FISH | Financial Independence Seeking Happiness: Toolkit

Early Retirement, Lean and Maslow what do they have in common?

Contender 1 Early Retirement, Education, Ethical, Freedom, frugality, Happiness, health, Investing, Life, Planning, Saving, Toolkit 09:27

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Hello Fight Fans, welcome to Fight Night on channel CONTENDER! Let's get ready to RUMBLE! Introducing in the red corner weighing in at 13st 2lb THE.CONTENDER! In the blue corner weighing in an impressive 16st 9lb is THE FUTURE.  
Tonight's fight is over 12 rounds. The prize is for the UFF (Undisputed Freedom Fight) Belt  
 
THE.CONTENDER has been training for the future for some time. Since he was born actually; just like everyone else. THE.CONTENDERhas been fighting to achieve his goals and desires; funnily enough just like everyone else. THE.CONTENDERhas searched for the key to making them happen; just like everyone else, where is it damn it! 
 
So this post is about THE.CONTENDER's personal thoughts on what this key could look like. In particular could it unlock the secret to an effective Early Retirement and Life Planning approach? THE.CONTENDER's approach is based on three key parts: 1) Maslow's hierarchy of needs, 2) a concept called LEAN and 3) Monthly Planning process. This is what it looks like in THE.CONTENDER's world: 
 
<a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-6QEj-mPPFjc/UGyWvS4_T9I/AAAAAAAAB2k/akM4hlRgZFE/s1600/Maslow.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img alt="" border="0" height="240" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-6QEj-mPPFjc/UGyWvS4_T9I/AAAAAAAAB2k/akM4hlRgZFE/s320/Maslow.jpg" title="Maslow's Pyramid of Needs" width="320"></a>1) MASLOW 
 
Maslow placed the most important aspects of life at the bottom of a PYRAMID. Water, food and shelter at the bottom as they are essential through to self-actualization at the top. 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
<a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/--jJqJ6b2XN4/UGyW8K4qa_I/AAAAAAAAB2s/Ul_nhiiRV1g/s1600/Lean+House.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"></a>2) LEAN 
 
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THE.CONTENDERwould like to introduce Tachi Ohno of Toyota. He is considered the father of  <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lean_manufacturing" target="_blank">LEAN</a> in the manufacturing world. LEAN is all about removing waste (Japanese for waste is "muda") and making the products as close to the point of  delivery as possible (JIT - just in time). 
 
What is interesting is that LEAN principles have been simply represented as a house. You need strong foundations, build the walls and top off with the roof while regular maintenance will keep it in tip top condition. 
 
3) PLANNING (Making it Happen): 
 
Project management has lots of models and different approaches depending on what the project is. It can can be very complex such as building a skyscraper or simple in the case of planning a journey to the Zoo. 
 
Over complication and missing steps, have put THE.CONTENDERin hot water in the past. THE.CONTENDERhad to learn how to mange projects and people effectively to make sure he could not see the wood from the trees.  
 
THE.CONTENDEReventually learnt that planning really is a simple process wits for key repeating steps PLAN - DO - CHECK - ACT. When carrying out these steps a list of checks and skills must be used. Below is a list of the key aspects of planning, leading and execution that THE.CONTENDERhas been rigorously trained on. In THE.CONTENDER's opinion consider all of them, in a robust review process, and you won't go too far wrong: 
<ul>
<li>What is your VISION - what do you want- your end goal - Early Retirement and Happiness?</li>
<li>Do you have a PLAN to get there - this can be on the back of a biz card or a spreadsheet? </li>
<li>Are you keeping everything SIMPLE?</li>
<li>Be prepared to ADAPT your plan and goals, make sure you have regular checks </li>
<li>Do you have the right ATTITUDE - are you really committed to being frugal for early retirement?</li>
<li>Do you see the PROBLEM clearly? is it that you have to pay your debts first or get a new job close to home?</li>
<li>Have you DISCUSSED this with your close family / friends and do you have everyone on board?</li>
<li>Who is in CONTROL - tracking progress and spotting deviations, obstacles and opportunities and getting back on track if you fall behind.</li>
<li>ASSERTIVENESS - get on with it, have a go, back up your convictions</li>
<li>INVOLVE everyone in the decision making progress - THE.CONTENDER and his tribe are moving to France, the reason is that the living standard is higher, decent warm weather and it has good schools for the kids; so THE.CONTENDER turned to the grandparents: "what do you think?"</li>
</ul>
So what if we try combining the life (Maslow) with the continuous Improvement and removal of waste of Lean (Tachi Ohno), with the principles of planning and financial freedom? Here is THE.CONTENDER's interpretation, please read on ;)

Early Retirement, Lean and Maslow what do they have in common?

