My Personal FIRE Journey(ongoing)
Hi everyone, I’m Tom, a regular person with a regular job. Just like many of you, I dream of financial independence and early retirement. I’m looking to take control of my future and have more freedom to pursue my passions outside of work.
The idea of FIRE (Financial Independence, Retire Early) is really appealing to me. I know it won’t be easy, but I’m determined to learn more about how to save aggressively, invest wisely, and live a fulfilling life while reaching my financial goals.
I’m aware that retiring early might not be for everyone, and there are challenges to consider. But I believe with careful planning and a strong support network, achieving financial freedom is possible, even on a regular income.
The journey has started about 11 years ago, when I took my little saving to invest in my first stock. In the first few years, short term trades were my favorite. It was really exciting to see the up and down of stock prices. However, besides the excitement, the growth of my wealth was very slow. So I tried to read some investment books to seek for guidance.
The book, Value Averaging: The Safe and Easy Strategy for Higher Investment Returns by Michael E. Edleson(now on Sales, $16.03 in Amazon), Inspired me to implement the Dollar Cost Averaging Strategy. I opened an account in TD Ameritrade(now Charles Schwab) and started investing regularly.
Then a few years later, another book, The Little Book of Common Sense Investing: The Only Way to Guarantee Your Fair Share of Stock Market Returns (Little Books, Big Profits by John C. Bogle)(now on Sales, $13.99 in Amazon) guided me to a whole new world of index funds. “A portfolio focused on index funds is the only investment that effectively guarantees your fair share of stock market returns.” Mr. Bogle said in his book. I have started to adjust my little portfolio to add more index funds ever since. However, due to my love in trading, I still keep some positions for my own enjoyment.
In recent years, thanks to the Quantitative easing (QE) all over the world, stocks and index funds price skyrocketing. “Do I have to take profit now?” a lot of people asked. A book by Nick Maggiulli, Just Keep Buying: Proven Ways to Save Money and Build Your Wealth(now on Sales, $13.29 in Amazon), answered all those questions at once. Just invest in index funds and KEEP BUYING regularly!! Keep it Simple!!
I’m currently still learning from others who are on the FIRE journey and will share my own experiences along the way. I’m excited to be part of this community and learn the best ways to achieve financial independence. Let’s FIRE together. Good luck to us all!!
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