Don't Sacrifice Life For Financial Independence (Like I Did)

[@OnCashFlow]

Please feel free to check out the consulting page I created: www.oncashflow.com/consult/

[@melander41]

Definitely went through the same. Was FI at 28 then realized I needed more cash to buy land (with cash) and the equipment needed to build a homestead. Tried buying cheaper trucks and kept getting burned so I'm back to work full time to pay off a brand new heavy duty truck I will use to build by dream lifestyle. Be frugal but buy good quality stuff that supports your life and needs.

[@OnCashFlow]

Good for you! Nothing wrong with changing your mind and building a new and different lifestyle! You took control of your life and made such a thing possible! :)

[@nikiclaypool8800]

I have to be careful to not take from family experiences as the time is fleeting and its the thing I value most. Also putting money into my health. i could eat garbage groceries but I spend more on healthier items, like organic meats, veggies and dairy bdcause it helps my overall hormones etc..

[@OnCashFlow]

Too much talk about health care, medicine, etc. and never enough talk about prevention, right? Of course there are unforeseen and unfortunate things that we cannot always prevent when it comes to health, but it is up to us to try and live a decently health life! :)

[@poorandstupid]

Excellent video! I've just started my FIRE journey, and I am already sick of it! Admittedly, I am doing better than 95% of people my age, but I am quite bored and generally unfulfilled by the effort.

[@OnCashFlow]

So sorry to hear that! I still want you to be on the path to FI, but it needs to be sustainable and balance today and the future!

[@1eurolatefee]

I cut back on the saving /investing rate side because lately I know / heard of several cases where ppl got so sick and mentally ill even at young ages that I decided to enjoy life to the fullest. Nobody will give you back the time you were too frugal and refrained from doing fun things.

[@Bigboss-xe6lm]

You can allways scheduel in one or two fun things to do every month/week and still be working on FIRE without burnout

[@cherellemarie2979]

Thank you for your honesty and transparency! Still trying to balance living my life and being frugal as well.

[@OnCashFlow]

Thank you for watching! I'm so glad that you found it helpful! We will always be in a "struggle" to find a balance because no perfect balance exists for everyone, but the fact that you are aware and interested in it is a good thing!

[@andrewhan9379]

Nothing wrong with trying to live the best life within your budget. Save where you can and spend where you want.

[@OnCashFlow]

:) My message is to have more balance! Unless you make an extremely high income...70% savings rates are not that fun. I still practice and preach frugality, but not being a miser haha

[@BeedeeEx]

You don't alway hear about this side on the money/investing pages. Glad you covered it! Thanks for the video!

[@OnCashFlow]

Thank you very much! I really appreciate you watching!

[@JosephDickson]

I didn't value having an emergency fund until recently. I find I'm a lot more relaxed and willing to take on opportunities as a result.

[@OnCashFlow]

It doesn't need to be a lot, but just a few $k makes a big psychological difference for peace of mind!

[@user-fb8jb5yi6g]

I fully retired from a career in IT at 45 because I was living off rental cash flow. First two months was great. 6 months was was getting restless. After a year, I couldn't take it. I got back into the work. I learned it was the daily grind and structure that made me fullfilled.

[@OnCashFlow]

It can be very hard to not have that structure! I hope that you have found a way to balance both structured and unstructured time that fits you well!

[@Shinyshoesz]

I think it's a common story. Thanks for sharing man. To me, it's really actually easy to get to the basics. When I limited myself too much, you lose sight of why you're doing this whole thing in the first place -- more time for yourself to decide to do with what you will. A lot of my limitedness in the past was just due to traumas that made me hold too tightly to what I earned. That can lead to the opposite desired effect. In the last few years, I've taken so much more time to do the stuff I love while not sacrificing too much on the frugality side in the sum total of things. It's a better approach and far more sustainable.

[@OnCashFlow]

A good balance is always better! I have "lightened up" a lot with my spending, but still very frugal compared to most people because my fixed expenses are so low.

[@Shinyshoesz]

@@OnCashFlow Totally. The fixed expenses are really the bulk of where you can save. If those are low, you're already far and away ahead.

