Am I right in saying that having your own business is the quickest way to Early Retirement. I am 37 and have had a business for several years now which is starting to run on its own. Although my net worth is technically along way off from being able to support me in ER, my business should soon be more than capable of supporting me if I decide to stop working. I would think that the most important thing you could do is to try and start your own business which does not need you by the time you retire, this way you get a full income as opposed to a payout/income from some retirement fund. Also, I have the philsophy that if you work for someone, then they must be profiting out of you or it would not make business sense to hire you. I would think it is more of a risk to leave your life in somebody else's/corporates hands than to invest in yourself and at least have the possibility of acheiving your full profit potential which is not going to happen as an employee. Does anyone else agree with me on this one?