FIRE- Financially Independent, Retire Early- used to be my goal when I was younger.
I wondered very early on in my life, "How can 20% of my salary be able to pay for 100% of my 20-30 years of retirement life with inflation and all?" My answer to that was FIRE. I worked very hard and I saved a lot, so much so that I ate one meal a day and slept about 4 hours daily. I took it to the extreme.
Now, about 10 years later, I realize the toil it has taken on my body and mind. I am paying for that now.
It didn't go very well either, there were times when I had high ticket impulse purchases from all the curbing of purchases that were always followed by regrets and guilt about how that could have went towards maybe $2 in interest in a year (We had low interest rates last time.)
I lost friends because I didn't want to spend money to "enjoy" with them, I didn't go for experiences that I might be too old to do now that helped them grow in character. So yes, I could have more money than my friends, but honeslty? Sometimes I feel empty.
What hit home was when I saw my family members retire early and having nothing to do, becoming depressed, too concerned and petty with life. I can't speak for them, but that is definitely not how I want to live my life after I "retire".
Also, I realized early on that the idea that most financial advisors preach "you'll use less money when you get older" is hardly true when I have family members as examples. Look around the people around you, do you think that is actually true?
Yes, we may have paid off our houses, but we would have gotten used to a certain lifestyle too. medical costs are rising, inflation is still at play, everything seems bleak. Questions like 'Is this a side effect of capitalism?' 'Is that why so many grandpa and grandma are queuing at the pools with wads of cash buying luck? Are they in trouble?' are always on my mind.
I have developed a scarcity mindset that has set in over the years. Its invisible and you may not know how it changes you. Humans need optimism and hope to do more than survive.
If I were to give my two cents worth, don't make FIRE an obsession. Perhaps the first thing to consider would be would do you want to do AFTER you retire. From experience, resting around doing nothing is good for maybe months, any longer, it could be start to get boring and meaningless.
Experiences make up our life that is literally ticking down, not the balances in our bank accounts. I won't be able to climb that Mount Fuji when I am 70.
I am therefore of the opinion that we should strike a balance in life, but still have regular savings and investment plans, if possible for at least 30% of salary and don't take FIRE to the extreme. I still think that the FI part of the FIRE is super important. Nothing can change that but the non-monetary cost of extremity could really set you back more than you can imagine.
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