FISH | Financial Independence Seeking Happiness: Rules

6 Habits for Very Early Retirement

Contender 2 Early Retirement, financial independence, Habits, Rules 20:50

<table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: left; margin-right: 1em; text-align: left;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjaq3BT4RwNcEqfFP-p3nRBMXfwRU4V4xs6lC_spfrHo4Cdpg5LngW0SKLxqd76LBMxfYwGURpQNUp-DQT00dq9nYQk5S3HFxdzzzpdgcT0QO2xfQMpre_nQ4kdBxfoqgVimim5bbzRkh3y/s1600/6+Habits+of+Very+Early+Retirement.jpg" imageanchor="1" style=""><img alt="6 Habits of Very Early Retirement" border="0" height="200" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjaq3BT4RwNcEqfFP-p3nRBMXfwRU4V4xs6lC_spfrHo4Cdpg5LngW0SKLxqd76LBMxfYwGURpQNUp-DQT00dq9nYQk5S3HFxdzzzpdgcT0QO2xfQMpre_nQ4kdBxfoqgVimim5bbzRkh3y/s200/6+Habits+of+Very+Early+Retirement.jpg" title="6 Habits of Very Early Retirement" width="200"></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Perhaps a leaflet instead..</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<i><b>THE.CONTENDER </b>is on a Scrap in the Savannah! - he is only fighting a has been in <b>UP.TO.HIS.EYEBALLS.IN.DEBT </b>so needs something to hype up the fight. Unfortunately Rhumble in the Jungle has been done.... shame:( </i><br>
<br>
<i>Africa's heat, humidity, local culture, dance, song and animal instincts fuel CONTENDERS's ambition to coax THE.FUTURE to getintheringwithme after putting away this lightweight. Pounding the watermelons for the camera was satisfying but CONTENDER  wanted to prove his killer instincts to the world. He headed out into the Savanna in search of some prey. </i><br>
<br>
<b>Following on from the <a href="http://getintheringwithme.blogspot.com/2012/11/30-rules-of-very-early-retirement.html" target="_blank">30 Rules of Very Early Retirement </a>THE.CONTENDER thought it 
would be fun to list 6 Habits of very early retirement he has developed down the years......</b><br>
<br>
THE.CONTENDER came across the idea of embedding habits in your daily routine from Steven Covey. He is world renound for his <a href="http://www.amazon.co.uk/Habits-Highly-Effective-People/dp/0684858398/ref=sr_1_1?s=books&ie=UTF8&qid=1352709552&sr=1-1" target="_blank">7 Habits of Highly Effective People</a> see summary <a href="http://www.change-management-coach.com/stephen-covey.html" target="_blank">here</a>. THE.CONTENDER highly recommends his follow up book the <a href="http://www.amazon.co.uk/The-8th-Habit-Effectiveness-Greatness/dp/0743206835/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1352708902&sr=8-1" target="_blank">8th Habit</a> as well, it includes a brief description of the other 7 - time for a trip to the library?). <br>
<ol>
<li><b>Emotional intelligence</b> - <i>Stalking the springbok his head is turned by a rhino - surely that would be the ultimate trophy for his first outing? Very tempting... focus </i><i>THE.CONTENDER , smell the roses! Its too big, too precious too stupid!</i><br><br>The early retiree does not have his head turned by the latest marketing campaign easily (unless it is half price consumable offers in the supermarket - we like those). He stalks his prey for the best deals and he ignores the glitzy, shiny gizmos that cost a fortune and "need" upgrading every year - to whose benefit is that?<br> </li>
<li><b>Financial Intelligence</b> - <i>All those years of training. The prey does not stand a chance</i> .<br><br>Statistics, PE (Price to Earnings), PEG (price to growth), balance sheets, rental yields, mortgage rates, you name it it is all in his arsenal along with the ultimate weapon of choice A SPREADSHEET<span style="color: red;">*</span>. <br><br>The early retiree has put the hard yards in (New Zealand rugby saying for working really hard as a team to move very slowly forward up the rugby field) he spends time learning the basics, then the ins and outs of finance. What is money "money doesn't grow on trees" todays fiat money is trees - as much paper printing as you like and electronic entries on the computer called QE (quantitative easing) i.e money printing, debasing the currency....more for another day. The early retiree understands the rules of the game and learns all the tricks to get check mate.<br> </li>
<li><b>Determination</b> - <i>Slowly moving forward through the savanna he has his prey it in his sights... getting closer and closer as it twitches its ears can it hear him.  It is still a long way in the distance. Getting closer, getting there, getting there...keep going your time will come.</i> <br><br>Patience is a virtue and planning for early retirement will take time and will power to stay the course. You need to <a href="http://www.amazon.co.uk/Getting-Things-Done-Stress-free-Productivity/dp/0749922648/ref=sr_1_1?s=books&ie=UTF8&qid=1352708994&sr=1-1" target="_blank">get things done </a>and be bloody minded in this time. Our fledgling hunter eyes the goal of master early retiree huntsman, nothing is going to stand in his way!<br> </li>
<li><b>Mental agility</b> - <i>thinking on his feet he spots some big rocks in the landscape ahead. They are in his way what does he do?</i> <i>Good job he thought of packing a few sticks of dynamite! </i><br><br>Thinking and planning ahead to avoid the big rocks. The early retiree has developed the planning habit. He has worked out his retirement needs and how to deal with any challenges THE FUTURE holds...probably. He regularly checks his progress and changes course if needed. He learns on is feet (actually getting stuck in, not just reading a book or this blog;) He can critically evaluate an opportunity or pitfall.<br><br></li></ol>

6 Habits for Very Early Retirement

Perhaps a leaflet instead.. THE.CONTENDER is on a Scrap in the Savannah! - he is only fighting a has been in UP.TO.HIS.EYEBALLS.IN.DEBT ...

