This has been a long time coming. I've been peripherally involved in ERE happenings for a couple of years now, thanks to one very active member who is one of my favorite humans ever. I may or may not know a handful of forumites here already.
I'll start a journal very soon, but I don't know if today is that day.
I read the ERE book at a time when there was no place in my life to make that a priority... yet, I live many of the principles of the lifestyle already.
I live off grid in a shipping container that we built a whole decade ago now (wow!).
I'm a self-employed engineering consultant and my mission (some say "intrinsic stoke"!) is to design, develop, and communicate off-grid ready home designs to the masses of normie tradespeople, homeowners, and designers... To put fuel-free infrastructure (and other self-reliant lifestyle features of the home) within reach.
I came from a corporate design office and basically quit as soon as I met the qualifications of getting my engineering license. Before, after, and during corporate life, I was weaving in practice of 1) building things with my hands, and 2) doing that as self-employed, practice in operating as a business. a.k.a. people paying me to let them be my guinea pig as a builder
When I read the ERE book, I was extremely sick at the time. Chronic illness mystery stuff that just takes 100% of one's priority to figure out. It's the foundation of everything that enables us to live by the principles of autonomy. And it's really freaking expensive. And there's no way out but through.
Glad to say that after ~5-7 years of very grueling days of being half human and hurling myself into finding solutions, I finally picked that lock and figured myself out. That experience is one of the things I'll likely discuss on my journal with respect to knowing when it's time to hold em or fold em when it comes to spending. Not spending on things like health is a huge priviledge. Being self employed is a privilege. And it takes work. And I think perhaps that IS the work of ERE. Invest in yourself enough in the beginning as if you were a start-up business such that you can launch out of the traditional golden balls and chains (which are named in the book (rent, utilities, transport, health, etc.)) and become self-sustaining.
Looking forward to many more discussions on these strategic self investments and much much more. <3
More motivation. Need to catch up on your journals too.