[@martinp21000]

Thanks for the big dollop of realism. My only regret at 48 is I would have liked to have managed my money better. My 9-5 has led me to live in 3 different countries where I met my wife and now have 2 kids and live near the beach

[@OnCashFlow]

That's great that your job allowed you to do that! Not many people get that same benefit from their work!

[@dforrest4503]

This was a great video. After having watched some of your others videos, I got the feeling you were sacrificing a bit too much, so I appreciate your honesty. I’m a lot older than you (55) and just retired from full-time work. Your insights here about a nice balance between experiences and saving for FI are great - I just got back from a 3 week road trip in the PNW (loved the Crater Lake pic) and definitely appreciated the ability to AirBNB.

[@OnCashFlow]

I really appreciate your support! Even though there might be an age gap, trust me, I'm nothing like people in my age group, haha. I'm really looking forward to spending more time in Oregon and visiting Washington State in the future! I want to see the National Parks in Washington and visit a lot of the Oregon coast next time. Glad you had a good trip!

[@uuvlv9605]

I’m 23, I’m maxing out my investments, savings, and paying off my debt. I also set money aside for a vacation. I only make like 65-70k a year but I mean setting aside 7k for a trip and using most of everything else to build my foundation I know after 25-27 I will have to start cutting back when I get married and start having kids, hopefully my income will go up and I won’t have to cut back too much.

[@OnCashFlow]

You are killing it right now! (in a good way, of course). I wouldn't say "only" because that's a high income for our age group.

[@geigertec5921]

How much is your debt?

[@vryc]

Financial independence is much like retirement. So many people move into that phase of their life and THEN start to ask, "what now?" Better to figure that out, over the long course of one's life, learning how you want to spend your time and with who, and build your life around THAT. Money is important as it is one of the very few tools of freedom. But the sole pursuit of money and wealth will ultimately render you a slave.

[@OnCashFlow]

Yes, I definitely think that you need to find your purpose and meaning prior to F.I.R.E! Even if you don't have the perfect answer for it, that's okay, at least you have something to pursue and work on. Answer the question "what now" before you actually reach that point!

[@MN-wg8qd]

I never let money be the reason that I didn't do something so far during my FIRE journey. I mean, I'm definitely putting off some things like international trips until I have more money. Not because of financials, just because I don't really have the energy to squeeze that into my life while I'm busy making money. I think I'll enjoy it more when I'm no longer working full time and can take my time and relax more. I'm 33 and over 50% to full FIRE. 2-3 more years of full time and then I'll probably never have to work more than ~500 hours per year ever again. I'm comfortable with that. If I had a longer FIRE horizon then maybe I'd think differently. I have no regrets because I'm a motherfucking millionaire at 33. I don't enjoy working all day, but I do a lot of fun things with family and whatnot still. I'm glad to have bitten the bullet and gotten most of this shit over with rather than kicking the can down the road and shitting all over my 40-50 year old self. Me in the future will thank me in the now. Me in the now thanks me in the past.

[@OnCashFlow]

In all fairness, money is one of many reasons why we do or don't do things. Even subconsciously, it is always a factor. Not always the only factor, not always a primary factor, but always a factor in some way. It is normal to have to prioritize our life and our time. Right now you are in a phase of accumulation and hard work. It can be fun in a different way to how you could have a different phase in your life with more travel and leisure.

[@chuck5553]

I worked 1800 of overtime last year and so far this year I’ve already work 800 hours of overtime. I’m trying to make up some lost ground of my earlier years of not putting anything away for a rainy day

[@OnCashFlow]

Wow that is a lot of overtime! I hope that it pays off big for you!

[@Bigboss-xe6lm]

Thats insane. How is that even legal. It will most def. make you burnout if you are not careful

[@chuck5553]

@@Bigboss-xe6lm we can work 16 hours with a 8 hour break between most comes from my days off I work 16 hrs ot on each of my days off last pay period I got 104 hours of ot in a 2 week period yeah it definitely takes a toll on me

[@mankgabanemantlaneni2438]

Iam 39 and financially independen cheap guy t with no regards.What didn't go my way in my I see it as a lesson and I can't change it.I still work and enjoy my work n not planning to retire anytimes soon.This is a good vedio to teach other ppl on this journey to live a little n relax n enjoy the journey

[@OnCashFlow]

Thank you!

