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The Pitfalls of Financial Independence

1. April 2019

Life after financial independence
The true and tested truths about life after Financial Independence

I surely didn’t expect any pitfalls when I started my journey to FIRE (Financial Independence Retire Early).

Life after FI?

Hanging around the Financial Independence (FI) Facebook groups, I stumbled upon this question:

I have a question for those of you already living the Fi life. What is it that you do with your time now that you donโ€™t have to work for money anymore? Do you chill out and take it easy, do you raise your kids, do you try to cure cancer during the day and fight crime during the night, do you continue working the same job as before just because you like it, do you travel the world?

And those of you who are not yet living the FI live (so you wonโ€™t feel left out) how do you see yourselves once you reach FI?

About 2years ago I had a very good picture of how I see myself post-FI. Now that I’ve got a taste of it, I’m further down the path and I have experiences to share.

First of all, our generation is in a unique situation to even think about FI. Our parents and their parents worked hard to rebuild after the World Wars, to put food on the table, and to pay for our education. We are the first generation with freedom and access to anything possible from knowledge to contacts, to grants and business ideas. Thank you Internet.

Let’s say we play our cards smartly without destroying the planet, and we reach FI, life post-FI it’s a whole other beast.

The Financial Independence Pitfalls

Imagine you somehow acquired a hefty sum in the bank, money is flowing in indefinitely, you don’t have to work anymore. You never ever have to go to your boring, dreadful job and report to your even more boring, dreadful boss. Well done, you’ve made it! You can retire now.

Whatcha gonna do now?

๐Ÿ—บโœˆ๐Ÿš— Travel the world

Although traveling is interesting it becomes tiring at some point. A couple of months on the road are enough to make me realize how much I miss my home, my routine, cooking in my kitchen and sleeping in my bed.

Some people practice the perpetual travel lifestyle (check out Jake Desyllas‘ The Voluntary Life podcast). This is when you settle in a place for 6 months or so, live mas o menos like a local and only then move to the next destination. This is more acceptable to me, but still – I like my home comforts too much to have to build it up every half year from scratch. I don’t have children but I can imagine it’d present a whole other set of logistical issues to deal with.

๐Ÿ’ป๐Ÿ–๐Ÿ“šBecome a Digital Nomad

Another myth that I busted was that of the digital nomad. It’s not like you can go anywhere in the world, have a comfortable, quiet space for work, reliable internet, good coffee plus all the needed equipment (a good monitor for photo retouching for example). At least this is what I need.
You don’t get all of the above at one-third of the price you’d pay for at home (at your home base).

Maybe they’re developing digital nomad hubs like Chang Mai or East Europe* but it’s not like you can work from anywhere.

*while writing this article I came upon Coworking Bansko in the mountains of Bulgaria with 150 MBit fiber internet which I haven’t personally tried out but it looks promising.

Take for example Fuerteventura – a Balearic Island belonging to Spain. It’s where I did one of my attempts in digital nomady and where I thought I’d be perfectly connected – well, good luck with that ๐Ÿ˜‰ The winds were so strong, that the network was a mirage in the desert of this sandy, rocky place.

๐Ÿ‘จโ€๐Ÿ‘ฉโ€๐Ÿ‘งโ€๐Ÿ‘ฆ Spend more time with your family

This one also comes from the romanticized, wishy-washy area of your imagination. Tell me, what’s the maximum time you can spend with your parents without killing each other? For me, it’s anything from 2days to a week. For longer periods of time, I need to apply daily meditation, walks in nature, and extract myself from my family for at least a couple of hours a day.

You might be in perfect relationship with your (extended) family, the family of your spouse and even your kids. But still – use this family time with caution. It’s best for all parties to maintain a healthy distance. I’ve noticed my mother’s enthusiasm to see me is inversely proportional to the length of my stay. There might have been a reason you weren’t seeing them so much in your pre-FI life.

๐Ÿง˜๐Ÿผโ€โ™€๏ธ๐Ÿ’…๐Ÿผโ›ฑHang out and take it easy

It is disorienting to suddenly find oneself with too much free time. I know – isn’t this the dream come true? So much time to do all of the things you’ve been putting on hold and just hang out. Again, like with traveling, you will run out of things to do very quickly. It might be a month, a year, depending on how disconnected and negligent you were with yourself in the pre-FI life.

Without the structure of the job, you will have to create your own schedule and structure. Monday became my favorite day of the week only because I borrowed methods from the agile (software development) world – like planning, scrum, retrospectives. I also attended the Productivity Day that beautifully solved the lack of structure and social environment.

On top of that, all kinds of suppressed emotions will come up and it is a good time to get them ‘processed’. It’s the best self-discovery time – I guarantee you that.