PERL Hello Fight Fans, welcome to Fight Night on channel CONTENDER! Let's get ready to RUMBLE! Introducing in the red corner weig...

Keeping the Tribe Healthy

Contender 0 Early Retirement, Happiness, health, Life, Mid Life Crisis, Toolkit 09:42

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A key part of the <a href="http://getintheringwithme.blogspot.co.uk/p/muff-tools-and-check-lists.html" target="_blank">CPT</a> (Contender Planning Toolkit) is CALP (Contender Awesome Life Plan). It includes a large section on health which is probably the most important part of the plan - invest in yourself. 
 
This post will cover putting a health plan into practice and some very interesting cheap effective alternative therapies that you may not have heard of - oxygen treatment and colloidal silver. 
 
THE.CONTENDER has been a very active person. I played competitive football and rugby every week in my youth. I generally walked to training which was always several miles. Each night I would be out with my mates kicking a ball around or playing run-outs. Even though I ate heartily I was never overweight. 
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Desk Job => Sitting for hours on end 
 
THE.CONTENDER then started down a less healthy route. On starting a corporate job the playing field was replaced with a desk and computer. Running to training has been replaced by a significant commute of up to 2 hours, sat behind the wheel of a car. 
 
Coffee was on tap and the occasional muffin for those long meetings. Then something new crept in, stress. Deadlines had to be met, planes caught on time and appraisals survived - but the corporate message was that stress helped my performance. Weekends were spent eating out and having a few too many beers. This was all quickly leading to CAD (Contender Assured Destruction) 
 
Nowadays THE.CONTENDER still enjoys a full English breakfast from time to time and a glass of wine. As a house husband my main exercise is running after the children. Takeaways have stopped we eat balanced, healthy home cooked meals together as a family each night. Generally we are looking after ourselves since the hell raising days of old. 
 
Man Made Pollutants - Why? 
 
The first prompt to be healthier started with a substance called BPA in baby bottles. We were horrified to find out, after the birth of our second daughter who was using the bottles that were inherited from her sister, that the plastic baby 
bottles were "changed" to
 remove BPA. We were advised that the substance "could" <a href="http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-europe-11843820" target="_blank">damage the babies longer term health</a>!
 We were astonished that a risk was known of but the product was not changed straight away. As a parent you do not want any risk at all and will pay
 more for a safe product. Incidentally the same topic is relevant to adults as well as: <a href="http://trusted.md/blog/vreni_gurd/2007/03/29/plastic_water_bottles#axzz24M0r9S4p" target="_blank">plastic bottles can "leak" contaminants. </a> 
 
THE.CONTENDER is definitely not an expert or guru on health. I 
decided to do some more research on the web. What things are unhealthy and 
what things should we embrace as a family? More "bad stuff" surfaced such as <a href="http://www.healthy.net/scr/article.aspx?Id=4399" target="_blank">fluoride in toothpaste</a> - bad for you.... The list of bad things rapidly grew. This list could have been endless if we considered the continual drip feed on the causes cancer \ heart disease etc. from the media Blah Blah Blah. What can THE.CONTENDER really believe? 
 
The modern world has moved on so much in the last 20 years. Lots of new technologies and man made substances have entered our daily lives. An example is food packaging, to "protect it" or convey a marketing message (Think milk used to be in glass bottles now plastic cartons or bottles). Lets consider some other "pollutants" introduced into our environment: 
<ol>
<li>Food packaging using man made materials</li>
<li>Addition of additives to food and water such as in the example of fluoride</li>
<li>Food containers and preservatives</li>
<li>Mobile phone radiation</li>
<li>WiFi Radiation from computers and routers</li>
<li>Mobile phone mast radiation</li>
<li>Power cable radiation</li>
<li>Over medication and injections</li>
</ol>
 What is causing huge increases in Autism? 
<table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: left; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://www.blogger.com/goog_933058935" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="215" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhkcfxruPe01u1Xu7_z2JxfvPzrmRc9teqnsLreSEybPYDM8GuwViXmfNMWNXQpOdV52xAvQlArEe1j6mEgBOE202U-Jh-3nYQWynnQsDeNaRRm0q0la5bTVmwas-ylPw16wcpYL9F7F9U/s400/IDEAcurvesThoughtful.php.png" width="400"></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://www.autismcauses.info/" target="_blank">source http://www.autismcauses.info/</a></td></tr>
</tbody></table>
 
 
<ol>
</ol>
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
We all want good health. from a young age we strive to take our first steps to get mobile. Try the food that is given to us and want to actively engage with our environment with play. Later in life we want to look good to attract a mate.  Exercise is from playing a favorite sport at school \ college and generally walking \ cycling a lot due to limited access to your own car. So why does this healthy routine slow down in a lot of cases? 
 
