I have recently discovered the Financial Independence Retire Early (FIRE) movement, and the more that I look into it, the more I wonder why I had never stumbled across it before. There are so many tools available to you (details here) especially if you are based in the US, that it seems oh so obtainable for the middle class. Of course this movement is not limited to those who are fortunate with their income-stories from all different demographics are being showcased around the web.
This movement truly stems from the belief that money is not anything. Although from the outside, middle-class people who scrimp and save and work overtime as well as take on a side-hustle may be seen as slaves to money, this is not further from the truth with FIRE. These little firebugs (not to be confused with the AussieFireBug, an Australian blog about a 20-something's path to FIRE) are hard-working little ants who are saving up for the future. Instead of indulgences of the present, they are working to buy back their freedom in the years to come. Maybe they should be called FIRE ants! (<-- That title is not taken yet, if somebody wants it.)
The essentials are to decrease your spending, pay off your debt, maximize your retirement accounts, try to increase your income through a raise, job change, or side hustle, and the invest as much of your disposable income as is reasonable to you in exchange for some sweet years of retirement!! As a not, you find, that most people do not want to do nothing after they retire, and may end up pursuing part-time work in an area they are truly interested in. There are many styles to FIRE, but the basic outline is very similar.
I hope you too are inspired by the possibility of freedom from the 9-5, and will dig down into what strategies you can take to bring financial independence closer to you. Join the community, use the resources, and buckle in for a long but rewarding ride! I have written some thoughts on some books, podcasters, and bloggers in the FIRE world on my blog, Travel and Daily, so please check it out.