๐Ÿ‘ซ๐ŸŽ‰๐Ÿ‘ฏMeet your friends and get to know new people

The job provides an environment and people to be around. They are not your best buddies and soul mates, but it’s still a social environment. Your non-FI friends still have to go to work, and there won’t be many people to hang out with on a Monday afternoon. You have to connect to a whole new set of people with a matching mindset to hang out with. Things like Meetup, or entrepreneur, creative workshops, get-togethers are useful in this case.

For me, the FI interested people I know are mostly online. They’re spread around the globe, and this year it will be the first time I’ll meet some of them in person at a FIWE 2019 (Financial Independence Week Europe). I wish I had connected earlier. I would have saved me many doubts, sense of loneliness, and steps back on the path.

๐ŸŽธ๐ŸŽจ๐Ÿ“ธWork on all those projects you never had time for

Finally, you’d have time to learn to play the guitar, work on your photography portfolio, learn to program, learn proper German (for all my expat friends in Berlin – I know this is on your list ;), write a book, or … (fill in the gap).

You’ll do many of these, but once the initial excitement fades away, you’ll need to find motivation. The job provides the external expectations and the environment to keep you going, even on the slow days and even when you don’t feel like it (boring status meetings, anyone?)

In my creative projects, I missed a team and people to collaborate with. This was a big one for me, and since I couldn’t solve it in the 6 months I had, I went back to my job with lots of enthusiasm to reunite ‘the working force’.

Again this is a great opportunity to examine yourself, your intrinsic motivation, and the core values that drive you. It’s easy said than done though. Buckle up, it’s a bumpy ride.

This situation has pushed me to experimented extensively with my optimal work/life schedule and lead to the Empowerment routine I keep following.

๐Ÿ’ธ๐Ÿ’ฐ๐Ÿ’ณ Be sure your money will be totally enough for the rest of your life

Whatever the amount you imagine you will need for your monthly expenses, double it. It’s true you won’t be spending money on work-related items (lunch, commute, fancy clothes). But you still live, eat, move and have interests.

There’re frugal ways, but I haven’t figured out how to get a Mac computer, a nice retreat, or get my teeth done in a frugal way yet. And these are things, you would surely either need or fancy at some point. Prepare a buffer! Here’s my retrospective after a 6months sabbatical: I spend double my projected base monthly expenses.

What can you do ’bout it?

I’d recommend that you try it for yourself (even for a short time).

Instead of waiting to reach the BIG FI (currently at about 30%), I decided to have some mini FI moments in between. I did a few test drives of a FI life: a 6-months sabbatical and a transition to a 3d and then 4d working week. Why defer to a later stage in life, when you won’t have the energy, stamina or the courage to take on adventures, visit remote places and start new projects?

I traveled a lot, developed on my blog and photography projects, visited family, read, went to a meditation retreat, and practiced my driving skills. I gathered enough data to test out my hypothesis of what life after FI might be.

You can do it too!

That being said, I am still looking for my FI life recipe – and I am happy to learn from people farther on the path than I am.

*******
Thanks,
Debora Apostolova for posing for this title image

Spread the โค

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11 Comments / Filed In: Financial Independence
Tagged: financial independence, life experiences

Comments

  1. steveark says

    2. April 2019 at 22:57

    Iโ€™ve been slightly early retired for just over three years. I have four paid side gigs and maybe a half dozen nonpaid volunteer ones. I only work on the paid ones maybe a day a week and while I donโ€™t need the six figure income they generate it feels good to do some paid work. I probably spend another day or two on the nonpaid volunteer stuff, it isnโ€™t nearly as much fun as the paid gigs but it changes peoples lives and that matters. Plus my wife and I distance run three times a week, we play tennis three or four times a week with others and play pickle ball once or twice a week. We fish one or two days a week and cook together once or twice a week. I blog for fun, zero monetization. We have church activities and entertain. We travel, hike, drive off road, and go overseas. Lots of stuff, sometimes it is hard to fit it all in. But it is a very nice life. It even beats the nine to five job I used to love. My side gigs are from home or on the road and done when I feel like it. No office schedule to keep or โ€œgoing to workโ€ for me anymore!

    Reply
    • Kate App says

      4. April 2019 at 14:41

      Hey Steve!
      Congratulations – you’ve found the formula for life abundance and satisfaction! ๐Ÿ™Œ
      There’s definitely a lot to learn from you. I’ll keep an eye on your blog!

      Reply
  2. Financial Gladiator says

    4. April 2019 at 16:23

    I like this one ๐Ÿ™‚ you definitely need somewhere of a plan for post FI and you seem to be getting there step by step, testing by trialing.