As in THE.CONTENDER 's case above you could argue that work is more sedimentary now. Precious time is dedicated to work and a substantial commute. Free leisure and family time is <a href="http://www.ritholtz.com/blog/2012/08/what-we-do/" target="_blank">being squeezed</a>. 
 
Active leisure is being supplanted by following TV coverage. The number of channels have exploded in the last few years. THE.CONTENDER was used to playing now that time was being used to go to the pub to unwind after a long stressful day in the office. Having a have a few beers or being a "couch potato" is replacing the active participation. We need to be active ourselves not just watch it. 
 
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://media.treehugger.com/assets/images/2011/10/obesity-graph.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="256" src="http://media.treehugger.com/assets/images/2011/10/obesity-graph.jpg" width="400"></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">source <a href="http://www.treehugger.com/green-food/graph-of-the-day-obesity-rates-around-the-world.html" target="_blank">treehugger.com</a></td><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"> </td></tr>
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Societies increasingly unhealthy lifestyle is being "treated" with expensive diet crazes. Ideally we need to prevent or curtail the unhealthy habit in the first place. Ultimately this will be healthy as well as cost effective in the long run. The need for the habits of  natural exercise and a good diet while suppressing temptations is something that needs to be reinforced throughout life. 
 
The rest of this post is about building prevention and healing into a daily routine - please read on!

Keeping the Tribe Healthy

A key part of the CPT ( C ontender P lanning T oolkit) is CALP ( C ontender A wesome L ife P lan). It includes a large section on health...

PLAN DO CHECK ACT Life Objectives

Contender 0 Early Retirement, Life, Planning, Toolkit 19:52

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THE.FUTURE: "CONTENDER you are wasting your life your time has come to relinquish your crown and come with me!"   
THE.CONTENDER : "I am only 27 I can change my ways! "   
THE.FUTURE: you have one year to change your destructive ways. I will return at the stroke of midnight on New Years Eve! 
 
What did THE.CONTENDER want out of life? Where to start? First THE.CONTENDER needed understand what he was good at what did he enjoy. Secondly what was THE.CONTENDER going to do about it! 
 
This post is going to look at   
1. How THE.CONTENDER started to plan for THE FUTURE   
2. How the THE.CONTENDER tribe use the PLAN DO CHECK ACT life planning process on a monthly basis using a spreadsheet, whiteboard and a calendar. 
 
THE.CONTENDER self analysis - what needed to change for the better 
 
In looking for a place in society and work THE.CONTENDER had to find something he was good at. THE.CONTENDER was never going to excel at music so no there was no point learning the saxophone because it is COOL to be plain bad? Would this be a good use of my time? THE.CONTENDER must work on skills and areas he is good at or that help achieve early retirement and independence. 
 
Firstly  general traits; 1) THE.CONTENDER likes making things but dislikes finishing them to perfection (another reason not to be a musician:) 2) THE.CONTENDER 's personality is unique and what makes me but can be too abrupt and willing to take the lead. So there are areas of opportunity and other areas that need some work on. 
 
Core skills - why THE.CONTENDER is an Engineer 
 
THE.CONTENDER is a thirty five year old and found himself as an engineer by trade. As a result he likes to be practical and put things into action (a key part of this blog). Is he?: 
<ol>
<ol>
<li>creative</li>
<li>problem solver</li>
<li>analytical</li>
<li>have an end result in the real world</li>
<li>enjoy what I do</li>
</ol>
</ol>
THE.CONTENDER has always been a numbers guy and interested in sciences. THE.CONTENDER is not going to be the following though.... 
<ol>
<li>Going to be a famous writer or sports star (really only a very small % of society excel in these areas)</li>
<li>Pander to people's every needs and be the best shoulder for someone to cry on. THE.CONTENDER is a direct person who wants results. THE.CONTENDER wants to get things done which can come across as forceful and sometimes insensitive.</li>
<li>Complete things (THE.CONTENDER is a firm believer in the 80:20 rule 80% of results from 20% of the effort). Perfection produces diminishing returns and you only have a finite time on this planet (saxophone player is definitely out for me) . This is to the annoyance of Mrs C who believes in 120% all the time. She is coming around to my thinking now that we have 2 kids. A rounded approach to bringing them up instead of trying for the perceived best of everything such as enrollment of the 3 year old in every extra activity we come across. And no we are not going to make them learn the saxophone.</li>
</ol>
THE.CONTENDER must to carefully consider the use of his skills in the future planning. Can these skills be used on this blog effectively but can THE.CONTENDER make the blog readable can he overcome some of his weaknesses?  
 
