First started while in the Navy, 1968. Got talked into investing in commodities on margin with all I'd saved up until then, with predictable results.
Started over in earnest after graduate school, marriage and new corporate job in 1975. Got into the 401K when it was available a little after that. Big promotion in 1980 led me to start saving 15% plus the 3% match. Wasn't very aggressive in my choice of investments, not being a big risk taker, until about 1983. Got into more equities, including company stock.
Got into the landlord business on the side around 1981, which for me took a real leap of faith at the time. I was encouraged by a close friend who was a Finance Professor and was purchasing every piece of real estate he could afford in his college town.
Never really had a time goal for FIRE'ing, but I was always pretty
tight, uh frugal. That's probably partly the reason I'm still w*rking, that and a younger wife and a child in college. You'd think I'd have taken my cue from Grandparents (retired in their 40's) or parents (retired at 55), but I didn't. But the time is close, probably January.
Anyway, adding up the years since 1975, comes to ...
32 1/2 years. Who started this thread?? No wonder I'm ready to quit.