[@SlowlyMotivate]

I wouldn't say I've sacrificed a lot. Sure I could have had a brand new car, afforded twice as much house. I still took really nice vacations except during the COVID times. My biggest sacrifice now though is the time. When I pull the trigger all of a sudden I'll have another 50-60 hours a week to do more of what I want, live where I want, pursue more hobbies, etc..

[@OnCashFlow]

Yes, you will, and that super abundant amount of time will come as a shock compared to what you are used to! I really like the way you look at a the car and house not being a sacrifice! I agree! If you get it right with the big ticket items, all of the other smaller spending can be much more flexible and enjoyable!

[@TopTenFactsEdu]

My story seems similar to yours. I’m 21(almost 22). I have a $24,000 roughly. I’m currently stationed in Korea but I’m leaving soon to go back to the states. I’m trying to save a lot of money but I feel like I’m missing out on stuff. My goal is 100k before I get out. Hopefully it will be worth it

[@danstevens64]

how much longer on your contract?

[@OnCashFlow]

Maybe dial it back a bit. I don't know what your savings rate is compared to spending, but the awesome thing is that at 21, your investments have so much time to compound and grow, so even a relatively small amount of investing will pay off big time! At least you should be getting a TSP match, when I was in, there was no TSP match, only pension after 20 years. They just made the transition when I was getting out.

[@TopTenFactsEdu]

@@danstevens64 1 year 8 months

[@danstevens64]

@@TopTenFactsEdu i left active duty with $7k in my TSP at age 24... not the best. You are on the right track by looking into this at a young age. Good luck to you, but dont forget to have fun over there.

[@mikeem848]

I think it really depends on the individual and there's a few things that I feel like wasn't really explained too well in this video and I know there's a lot of financially insecure people out there who will watch this video and use it as a legitimate excuse to stay financially ignorant or insecure and not do anything to improve their financial situation. I know that a lot of people will read that and say "oh you're just jumping to conclusions and being judgmental" or "you don't know what you're talking about", but keep in mind that numbers prove otherwise, that most Americans in fact based on statics, including those making six figures, live paycheck to paycheck. We all have different goals and different risk tolerances. I think also that we need to be very careful about how we define "early retirement". Pretty much all three financial gurus I personally follow regularly on KZbin, touch up on this very topic in a different way. You do hear this perspective of financial independence a lot in the world of personal finance where you have an individual who completely missed the point of pursuing financial independence and ended up still being very miserable. Even Warren Buffet, himself, made a quote on this. Paraphrased, he says that he has never met anyone who was basically kind who died without friends, but he has known people with a lot of money who have died without friends and without family. So when one decides that they want to achieve financial independence, most of us don't take the necessary time to truly, TRULY figure out what that means or entails for us. We often are so focused on the idea that money will solve all of our problems and are completely unaware of the fact that more money will only really amplify who you are. If you're a mean spirited, miserable person, more money is only going to amplify that. If you're a kind and happy person, more money will amplify that. For me, it really comes down to finding a balance between "living" and "sacrifice" that fits for the individual. But also don't just yolo all of your money away and then come back and complain how corporations are greedy and Amazon isn't paying you a fair wage. I think that there's a lot of things working against us, but also most Americans have gotten too used to blaming others for their problems and cry foul and refuse to take any personal responsibility for their bad financial situations.

[@nikiclaypool8800]

He explains it well in the video, not sure what you meant or what you were looking for. There is no correct way to share a personal anecdote.

[@AJohnson0325]

Delayed gratification for a few years to get ahead or get out of debt, get through graduate school, etc is ok. However, you have to know when to stop and enjoy the benefits of your hard work. People are creatures of habit, whether the habits are good or bad. I got through grad school and paid off six figures of debt. Now life is more about balance but I definitely had basically no life for about 4 years.