Improving interpersonal and skills 
 
Lots of training has been taken to improve interpersonal skills. Here are some of the key areas that needed refinement: 
<ol>
<li>Listening to others and trying to understand their point of view (Professional training and <a href="http://www.amazon.co.uk/NLP-Workbook-practical-achieving-results/dp/0007100035/ref=sr_1_6?s=books&ie=UTF8&qid=1345560271&sr=1-6" target="_blank">NLP Workbook</a> and <a href="http://www.amazon.co.uk/Listening-Self-Teaching-Guide-Wiley-Guides/dp/0471015873/ref=sr_1_7?s=books&ie=UTF8&qid=1345560369&sr=1-7" target="_blank">Listening - a self Teaching Guide</a> books)</li>
<li>Simply my presentations (<a href="http://www.communispond.com/" target="_blank">Communispond professional training - click here for their site and blog)</a>)</li>
<li>Thinking about how other people would use any solutions that I have developed so that they buy into rather than reject them.</li>
</ol>
THE.CONTENDER was and is missing other skills. THE.CONTENDER needed a way to track and improve these skills and make sure he had life goals and objectives. 
 
Creating a life plan using PLAN DO CHECK ACT 
 
Using a planning and reviewing technique - PLAN DO CHECK ACT THE.CONTENDER got to work on a life plan (for more information on planning in business a very good book is:  <a href="http://www.amazon.co.uk/Project-Workout-Ultimate-Programme-Management/dp/0273723898/ref=sr_1_1?s=books&ie=UTF8&qid=1345560741&sr=1-1" target="_blank">Project Workout</a>): 
 
1. Plan 
       Listed my strengths and weaknesses 
       Chose the areas I want to work on 
       Listed my desires and dreams in life 
2. Do 
        Created goals and objectives 
        Made sure goals are SMART Specific that can be measured it is achievable, realistic and timed 
3. Check 
       Checked the objective are aligned to needs and plans for happiness 
4. Act 
       Cleaned up the goals and objectives 
       Created actions for each goal and track progress 
 
This keeps on changing due to our circumstances. Becoming a dad 
threw a curve ball at me - it is the most astounding of all of the "new" 
challenges I had to consider. Lets have a look at each of the 4 parts of the planning process:

PLAN DO CHECK ACT Life Objectives

THE.FUTURE : "CONTENDER you are wasting your life your time has come to relinquish your crown and come with me!" THE.CONTENDE...

Early Retirement with a Mortgage?

Contender 2 Early Retirement, Investing, Mortgage, Renting, Toolkit 00:01

<a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-tFaZJF3pa7o/UCP5UyPpBpI/AAAAAAAABn8/hmOzHKZbGKk/s1600/House.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="212" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-tFaZJF3pa7o/UCP5UyPpBpI/AAAAAAAABn8/hmOzHKZbGKk/s320/House.jpg" width="320"></a>How do you get to Early Retirement as quickly as possible and buy a property outright? Here in the UK we have an in-built fascination with owning your own 
property. Continental Europeans, on the other hand, tend to either stay at home 
for an extended period of time or rent. THE.CONTENDER has been interested in this 
debate for some time and the impact it would have on our financial 
freedom plans. In order to illustrate the differences I have posted an 
Open Office spreadsheet with some hypothetical scenarios. You can open the <a href="http://getintheringwithme.blogspot.com/p/muff-tools-and-check-lists.html" target="_blank">spreadsheet</a> in the financial section of the toolkit and have a play with the parameters. It contains: 
<ol>
<li>An example of when getting a mortgage is beneficial</li>
<li>An example when renting could be a good choice</li>
<li>An example of early retirement </li>
</ol>
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You can play with the parameters for savings, property cost, rental rates, mortgage, income and inflation expectations for your unique circumstances.

Early Retirement with a Mortgage?

