I want YOUR story

F

Financialfreedomguy

Confused about dryer sheets
Joined
Sep 18, 2012
Messages
6
Location
Nepal
I think everyone, no matter how old or young should be interested in hearing from all types of others in regard to their personal finances. Although in reality, this rarely happens.. Most people are taught that it's rude to talk about money, even though we all use it, everyday. I believe it's something that should be spoken about and it would benefit everybody. It's perhaps the most important subject we should be learning in Schools, yet no-one knows much about it.

Try it for yourself. Excuse me (insert name here) Dad, How do you get rich? I think we all know the answer there.

I'd like to know your story, with age and figures. If you don't feel comfortable with this maybe just insert LVR'S? Or just don't reply

Heres mine: http://www.early-retirement.org/for...my-dream-is-financial-indipendance-63059.html
 
Thanks mate, but I don't see any figures there. You could be living on baked beans and tenting it in Malaysia?

I read some of them but not quite what I was after. There are plenty of others here that haven't told of their place in the bigger picture as yet. Lets coax em out! After all, it helps them too. I like to see these types of things as 'personal diaries' where you just blurt all of your thoughts out, then look at them with a sceptic eye. Sometimes you do thinbgs you didn't even realise, sometimes you're not meeting your goals, or even further ahead than you might have thought. Sometimes it's the first time you've ever done this and it gives you a very clear picture. If you don't have a plan, how do you know when you get there..?
 
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It all started back in the early 1970s. I made a dollar and didn't spend all of it. I made another dollar and didn't spend all of that one either. Repeat that a few million times and here I am today.
 
Financialfreedomguy said:
Thanks mate, but I don't see any figures there. You could be living on baked beans and tenting it in Malaysia?
Click to expand...
I could be, but I'm not. Or I could be thinking of making a takeover bid for APPL and BRK. As to NW, which one of the <8 digits do you consider the most significant, and why?

What we have shouldn't matter to you. How we got it might but would it help you? Then again, if possible, I'd become FI the old fashioned way, I'd inherit it. Try that first.
 
From the responses so far I guess there is a reason it is labeled "personal" finances

Also -- Those who are comfortable sharing probably have already disclosed that which with they do feel comfortable with ---

see search function
 
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Gumby said:
It all started back in the early 1970s. I made a dollar and didn't spend all of it. I made another dollar and didn't spend all of that one either. Repeat that a few million times and here I am today.
Click to expand...
You had it easy. We didn't have dollars back then. And we had to walk to school. Uphill. Both ways.
 
Bestwifeever said:
Pass.
Click to expand...
+1 (NOYB :cool: )...

Heck, the only "story" that counts is the one you create, on your own. What anybody else does is of no significance, and there are many stories all over the net of how folks achieved (if they did), their "number"...

We were not all born with the same background, family values, personal challenges, or opportunities. I know for a fact that my/DW's situation is part of the 1%'s on this board - not due to assets (well, maybe) but also our personal situation (support for an adult "child" after we're both gone).

Whereas we're planning for two generations (not only our own) what we did and how we did it would apply to a very small part of the ER crowd.

Everybody is different...

Oh, BTW - your original posting had a few good "nuggets" of how you think: "I also ran it across an Aussie property forum where everyone is a negative A-hole", along with the comment of "My Father is welathy and owns outright lots of property from hard work, but we don;t factor in any of this later in life, although we do know it's there, we don't think about it." Sorry, but if you take the time to mention it, you are probably thinking about how it will play into your future plans.

Don't mind me; I'm just one of those folks who questions posts such as yours, at such an early age.
 
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My story, I was born on the bayou.

I predict this thread will not end well !
 
"It all started at a 5,000 Watt radio station in Fresno....."

("Oh, no, that wasn't me...it was Ted Baxter..")
 
When I was young, I had to walk uphill both ways to and from school, on the slippery snow in the blazing sun. I only had the back of a shovel and a piece of coal to write with, but I never gave up. Seriously, some people inherited money. Some people made great investments. Some people LBYM'd. Most had a combination. I never, ever had credit card balances or paid credit card interest except maybe once or twice when I just forgot to make a payment on time. I never bought a house with a minimum down payment and always paid a little extra every month on the mortgage. I haven't had a car payment in more than 20 years. We have 2 houses, and no mortgages. We built the vacation home with inherited money on land we owned free and clear, because it seemed to us like a better investment than putting the money in the market. We've spent our vacations for a number of years working on and finishing the vacation home, but we like doing that kind of stuff. We give away more than 10% of our income to faith based organizations. We enjoy doing things that are free or almost free. We like hanging out together doing free or almost free things.

Thats how we did it. My wife has been retired for a while and I'm checking out early next year. We won't be "rich" and, based on the cars we drive, the toys we have or don't have and the expensive vacations we don't take, many of our "peers" probably think we probably aren't doing quite as well as them. Personally, I am much happier living more modestly with no debt than I would be living larger, and working a lot longer, with lots of debt and stress.

So thats how we did it. You can plug whatever numbers you want into the story. The numbers don't matter, because they are all relative to your personal situation. What matters is what you do with whatever numbers you earn, inherit or find under the mattress.
 
FFG, MYOFB.

It isn't complicated: save some of what you make, invest it wisely, and don't give in to lifestyle creep. All else is the details.
 
I could have been born with a silver spoon..... unfortunately I did not choose my parents well.

So I w*rked, spent a lot less than what I was paid. Retired at exactly 59.5 years of age.

The rest is history.
 
ls99 said:
I could have been born with a silver spoon..... unfortunately I did not choose my parents well.
Click to expand...

Always a problem. I plan to do better next time...

I'm sure it's just a matter of putting a little effort into researching the situation beforehand.
 
brewer12345 said:
It isn't complicated: save some of what you make, invest it wisely, and don't give in to lifestyle creep. All else is the details.
Click to expand...

I lived frugally, worked hard, and saved what I could...

And then the first billion of my trust fund vested.

After that I was able to live a decent but modest lifestyle on that limited sum until the rest of my trust fund vests.
 
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I was the victim of dumb-luck. As a youth, I stumbled into job washing windows for rich folks in Beverly Hills. I charged $1 a window and their houses had lots of windows with little panes of glass. They paid whatever I asked.

After college, I married the daughter of a rich foreigner. He gave us stock in his USA subsidiary and we made a bundle. His friends were well connected and clued me in to various private investments in real estate in places like Orange County and Santa Barbara.

Thanks to my brother-in-law who is a lawyer for a big outfit in Seattle, I met a guy who was starting an internet book store. I gave him $10,000 to help him out and he gave me some stock options. I cashed them in for $487,000,

After the divorce, I got to keep half of everything which was a lot. One day, on a lark, I bought a lottery ticket. A week later I was the winner of $1,245,000. Not bad for a $2 ticket.

A few years ago, my ex-wife's cousin passed away. We had had a brief fling after the divorce and she must have still liked me since she left me stock worth $650,000 in her will.

That is how I worked my way to an early retirement.
 
I worked hard, fast tracked my career, kept receiving higher salaries and bonuses over the years, while still driving the same car and living in the same house that we (married at the time) bought in the first year of our career. No lifestyle creep at all. Now house is paid for, 2 cars paid for, and a comfortable portfolio which would allow 4%SWR; I am still working to be able to afford a 3%SWR at that point I will ER.

I think the key to FIRE is living frugally, saving a lot, and investing wisely.

Best of luck with your plan. And welcome to the Forum.
 
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