Jacob over at EarlyRetirement Extreme (http://earlyretirementextreme.com) is doing a series for 30 days about how to achieve financial independence in 5 years. I’ve been following his blog for awhile. The first subject he posted on in the series is about living in affordable digs. He suggests not spending more than $200-300 per person. That would definitely be a quick way to early retirement. I’m at about double that right now but it is still affordable- we could feasibly pay off the house in the next 5 years if we decided to. But there would not be much extra for anything else. Our goal is to do it in 7. It is a good goal. Hard for a gypsy, but what kind of freedom will I have when I am mortgage-free? I’ll be free to pursue anything I want without a lot of financial burden- and that’s a HUGE gift to give myself. This fool can then live the life I sacrificed for the past 10 years. If it takes longer than 7 it is only because I didn’t bring in as much income as a freelancer. So maybe it takes 10 years. That’s still phenomenal in my opinion.
I want to say that even though I sacrificed a certain way of living temporarily it has been completely worth it. By going into a more corporate setting I’ve had the chance to learn skills and get over fears. I’ve gained more than I gave up.