How do you get to Early Retirement as quickly as possible and buy a property outright? Here in the UK we have an in-built fascination with o...

Financial Independence in 7 Years!

Contender 2 Finance, Freedom, Saving, Toolkit 08:17

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What an idea we had in 2005: could our little tribe be financially free in 7 years! Feelings of crazyness, being excited yet a sense of daunt and dizzyness all at the same time. 
 
As I update this in early 2014 we consider ourselves financially free. All those emotions followed us along the way on what has been a very bumpy rollercoster.   
 
Here is the story of how our little tribe ended up financially independent 7 years after the inital thoughts about or finances and what really made us happy.  
 
Finding Our Feet 
 
Financial independence was never spoke of in our families our our up bringing. Both my wife and I had different but comfortable up bringing. 
 
Me, my sister and mum getting on as a single parent family in the SE England Sussex countryside. We lived in a little cottage in an idyllic village surrounded by field where we ran free, collected tadpoles and rolled in the mud. We moved closer to family in a South Wales mining village surrounded by hard working families. Great times and fond memories. Money was tight but we did not want for anything. 
 
I excelled through education culminating in an engineering degree from a prestigious red brick university. Fun times were had, reckless spending and childish, stupid and regrettable pranks. Did I actually learn anything? I certainly did not have a clear direction to my life, no mentor to knock some sense into me. I was just making it up as I went along. 
 
My first "proper" job was a sea of figures, terms and diagrams. People dressed in suits jockeying for the top jobs. Still no direction. What is this career thing all about? Why does that manger make things so difficult for our department and what is the point of a deadline? 
 
Time for a change of company. A bigger beast altogether. Even more dog eat dog, downsizing the workforce, appraisals and feedback. B- my son - must do better. It was all so serious and deadlines had to be met.  
 
These early experiences shaped me. The desire to run in the wilds. Knowing that I should respect  money and save for retirement. I had to get organised, grow up and be more responsible, tame the silliness but keep some of the fun. 
 
<div style="text-align: center;">
Our Financial independence Story</div>
  
Our Environment Shaped our thoughts 
 
Our local environments have always shaped our thoughts and ideas. Fortunately we have lived in the countryside, villages, towns and mega cities. We have worked in numerous countries and cultures and visited ancient ruins and tropical beaches. 
 
At the time In 2005 my then to be wife and I moved in together in the most expensive city in the world London. 
 
We had bright lights, amazing attractions, comfortable houses and plenty of entertainment. Not forgetting the UK's status as a major transport hub for all those exciting getaways. What a great place to live right? 
 
Especially when you have money. I had just paid off my student and car loans $30K. I was finally looking at a positive balance sheet for the first time in 10 years. Our living costs were reduced as we shared the bills. We had money to spend! 
 
<iframe allowfullscreen="allowfullscreen" frameborder="0" height="266" mozallowfullscreen="mozallowfullscreen" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/iMUiwTubYu0?feature=player_embedded" webkitallowfullscreen="webkitallowfullscreen" width="320"></iframe>We were renting a modest one bedroom apartment in a Victorian house. It had a huge garden with a beautiful blossoming cherry tree. It was located in an affluent area with great restaurant's, pubs and shops. 
 
Each weekend we would go out to try different cuisines. Visit sparking, thumping night clubs. Entertain our selves at the cinemas and have friends around for meals and drinks before hitting the tiles once more. 
 
Frequently we would take cheap city breaks around Europe. Lots of income was spent and little was saved. 
 
Thankfully we lived within our means and avoided all forms of debt. Our spending was controlled through a joint bank account and a budget. 
 
Changing Direction 
 
My wife and I sat down one cold dark February night in 2005 to consider our future. Sure we were having a great time but something was missing. We talked about family, where we wanted to live what type of life we wanted, family, kids and seeking some tranquillity in our lives. 
 
We had both heard about downshifting. Perhaps we could work less and live more simply 
but we needed to get rich first! Let's invest. 
 
We had no property to speak of so did not consider real estate investing. We had good jobs so did not see the need to setup our own business so for us the most natural place to start was the great casino of the stock market. 
 
Unfortunately
 no one tells you how to invest. We subscribed to a few stock picking 
news letters and rolled the dice. The result was not pretty. Too much, 
too soon and on too few. 
 
More Money than Sense 
 
Bonus Time more money to invest and spend! We wanted to buy a house - house prices always go up right and we were missing out. Well that would have to wait as London housing was so expensive. Back to the stock market. 
 