[@OnCashFlow]

I agree, there can be a time and place for "toughing" it out and getting your financial life in order. A year or 2 can make a huge difference in the long run if it is a major focus, especially for paying off debt, or focusing on increasing income in your career, etc. But like you alluded to, you need a lifestyle that is sustainable for the long run.

[@isthe3rd167]

I want to state that I don't know enough about your situation as YT highlighted your channel on my home page. I understand that time is the most valuable commodity we have in our lifetime and shouldn't be wasted and we should live a more fulfilled experience. With that said, isn't that the whole point of financial independence in the first place? We sacrifice now and capitalize on the best compound growth decades so we can spend more time doing the things we want as opposed to doing the things we don't. A lot of us would love to be in your dilemma.

[@OnCashFlow]

Yes, that is part of the reason for achieving financial independence. What could happen is that you could make yourself miserable for 10 years, reach that number, then have no idea what to do because you never took the time to try and enjoy some life along the way. I still advocate highly for achieving FIRE abiet slower than I used to. For example, I used to advocate for a 60%-70% savings rate. Now, I think 40%-50% is more reasonable for most people.

[@nobuyukimakise1423]

I love your contents, very informative and inspirational! Glad to hear that you had a great time in Japan for 4 years!

[@OnCashFlow]

Thank you so much!

[@jeffreym3233]

Thanks again for sharing your story and learnings! Freedom from financial oppression is not complete without avoiding self oppression. Have some fun! 🎉

[@OnCashFlow]

Yessir, Balance is very important! I Still love FI and I still want just about everyone to pursue it!

[@gusmonster59]

Keep chasing that dollar bill and sacrifice everything to have no life. Rather than chasing the dollar, learn to live within your means, no matter what they are. Money isn't going to make you happy, a life is.

[@OnCashFlow]

Once your basic needs are met (and some basic wants), I totally agree that money won't make you happy! They whole point of FI is supposed to not be only chasing money in life! :)

[@dannyturkian9083]

Thank you for your service

[@OnCashFlow]

Thank you very much.

[@theguytoknow000]

I would be interested in accessing some knowledge in a one on one

[@dating_in_japan]

It makes me cringe when people who, after working hard to achieve their own financial freedom, get bored, then 'find spirituality' and then come on here and start preaching to everyone else to stop trying so hard to get their financial freedom and focus more on happiness. Easy thing to say once you've already gotten yours but try following that advice when you're pre-money. Not so easy is it?

[@OnCashFlow]

I see your point, but I don't know about the whole spirituality thing. I simply think that I took things too far, and by maybe waiting an extra 5 years, my life would have been a lot better while I was saving and investing for FI. It's not like I am preaching saving only 10% of your income like the mainstream financial advice, I am simply acknowledging that a 70% savings rate (which is what I had a one point) is simply unreasonable and unsustainable for most people, and that 40%-50% is still going to get you to F.I.R.E relatively quickly, but is more reasonable.

[@vulpixelful]

I hate that too but I think he's hinting at forms of financial _freedom_ that he didn't realize he had while trying to get to financial independence. If you're willing to extend working 5 years or so, you can gun it to get investments to a high number at first, like $250k, then throttle the gas a little bit. Compounding will still be working on the background, but in the meantime you can save a lot of liquid cash to reduce debt so maybe those last five years you can just work a more enjoyable job that may pay less. You get the best of all worlds without extremes: turbocharged investments, enjoying life along the way with little or no debt, and doing more meaningful work before you retire for good.

[@OnCashFlow]

Very well said, but I even think now that it's not about retiring for good, because we all need something to work on. Whethere that work be directly paid or not is okay, but we need something to "work on" that gives us a sense of meaning and purpose.@@vulpixelful

[@RichLifeResources]

Well said! 💡

[@OnCashFlow]

Thank you!

[@getinthespace7715]

We'll stockpile as much of our 8-5 income as possible. Our 8-5 jobs will cover our current bills, a reasonable lifestyle, fund our daughter's college, our retirement. Everything that needs certainty. A portion our income will get saved to buy property and build cabins for short term rentals. I used to work construction. 1 cabin pulls in around 50k a season in our market. Income from rental investments will fund all the extra stuff. Vacations, vehicles, experiences. If the rentals don't produce as much income because the economy tanks or something we just won't do as much frivolous stuff. The core income covers anything important. That's the plan anyway. We'll see. We make plans and God laughs.

