This past weekend, I attended the 2019 Cents Positive retreat in Chicago. I started the weekend wondering what the retreat would be like (thanks to the #centspositive Twitter hashtag, I had a hunch it would be amazing!), and I am ending my weekend hoping that I can make this money retreat a yearly tradition. Here’s … [Read more…]
Years ago, I made a fairly bold declaration as a total newbie poking around the FIRE space. I said I wasn’t leaving my classroom, and I meant it. Now, wonderfully, more and more people are realizing that financial freedom doesn’t have to mean retiring early…or ever. Even so, there is so much talk about the … [Read more…]
Earlier in the month, I thought it would be fun to celebrate summertime money wins. I reached out to the community, and I was floored by the number of people who had money wins to share. Then, a reader reached out to me to let me know that the money wins post was actually linked … [Read more…]
Woohoo! What do financially-savvy and frugal people like more than free things? How about free things that make you better with money? Then don’t miss the details about the giveaway at the bottom of this post. I’ve had an advance copy of Tanja Hester’s Work Optional: Retire Early the Non-Penny-Pinching Way for several weeks now. … [Read more…]
I found financial freedom in a chocolate bar. Of course I did. It’s not like it was an ingredient or anything. It’s more like it was a lingering effect (which is a vast improvement over the “what have I done!?” feeling). I’ve been waiting my whole life for chocolate to be a metaphor, and it … [Read more…]
Let’s do a little mental exercise this morning, shall we? How satisfied are you with your job when you’re at your job? I’m sorry, I should have told you to brace yourself. Or recruit a spotter. These might be heavy feelings. Now get a grip on them and translate those feelings into a single number … [Read more…]
When I first heard the term FIRE, I bristled. The more people I connected with in the FIRE community, the more I dug my heels in. In fact, when Ms. Our Next Life ran her Next Life series, “not for me” was the entire premise of my post (erm, spoiler alert?). And that seems to … [Read more…]
“Oh, dear. Bread and beer. If I were rich, I wouldn’t be here.” My grandma used to singsong this jingle when I was little. I would eagerly ask her where she would be. She was always quick to lock her fingers in mine and return a reminder that we could go wherever I wanted. Now … [Read more…]
I’m afraid of getting sick. Not in the sense that I’m actually afraid of germs. Goodness knows how many germs pass through my fingers (literally) on any given school day. Normally, the concept of illness lurks in the back of my mind and then lurches to the forefront when a student gets sick (literally). I’m … [Read more…]
Since this is a post on investments, let’s get the platitudes out of the way: You’re in it for the long-haul. Look at the market’s performance over time. It’s just a bump in the road. That many Bogleheads can’t be wrong. This also isn’t going to be a post about how my dividends are now … [Read more…]