I've been lurking around the boards for quite some time, on an on-and-off basis. I first discovered ERE when I was still studying, and saving any money seemed like a far off proposition (I was actually withdrawing a moderate amount of student loans at the time). This must have been around 2007, before 2008, because I can remember being knowledgeable about these things at the time of the crash.
The way I found ERE was actually through the PO crowd, which I was reading out of pure interest. So at the time of the crash, I was debating to myself whether or not the world will pull through after the big financial crisis, and whether I should just forgo a career altogether and withdraw into my grandparent's former homestead
Maybe it wouldn't have been such a bad idea in any case! I would probably be FI already. However, there was some definite "will I make it in the work world" anxiety mixed in with that. I'm now fairly convinced that the financial world will almost always pull through *eventually*, and other sectors of society are much more fragile (higher education, for example, has been the subject of brutal budget cuts here in Finland). When things get rough, it's time to buy.
I began my career (academic) seven years ago, and I made my first index fund investments in the same year. Over the next few years, I saved a little out of my *very* measly pay. Making this even more difficult was the fact that my work has been very precarious, with the shortest contract being only one month long. I did go ahead and get a mortgage anyway, because here in Finland it is still a very valid proposition if you want to accumulate any kind of wealth (part of the interest is tax deductible, so I get 800 euros back every year, and in my city a rental will cost you the same amount per month as paying for a mortgage. My interest for my home is currently 0,79 per cent, and for my rental, it's 1,8. The interest is variable, but the monthly payment is fixed). Currently, my first apartment houses tenants, so it's been working out great for me.
Then life happened. I grew up, went through some tumultuous times between 28-31, and I stopped putting money into the funds, but continued paying the mortgage (yay for forced savings). Lately, I've snapped out of this, and begun regular investing into index funds again. I will explore other investment options in the coming months, but for now, rentals+indexes+cash it is.
This story, I think, fits pretty well with my strong INTP personality. I do have some trouble with plan adherence, because the world is full of interesting ideas and things to learn! I'm always learning *something*, though, which can be very positively harnessed if I'm a part of a community that keeps me accountable and engaged. That's why I think this journal is a good idea. Why now, though?
Well, I'm about to sign a three-year contract (field is between design and STEM), and I do want to make the best of those three years, even if reaching FI is not possible within that time frame. After all, I might not ever get another project funded, or I might decide that I want to do something else. Importantly, I do have some other aspirations in life as well, that I would love to work on.
I think there's also some even deeper psychological reasons for why I've been drawn to (E)RE that have to do with the fact that I've always felt like I'm in a precarious situation in life and society anyway despite my middle-class upbringing. As I've grown older, I have also grown to appreciate saving money/accumulating assets more and more as a way to secure my own position in society. When I was younger, I was busy developing a sociable and likable personality, in spite of my INTx-ness, to ensure I fit in with society. Now, at 33, I'm well aware of the fact that whatever I do, I will never be liked by all (nobody is). If I were to reach FIRE, I would probably feel like I "won" in life. I'm not sure if that's a "good" aspect of my personality. Certainly doesn't make be as likable any more! But truth is more important that being likable.
Entangled with all of this is the sobering truth that my legal age of retirement is 67-70 years old. This fact alone makes me eager to accumulate all the resources I possibly can. Frankly, I don't even think I'll live that long. I'd like to be retired in 5-7 years, but that would entail taking some added risks, and since we're already leveraged with the mortgages, I don't think I'm willing to take much more risk. A viable option would be to come up with a second income stream (or third, the rentals are one, I guess).
Within the next few months, I hope to formulate some sort of a plan. Or not a plan... a system of saving and investing that mostly takes care of itself. I think with my personality, that's my best bet.
Tips, views and opinions are welcomed!
I think the way freestyle swimming is broken down into general principles intellectually, and then learned and practiced continually in a very concrete, broken-down-into-steps way makes a lot of sense to me. I have to approach the physical endeavours through the mind, otherwise it's just not engaging for me.