of lifestyle gig's that do.

I do this too, but for me it's J+G you could have a six figure job and get to full FI in 3-5 years vs. J+G why are you doing this job that you hate? You don't even really want to be FI.

I'll tell you from the non-fulltime side, I am rarely tempted to go fulltime. Then again I'm below parttime, and I'm a bit more tempted by parttime, but not enough to actually ever truly consider doing it.

No matter how bad my day is, I'm almost always way calmer/ happier than the fulltime staff who always seem miserable. I actually kind of look forward to working as a break from my regular life of not working. It's easy to brush off hospital bullshit (admittedly already probably less for me since I am technically a contractor due to my job) when you only deal with it once or twice a week.