In London we were surrounded by stories of the ridiculous bonus culture of the city with everyone getting filthy rich. Warren Buffets latest stock winner. Google shares shooting to the moon. This  encouraged us to plough everything we had saved and we were earning back into shares.  
 
TFD Tribe Financial Disasters ensued. Penny shares promising the moon going to zero, the latest and greatest mutual fund idea languishing in the gutter. What was I doing wrong? 
 
Fortunately Mrs C on the other hand had taken advice from a financial adviser and her savings were growing steadily. 
 
The route to riches was through 10 bagger shares though. Instant riches. Bring it on. One was bound to hit the jackpot soon.....learn from my mistakes the next pick will be a winner. Oops!! 
 
Hindsight 
 
In hindsight I was lured by the financial press (magazines, newsletters and the mainstream financial media). It was a hard learned lesson. Luckily it was out of the way early in my saving and investment career :o) I stated to save more carefully from then on. Here is the TFD list of losses :o( 
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<li>The penny stock miners - total loss in the region of £5,000</li>
<li>The New Technology Energy Stock £4,000</li>
<li>Buying Europe just as Europe goes down the pan £3,000</li>
<li>A consumer goods technology stock - wiped out £500</li>
<li>Green energy bio fuel stock - worth 1/100th of the purchase price another £500</li>
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Stock picking for 10 bagger gains gave way to mutual funds and large cap stocks who paid dividends..... 
 
These
 dividends grew and grew. Slowly our modest passive income goals looked 
feasible, but how much did we need and what were we going to do with it? 
 
In the Meantime - We must get on the property ladder quick! 
 
We had amassed enough money for a deposit on a home by 2007. A home is a much better investment right? 
 
We looked around and were perplexed by extremely high prices. Property was in a huge boom in London. We were looking at huge mortgages on what would have been a shoebox apartment. 
 
This did not make sense to us as we could rent a much larger property (a house with a garden) at less than the interest payments on a mortgage. Additionally we did not have to spend money on decorating or repair costs, building insurance or expensive conversions let alone porter and leisure fees. 
 
Renting it was, even though there was peer pressure to buy. 
 
Please read on for the financial crisis and light on the other side

Financial Independence in 7 Years!

What an idea we had in 2005: could our little tribe be financially free in 7 years! Feelings of crazyness, being excited yet a sense...

Free Tools

Contender 0 Education, Finance, Investing, Planning, Saving, Toolkit 12:46

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Free Toolkit Manifesto - Provide simple, accessible, customizable planning tools</h2>
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Free CPT's (<a href="http://getintheringwithme.blogspot.co.uk/p/muff-tools-and-check-lists.html" target="_blank">Contender Planning Tools</a>) that cover radical solutions to life's challenges are a key part of this blog. A blog post will accompany each tool and a how to use guide. Is this a new concept - definitely not. My objective may be different though : "Provide, free, clear simple, very user friendly planning tools with the specific goal of the Pursuit of Happiness". I know this is a very ambitious, difficult, complex if not impossible task but I sincerely hope it will be a fun collaborative effort and interesting to see where it ends up. </div>
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All the great things are simple, and many can be expressed in a single word: freedom, justice, honor, duty, mercy, hope.
 
Winston Churchill
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Qualified???? - CLSAD (Contender Life Skills and Disasters) 
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How have I learnt how to plan \ create ad-hock tools? 12 years work in process design has laid a solid foundation. I have found that business tools are readily transferable into social life. The challenge is to simplify and adapt their purpose. 
 
I have read a huge number of business books gone on numerous training courses. A vast amount of information and too much to remember and apply. I applied, succeeded and messed up in places but then adapted and ultimately worked hard to get results in work. The same is true in my personal life and a <a href="http://getintheringwithme.blogspot.co.uk/2012/07/round-5-15-secs-muff-family-financial.html" target="_blank">later post</a> covers some of the bad decisions the Tribe have learnt from. 
 
Does this qualify me to have a go at a bunch of tools for life? Definitely not but someones got to do it. I am willing to have a go, try them out in real life situations to find out 
 
Tool Contents - CBBT (Contender Big Bag of Tricks)  
 
CBBT includes planning, strategy building, risk planning, tracking, calculations, graphs and diagrams. They cover the key points from the start of the planning process to the final long term goal (it is almost always a good idea to state your long term goal and work backwards). 
 