[@OnCashFlow]

That's an awesome plan, and it sounds like you are having a lot of fun doing it! Great that you are taking your existing skills and expanding them to fit your needs!

[@workandplay717]

I am 30 years old. Been working very hard for the last 5 years. Last year I made the most I have made ever in my life 450k (after taxes) and I was able to save and invest aggressively. My networth is around 900k to 1 mil (including equity from my rentals), I make 1-2k passive income each month and now just took on 1 job making about 140k a year. (I don't spend much but would like to enjoy life more) And is it too early to say I am FI at my age?

[@OnCashFlow]

Sounds like you're killing it! (in a good way). Not enough information to determine if you are FI, depends on your spending, lifestyle, types of assets, etc. You could be FI today if those numbers are true, certainly.

[@workandplay717]

@@OnCashFlow Thanks for the response, I spent about 20k a year on average for the last 5 years. Assets: real estate and stocks/bonds/mutual funds. Wondering if I can take off my 1 job and live the rest off the cash flow. The 1-2k passive income is after mortgages are paid off.

[@OnCashFlow]

@@workandplay717 From the outside it sounds like you are very well set for FI if you wanted to be. Of course, I would need more info to really help you out. If you are ever interested in a more in-depth discussion, feel free to contact me via: www.oncashflow.com/consult/

[@workandplay717]

@@OnCashFlow Are you a licensed accountant. I would be happy to use your services as well if you are?

[@OnCashFlow]

@@workandplay717 No sir, no license. I don't give financial advice. Very informal.

[@eatsleepliftshoot]

Get into credit card hacking. Accumulate points and miles and use those to travel on a budget. Find what things in life are important to you and find solutions. If you're only goal is financial independence then great, but what's the point of financial independence if you're life is empty and have no one to experience life with. Enjoy your life, the years will pass in a flash.

[@vlms5893]

'your

[@OnCashFlow]

I love my credit card rewards! Have you seen my video in it?

[@InMyBrz]

FINANCIAL INDEPENDENCE is total BULLSHIT I had $3000 in debt on my credit card and left the US for Brasil Living costs including renting an apto 50 feet from the beach = $600 usd In 2 years I saved enough to BUY my own apartment, 2br 700 sq ft in a beach town Now, I have saved enough $$ to buy a 2ND APTO in another beach area SO, DON'T TELL ME you can't leave the US and survive WITHOUT HALF A MIL $$$

[@OnCashFlow]

Geographic Arbitrage is certainly one form of FI that can be done with a lot less than living in the U.S. Great to hear your success story!

[@KayFabe87]

Sounds like you have achieved financial independence. What is the "BS" part of being financially free?

[@InMyBrz]

@@KayFabe87 IT'S a clear sign of INSECURITY AND FEAR, they don't have the balls to retire or move overseas, they are afraid of everything. They should just stay there and whine about it I've proven them wrong, but I've experienced life in 45 countries

[@CessnaPilot99]

​@@InMyBrzhave you recovered from your mental health episode? Your comments seemed very manic. I hope you received good treatment in Brazil

[@InMyBrz]

Coming from a cessna pilot ? I would not admit that if I were YOU ! What a PUSS Can't stop laughing !@@CessnaPilot99

[@derekeano]

awesome advice. Shave the neckbeard and you'll look better

[@OnCashFlow]

Thanks for the advice, but I've been married 10 years so I don't care lol. 5 years of shaving everyday in the Marines makes me hate razor blades! haha

[@matrixscape6430]

"No matter what age you are, you can never get back to that time" WRONG

[@OnCashFlow]

You can never get back time that has passed. Do you have a time machine? Lol

[@matrixscape6430]

@@OnCashFlow I advise against doing kegstands at 55 yrs old but going out and being social can be done at any age!

[@OnCashFlow]

@@matrixscape6430 Yes you can! I was saying that you can never get back time that has already passed :)