black_son_of_gray's Journal
Posted: Fri Jan 02, 2015 9:05 pm
Greetings ERE community!
I figured I would start a journal, less as a chronicle of progress towards FI, but more as a record of various ideas that come to me that either 1) I think might be useful to others or 2) that I'd like to get some feedback on.
Basics:
I'm in my early thirties, work as a scientist (Ph.D.) and fall pretty squarely into INTJ. I live in the Baltimore-Washington DC region. I've been following the ERE blog and forums for years now, and finally figured I'd like to contribute something, even if it is just my two cents. I've had a variety of jobs, some I liked, some I didn't - but I'm actually in a pretty satisfying job right now. So my main motivation with respect to "ERE" isn't necessarily the speed at which I achieve FI, but the personal growth that goes along with figuring out how to the best life possible, with the least cost to myself and others. In some sense, the FI is the byproduct of the personal growth - not the other way around.
Finances:
Currently my SWR is 17% (I have about 6 years saved), and I am on a fairly relaxed timeline to financial independence (between 5-10 years, depending on career prospects). I currently save about 50% of my after-tax income - which I could easily increase to ~67% with two simple changes: 1) find cheaper rent (60% of my current expenses), 2) sell my car (been bicycle commuting for 7+ years now, drive maybe 1-2k miles a year, unfortunately being an unmarried young male makes insurance ridiculous). After tracking my expenses for about half a year, I can confidently say I run a pretty tight ship. The expenses that keep me from ERE-like savings (75%+) are simply due to compromises and priorities (that I willingly choose).
Relationship:
I suppose I am in a different position than many on this forum, as my SO is already FI. It is an interesting dynamic actually, because she is more frugal than she needs to be (at least in a financial sense) to match expenses at roughly my level. And yet, if I wasn't living with her, I would probably go for monk-like, drastic reductions to my expenses. Alas, some compromises I am more than willing to make!
Investing:
After dabbling in the market here and there for a number of years, in the last few years I've settled into a Permanent Portfolio split (Gold, Cash, LT treasuries, Total Stock Market Index) - not because I think it is the end-all-be-all, but mostly because the logic is reasonably compelling to me. Furthermore, I don't currently have the time to be a more sophisticated investor. (I like analyzing and researching investments, though, so maybe in the future).
I'm looking forward to sharing my ideas with what seems to be a great community of diverse thinkers!
I figured I would start a journal, less as a chronicle of progress towards FI, but more as a record of various ideas that come to me that either 1) I think might be useful to others or 2) that I'd like to get some feedback on.
Basics:
I'm in my early thirties, work as a scientist (Ph.D.) and fall pretty squarely into INTJ. I live in the Baltimore-Washington DC region. I've been following the ERE blog and forums for years now, and finally figured I'd like to contribute something, even if it is just my two cents. I've had a variety of jobs, some I liked, some I didn't - but I'm actually in a pretty satisfying job right now. So my main motivation with respect to "ERE" isn't necessarily the speed at which I achieve FI, but the personal growth that goes along with figuring out how to the best life possible, with the least cost to myself and others. In some sense, the FI is the byproduct of the personal growth - not the other way around.
Finances:
Currently my SWR is 17% (I have about 6 years saved), and I am on a fairly relaxed timeline to financial independence (between 5-10 years, depending on career prospects). I currently save about 50% of my after-tax income - which I could easily increase to ~67% with two simple changes: 1) find cheaper rent (60% of my current expenses), 2) sell my car (been bicycle commuting for 7+ years now, drive maybe 1-2k miles a year, unfortunately being an unmarried young male makes insurance ridiculous). After tracking my expenses for about half a year, I can confidently say I run a pretty tight ship. The expenses that keep me from ERE-like savings (75%+) are simply due to compromises and priorities (that I willingly choose).
Relationship:
I suppose I am in a different position than many on this forum, as my SO is already FI. It is an interesting dynamic actually, because she is more frugal than she needs to be (at least in a financial sense) to match expenses at roughly my level. And yet, if I wasn't living with her, I would probably go for monk-like, drastic reductions to my expenses. Alas, some compromises I am more than willing to make!
Investing:
After dabbling in the market here and there for a number of years, in the last few years I've settled into a Permanent Portfolio split (Gold, Cash, LT treasuries, Total Stock Market Index) - not because I think it is the end-all-be-all, but mostly because the logic is reasonably compelling to me. Furthermore, I don't currently have the time to be a more sophisticated investor. (I like analyzing and researching investments, though, so maybe in the future).
I'm looking forward to sharing my ideas with what seems to be a great community of diverse thinkers!