I have found that having a plan that you can update easily with checks \ action lists is extremely important. This makes sure you do not miss the obvious and you stay on track. A plan helps you to be realistic with yourself. A regularly reviewed plan gives you a sense of control and comfort that you are going in the right direction. If you are off track you can adapt and not panic onto bad decisions. </div>
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Free Tools

Free Toolkit Manifesto - Provide simple, accessible, customizable planning tools Free CPT 's ( C ontender P lanning T ools )...

Get In The Ring?

Contender 0 Blog, Education, Finance, Freedom, Happiness, Life, Planning, Toolkit 09:53

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FISH | Financial Independence and Seeking Happiness   
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CoNTeNDeR: "Who is next in the ring?"  </div>
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PLAN.AHEAD: "The future my son he is unforgiving, surprising and always your shadow"   
CoNTeNDeR: "A venerable adversary what do I need to learn if I am going to face him?"   
PLAN.AHEAD: "CoNTeNDeRwe constantly need to learn. THE FUTURE is there he is real and he is constantly changing. Are you ready to getinthering my lad?"   
CoNTeNDeR: "I am only on this planet once and I intend to make the most of it lets get on with it" 
 
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Welcome! Lets get straight to the chase this blog is all about gaining financial independence as quickly as possible while seeking happiness along the way.</div>
 
THE.FuTuRe "I'm one step ahead of you boy, look left, look right, around every corner I am ready to strike. Go home boy to your job, your routine accept your fate." 
 
Why the FISH Blog?  </div>
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Our Tribe have been on quite a ride for the last 15 years. 
 
We have taken some hard knocks from THE.PaST, picked ourselves up from the canvass and are  expecting surprises from THE.FuTuRe. 
 
All the time we have grown a little older and hopefully a little wiser :0) Learning bit by bit how to set ourselves up for life. 
 
We are in better shape for THE.FuTuRe after a dramatic change in lifestyle over the past seven years saving like mad to gain financial independence. 
 
This change has caused us to addressed the challenges of a growing family, education, finance and work. We have changed from short term consumer thinking to long term goals of the pursuit of financial independence and happiness. 
 
Old habits have died hard (reckless spending, hedonism, just living the now) and replaces by new ones where we can clearly see THE.FuTuRe and are taking him on on our terms. 
 
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This blog is a collection of articles and tools that we found useful in planning for Finacial Independence and Seeking Happiness. </div>
 
Here are a few backgroun articles from the site: 
 
<a href="http://getintheringwithme.blogspot.com/p/about-me.html" target="_blank">Who Am I</a> 
<a href="http://getintheringwithme.blogspot.com/2012/07/round-5-15-secs-muff-family-financial.html">Family Financial Independence in 7 Years! Almost FI this is how we got there</a> 
<a href="http://getintheringwithme.blogspot.com/2012/11/30-rules-of-very-early-retirement.html">30 Rules of Very Early Retirement</a> 
<a href="http://getintheringwithme.blogspot.com/2012/10/10-career-skills-for-early-retirement.html">10 Career Skills for Early Retirement</a> 
<a href="http://getintheringwithme.blogspot.com/2013/10/stuck-generation.html">Stuck Generation - Generational cycles and the impact on the next generation</a> 
 
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How do you become Independent? 
 
Gaining financial independence and working out what you want requires alot of research, thinking, learning and doing. Some of the key sources of information are linked from this site.  
 
Skills need to be honed in finance, health, work, education, environment. Unfortunately it is is easy to get overloaded by information and sidetracked by marketing. 
 
