This is the archive of all our articles related to how financial freedom and early retirement (FIRE)
The road to wealth creation is long and winding. As much as it requires patience, it also needs focus and reference points. Here are a few personal finance milestones that can help you gauge “where you stand today” on the road to wealth. Today, these milestones would appear huge and daunting. With disciplined effort, you…
Continue reading →We discuss some mistakes to avoid while planning for early retirement. Whether or not early retirement is a wise choice is a highly debatable topic. Ultimately, it is up to the individual to be clear about why they wish to retire early and what they intend to do afterwards. We shall get into this debate…
Continue reading →Excuse me for stating the obvious. Most people will not be financially independent when they retire. Here is why. Forget about early retirement; Most people will not become financially independent at normal retirement (55-60). Unlike early retirement, this is a mandatory retirement. Otherwise, our quality of life will significantly decrease, and we will depend on…
Continue reading →Each time a financially independent person is interviewed on YouTube or the media, many comments go, “Oh, this guy had a huge salary; she went on-site, that is why she can save so much. He says he is financially independent and retired, but his wife is still working so that does not count” and so…
Continue reading →I evaluate the performance of my retirement portfolio and my son’s future portfolio each year in a personal finance audit. This is the 12th edition. Published from 2013 onwards, these audits provide a sense of accountability and ensure I do not fall prey to fear of missing out, preventing bad investment decisions. They also point…
Continue reading →In 2008, my expenses dropped to ‘normal’ levels after my father passed away (post a prolonged battle with cancer). By then, I had been in a regular position for less than two years, taking stock of my cash flow and investible surplus (money net of all expenses). Immature me, I remember asking my mom a…
Continue reading →A reader says, “I was planning to retire in early 2025. The markets in the last few years have been good to us all, and I was confident about retiring early (I am 45). But now, I am not so sure. I have used your robo-advisor tool for the last four years and, with its…
Continue reading →We discuss ten mistakes to avoid while planning for early retirement. 1. Have a clear post-retirement engagement plan. Retirement (early or normal) does not mean a complete cessation of work. It is a time to be even more organised, disciplined and productive. Think of yourself as running a one-person company using time as a precious…
Continue reading →I have tracked the amount invested for my goals in the same Excel sheet for the last 14 years (2011 to 2024). This sheet only tracks the amount invested and not its current market value (for this, I use a Google Sheets Tracker). These are some lessons from the journey. Between 2010-11, my retirement planning…
Continue reading →We recently received two questions which would be interesting to discuss together: (1) How much do I need to retire at 40 in India? (2) What should be the portfolio size in terms of x(annual expenses) so that we could maintain 60:40 post FIRE/retirement (at early ages like 35-40)? How big must one have so…
Continue reading →The first step in getting rich is to believe without a doubt that we will be. It is just a matter of effort and time (in that order). Allow me to explain. How does one get rich? What is the first step towards financial independence? Crude as it may seem, the first step to being…
Continue reading →I evaluate the performance of my retirement portfolio and my son’s future portfolio each year in a personal finance audit. This is the 11th edition. Published from 2013 onwards, these audits provide a sense of accountability and ensure I do not fall prey to fear of missing out, preventing bad investment decisions. They also point…
Continue reading →Two couples share contrasting reasons why they decided against property purchase and opted for lifetime renting. Before we begin, we would like to point out that this is their choice. They clarified that they are not preaching and that their lifestyle/choices will not work for everyone. So we anticipate your disagreement, but we request that…
Continue reading →A reader writes,” I am 28 years of age and single and plan to remain so. I have no financial goals and only wish to create wealth. I have an aggressive risk appetite. How should I invest? Can you write an article about this?” Is it possible for a person to have no financial goals?…
Continue reading →A reader asked in response to the article – Why do you want more money? Don’t you have enough? Learn to say, “I have enough”! – ‘Can you share some moments of your life when you had a low net worth? What did you sacrifice to achieve what you are now today?” I have mentioned…
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