3 Steps I’m Taking to Reach Financial Independence by 45 – Business Insider

I’ve thought a lot about the FIRE (financial independence/retire early) movement over the years but never thought it was for someone like me, from a low-income background and with a history of debt.
But the pandemic changed my priorities and showed me life is too short to spend it working all the time, so I’ve decided to work towards financial independence by 45 to give myself more choices.
So far, I’m saving 30% of my income, diversifying my investments, and tracking my future net worth to work towards financial independence.
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The FIRE movement, or financial independence/retire early, has been on my mind for quite a few years now. In the past, I’ve had my doubts, mainly because I didn’t think it was realistic for someone like me, who came from having a low income, tons of debt, and virtually no nest egg. But 2020 has changed my mind.

The past nine months have prompted me to focus much more on my health and finances than ever before. There have been times this year when I’ve been scared for my husband to go into work, where he might contract the virus, and other times when I’ve felt uncertain about what we would do financially if both of us had to stop working.

I realized we needed a larger emergency fund, to decrease mindless consumerism in our lifestyle, and to obtain more financial security overall, and I think working towards FIRE can help us achieve those goals.

Achieving financial independence is about having more freedom and options

To be clear, my decision to pursue FIRE is not heavily based on fear or worry about our future. Instead, it’s based on the fact that I finally feel like I understand the true benefits of FIRE, and it aligns with my core values.

I’m almost 29 years old and plan to reach the FI part of FIRE by the time I’m 45. I’m not interested in retiring completely and would be happy to continue doing work I love for as long as I want.

For me, the goal is more freedom and options. I want the option to be able to travel when I want, possibly not have a mortgage, or not have to worry about getting back to work right away when there’s an emergency in my family — or the world. I also would rather not work seven days a week year after year if I can help it. I want to be able to do this way before I turn 65, so this means I will have to manage my money differently.