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This blog is primarily about providing the information in one place. Discuss how to create a personal financial 
independence plan and how to put it into action. It further considers future 
trends and why become financially free and seek happiness in the first place.</div>
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"It's all about money, not freedom, ya'll, okay? Nothing to do with 
fuckin' freedom. If you think you're free, try going somewhere without 
fucking money, okay?"<a class="extiw" href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/American:_The_Bill_Hicks_Story" title="w:American: The Bill Hicks Story"> American: The Bill Hicks Story</a> </blockquote>
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FISH Blog Goals 
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<li>Poke some fun at conventional wisdom</li>
<li>Share useful information</li>
<li>Investigate topics such as finance, health and education and their impact on happiness</li>
<li>Provide a set of simple planning tools for you to hopefully view \ use \ get some ideas >>>> </li>
<li>Have some fun </li>
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A bit more information on the Blog 
<ul>
<li>Work out how to be financially
independent and understand WHAT is happening in this world and
how to GROW wealth regardless of world events</li>
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a.     Real World Education – what are we NOT taught in school about finance</div>
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b.     Getting the right job and the benefits of multiple income streams</div>
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c.     Compound interest - One of the wonders of the world and its impact on growing your   savings and investments.</div>
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d.     Investigation of different investments and how to evaluate their worth 
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<ul>
<li>Applying Simple Business skills (project planning, negotiation, influencing
etc.) to plan for financial independence <blockquote class="tr_bq">
 "Children are smarter than any of us. Know how I know that? I don't know one child with a full time job and children." - Bill Hicks</blockquote>
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<li>How to get a continuous balanced real world education for life  </li>
<li>What is Self-sufficiency
and resilience what can be useful whilst not being extreme and living in a hut in the woods. </li>
<li>What can constitute a good life?</li>
</ul>
<a href="http://getintheringwithme.blogspot.com/p/stock-screen.html"><img border="0" src="https://2.bp.blogspot.com/-Qa8eONAOZxA/U4HmozW1lkI/AAAAAAAADPc/ttZMRslvSJk/s1600/Focus3.PNG" /></a>  
Please feel free to have a look around perhaps start with the <a href="http://getintheringwithme.blogspot.com/p/all-posts-get-in-ring.html" target="_blank">All Posts</a> page which has summaries and descriptions of the sites articles 
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"I went to a bookstore and asked the saleswoman, 
"Where's the self-help section?" She said if she told me, it would 
defeat the purpose." - George Carlin   </blockquote>
FISH Tools 
 
THE.CoNTeNDeR has developed a Financial Independence and Seeking Happiness  <a href="http://getintheringwithme.blogspot.com/p/muff-tools-and-check-lists.html" target="_blank">Tool Kit</a>. Hopefully the tool will be a valuable addition to the financial freedom and life hacking / planning community. 
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The tool covers financial freedom, health, education and general life. It is really a continuous self education planning tool interspersed with investment choice and management. </div>
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get fired and get paid just enough money not to quit." - George
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A CoNTeNDeR after all? 
 
Whilst our Tribe has made some blunders on our road to Financial 
Independence that is part and parcel of the joys of learning from 
mistakes. On top of that life has a habit of throwing up the unexpected.
 Don't worry they are all covered in this blog. 
  
These blunders were a gift to us that helped us learn some skills that are benefiting us to this day. Does THE.CoNTeNDeR have a chance against THE.FuTuRe after his scrapes with THE.PaST? They will all be documented here on this blog. 
 
Peace and prosperity and I hope to see you soon,</div>
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<a href="http://getintheringwithme.blogspot.co.uk/p/about-me.html" target="_blank">THE CONTENDER</a> 
 
Kindly share this post >>>></div>
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Get In The Ring?

FISH | Financial Independence and Seeking Happiness CoNTeNDeR : "Who is next in the ring?" PLAN...

Welcome to FISH !
You have come here looking for answers. How to get out of debt? How to save and invest? How to retire early and how you want to live in retirement.

Well this is the right place for you as out tribe has been through all of these steps. We no longer work for a corporate employer and have saved enough to retire early. How we did this is shared here on this site for you.

Our little tribe found out these secrets to financial independence in our late 20’s. Since then we have taken early retirement, in our late 30's, in just 7 years. We now live in the South West of France with our two young children.

Along the way I decided to share everything I learnt. My articles and tips on aggressive saving and compound investing are there to help you meet your financial goals fast. I discuss ways to help you decide what you want by building a life plan. This helps to work out how to get where you want to be whilst avoiding the pitfalls along the way.

My expertise was built up working in blue chip corporate jobs, extensive reading and putting it into practice. I have condensed this knowledge into simple strategies to help you meet your goals and not those of the bank or the place you work.

There are free planning tools on this site that help you make a life plan. A plan for your future. The tools calculate how to reach your financial goals in a timeline that suits you. The tools help set out your life goals, make them happen and how to exceed them.

There are tips on how to simplifying your life to remove day to day headaches. These include ways to pay off debt fast buy eliminating wasteful spending habits. How to reduce your monthly bills through choices that actually improve your health and wellbeing. Identifying things you don’t need that sap your time and wallet.

There are little sustainability projects to reduce your dependence on shops and utilities whilst saving money to spend on things you want.

All of these little steps will show you how save 50%+ of your salary so you can meet your goal whatever it is. This huge saving rate can be compounded for very early retirement. I am sure you will find something here for you.

Darren Lee (A.K.A the Contender as in my blog)

FISH | Financial Independence Seeking Happiness