    I have been FI for just over two years now. Love it. But never have enough time in the day. I just have too many interests and projects to โ€šworkโ€™ on. Whether it is traveling the globe, diving, photography, connecting with the FI commubity, building web business.

    Reply
    • Kate App says

      6. April 2019 at 15:52

      Hi Financial Gladiator, it’s good to hear from you!
      The world is full of wonder – I agree. I’m glad you’ve found your pre- and post- FI formula.

      Reply
  3. Liz says

    5. April 2019 at 16:45

    I’m coming up on my 3rd anniversary of retirement and I think you nailed this.

    You can only travel so much (I prefer my own spaces). Visits spoil like fish–three days is about perfect. Naps and just hanging out feel like a luxury when they are infrequent.

    My days are filled with writing, reading, Pickleball, mountain biking, hiking and socializing. When you have more time, things just take longer.

    But, I found I still needed a purpose–a life of leisure isn’t enough. So I write, coach and teach financial wellness to help others use their money to create their best life. It’s incredibly satisfying!

    Reply
    • Kate App says

      6. April 2019 at 16:30

      Thanks Liz for stopping by! Your have built quite a sweet lifestyle for yourself.
      I’m curious to check out your blog and learn more.

      Reply
  4. Caveman says

    5. April 2019 at 22:19

    I’m not at financial independence yet so take everything I say as theory rather than practice. But, I’ve basically told myself that if I’m not bothered about doing something now then I’m not going to be bothered about doing it when I’m financially independent. Just because I will have a lot more time it’s not going to mean that I’m going to be a different person.

    I suppose the one exception to this is the list of things that I did as an adult but stopped doing after I had kids. For those are things like singing in a choir, thai boxing and running 10 k races. I can definitely see myself getting back into those things when I have the time.

    Reply
    • Kate App says

      6. April 2019 at 16:42

      Hi Caveman,
      I will challenge your statement that if you have more time you won’t be a different person.
      I do believe that we are the average of the 5people we spend the most time with. At a regular job you’s spend 40-60hours a week. This is a lot. It’s fair to say that your work shapes your life, routines and who you are as a person.
      In a hypothetical post-FI life, you’d leave the job. It can be quite a schock to find yourself with too much free time, especially for someone who strongly identifies themselves with their career.
      So, one will have to evolve and reinvent themselves. Hence, a different person (or an evolved version of the old person).

      Reply
  5. Route2FI says

    6. April 2019 at 20:50

    This is a really good post!

    I totally agree with you. I was on a vacation in Asia for 1 month recently, and it’s true what you say..after a while you lack structure of your days. Because you are free to do anything, and this makes it hard to put off time to work on the right projects. It’s so easy to procrastinate!
    Well, even if I do know this, I will still pursue FI. To have options is a great possibility no matter if you want to quit your jov completely or not.
    Love your blog, and will continue to read it from now ๐Ÿ˜€

    Reply
  6. Venci says

    7. April 2019 at 20:01

    Iโ€™m 31, not working in IT and at about 0.1% of FI. Being FI seems almost impossible. However Flexible FIRE: https://www.montanamoneyadventures.com/flexible-fire/
    seems far more achievable. It also seems to be solving the problem of structure in your life, social contacts, money for that new Mac computer and so on.
    Whoever asked that question probably thought that there must be more to FI life than just chilling out and taking it easy. Maybe he even thought changing the world for the better even slightly is worth giving a try.
    P.S. Good luck with the Financial Independence Week Europe, keep us posted.

    Reply
  7. Nick @ TotalBalance says

    8. April 2019 at 13:46

    Haha! I’m glad you’re not the only one who find it difficult to be with your (extended) family for more than 1 week ๐Ÿ˜›

    I sometimes have a hard time to be with my kid for more than 2 hours, before I need a BREAK! ๐Ÿ˜›
    Kids are exhausting!

    When I tell people about my FIRE project (I do it whenever there’s an “opening” in the conversation!), the majority asks the question: “But what are you going to do every day then!?”.
    All I can tell them, is that I don’t know yet – but I’m fairly certain that I’m going to find out! – Once I have the time (like steveark), I’m fairly sure I won’t have any difficulties spending it. Unlike a lot of people, I have absolutely no quarrels with doing absolute NOTHING for extended periods of time.

    I will let someone else save the World, while I chill in a hammock somewhere ๐Ÿ˜›
    – But I haven’t tried it for months (yet), so I can’t be 100% sure that I wouldn’t get bored eventually (I guess I probably would).

    I’m sure I can find something (meaningful) to do with my time, once I have total freedom to pick whatever activity I feel like doing (within financial reason of course) ๐Ÿ˜‰

    Reply

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