In 2017, I was a newly divorced single mom living paycheck to paycheck. Now I’m retired.
I, too, joined this movement and resigned from my full-time academic career as a tenured professor. You can imagine just how many people called me foolish for leaving a “good job.” But for me, it was the right thing to do, and I couldn’t be happier!First off, I didn’t plan to quit my job during the pandemic, but I was already on the path to FIRE. FIRE is an acronym forThanks to the FIRE movement, some twenty-, thirty-, and fortysomethings are retiring earlier than the traditional retirement age.
For example, instead of the typically advised 10% or 15% save-for-retirement threshold, those in the FIRE movement save and invest as much as possible, up to 50%, 60%, or even 70% of their income.With FIRE, the focus isn't necessarily on how much money you make, but how much you save and invest. Some take drastic measures to spend less like reducing all luxuries, not eating out, and even moving into a camper. Others don’t go as extreme but pick up additional jobs, side hustles, or gigs so they can invest more. Some people, with just enough to live comfortably, but others fat FIRE, with many times more money than what they need so that they can live a life of luxury.
I personally started my journey in 2017, right after my divorce. I was a single mom, living paycheck to paycheck. I felt financially insecure like I did as a child, being the daughter of teen parents. Everyone thought I was happy because I lived in a huge house in Tennessee. But I was miserable on the inside and strapped for cash on my professor salary.So I made the decision to sell the marital home, since it was my biggest expense with a $2,410 mortgage.
I never felt better. The weight lifted off my shoulders immediately. My two sons and I moved into a small two-bedroom and started fresh. That’s when I learned about FIRE.I had received about $30,000 in proceeds from the sale of the house, but I had no idea what to do with it. So I started googling, “What to do with a windfall of money.” I found some very interesting results, which made me think about it more intentionally.
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