30 Rules of Very Early Retirement

Contender 3 #financialindependence, Early Retirement, financial freedom, financial independence, Rules, Saving 07:07

<br>
<table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: left; margin-right: 1em; text-align: left;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgBZHTXN9hNQkixzFkIN2M97ZTsgx_n6oSpkxpaHuTgJEZsgpYOCjd_mHdPvyB5KN-FvzhyWqs-zz_VA_eDIwvihxAp9gSCqTx0yZfhnzQwL7sxc0X9jxFMD3EXRMfo7gEZiygoPBHfprAF/s1600/Rulers.jpg" imageanchor="1" style=""><img alt="Rulers" border="0" height="195" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgBZHTXN9hNQkixzFkIN2M97ZTsgx_n6oSpkxpaHuTgJEZsgpYOCjd_mHdPvyB5KN-FvzhyWqs-zz_VA_eDIwvihxAp9gSCqTx0yZfhnzQwL7sxc0X9jxFMD3EXRMfo7gEZiygoPBHfprAF/s200/Rulers.jpg" title="Lots of Rules" width="200"></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Lots of Rules</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<i>Today <b>THE.CoNTeNDeR</b> and trainer <b>SORT.YOUR.LIFE.OUT</b> have a look at all of the rules of the Very Early Retirement Fight. Can they be mastered as <b>THE.FuTuRe</b> is waiting in the wings ready to mess up <b>THE.CoNTeNDeRS </b>plans!</i><br>
<br>
Our tribe has been on the quest for Very #EarlyRetirement / #FinancialIndependence over the last few years. Along the way we have subconsciously created some rules for ourselves which have been put to paper below: <br>
<br>
<br>
<br>
<ol>
<li><b>Set out with the end in mind</b> - very early retirement (financial freedom) in school! - a good job that pays well - yes it is nice to think about being a wealthy pop star but what percentage of the population are that famous? By all means have it as a hobby and perhaps you will excel in it if it is your passion. Consider a <u>growing </u>industry that you have a real passion for to enter for a career. It will be the best to negotiate higher wages. Computers were the pace to be in the 1980's - 2000 perhaps bio technology, graphine or renewable technology are the upcoming areas now. <br> </li>
<li><b>Get stuck in</b> at a young age - It is better to screw up at a very early age and learn the lessons early instead of later in life when it can cost money and time. <br><br> <iframe allowfullscreen="allowfullscreen" frameborder="0" height="210" mozallowfullscreen="mozallowfullscreen" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/l1YmS_VDvMY?feature=player_embedded" webkitallowfullscreen="webkitallowfullscreen" width="280"></iframe><br> </li>
<li><b>Wait and research before you buy</b>. NEVER buy on impulse. Are you buying an asset (e.g. property, shares, woodland, precious metals) that will provide an on going passive income or a consumable? Is the consumable necessary (e.g. food) or a want (e.g. electronic device)? <br> </li></ol>

30 Rules of Very Early Retirement

Lots of Rules Today THE.CoNTeNDeR and trainer SORT.YOUR.LIFE.OUT have a look at all of the rules of the Very Early Retirement Fight. ...

10 Rules of Extreme Saving

Contender 0 Finance, financial independence, Freedom, Investing, Rules, Saving 14:23

<b>Is a 50% saving rate really possible?</b></h2>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjWGHQEqmJeSKRIkurYC4U477eaw1KZF-saHRyuy0q_gbQYg3AX_L1x0tDHN2ch8e8GcDhxExCBDoh2cry0_LVgvbQKKMPmMVDHtgItV3o_-UF3nWXtDsyeK-GUz3HzZQnObXR4M4OoYSlF/s1600/Savings.jpg" imageanchor="1" style=""><img border="0" height="206" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjWGHQEqmJeSKRIkurYC4U477eaw1KZF-saHRyuy0q_gbQYg3AX_L1x0tDHN2ch8e8GcDhxExCBDoh2cry0_LVgvbQKKMPmMVDHtgItV3o_-UF3nWXtDsyeK-GUz3HzZQnObXR4M4OoYSlF/s280/Savings.jpg" width="280"></a></div>
Living in a high tax and benefit system such as the UK saving 50% of your pay seems extreme. I recently had a conversation on this point with a colleague - he could not believe how we as a family of 4 could still manage to save a 50% of our take home pay. He sat there playing with a very expensive mobile phone. He was working out how to use the latest app to track how much faster he was on his top of the range carbon fiber bike.<br>
<br>
As you can already gather <b>THE.CONTENDER</b> was trying to refrain himself for not stating the obvious. One of the most difficult topics I have encountered in professional social and family life is how to approach difficult subjects and significant change:<br>
<blockquote class="tr_bq">
<i>So and so is really good I could never be as good as..., that is not possible....., my circumstances are special...it is OK for you but it would never work for me..... </i></blockquote>
So the problem is not the subject per say - surely everyone would like to be financially free. It is the person's initial mindset and perception of sacrifice that goes with it. Where has that perception come from in the first place and is it misplaced? So how do you get your point across \ engage them or should you try and discuss further, at the expense of coming across as pushy.....****!!!<br>
<h3>

<b>Buy now and retire at 70 or save a lot and be financially free after 10 years? </b></h3>
So if you need to save 50%  or more of your salary to be financially free quickly what is the "sacrifice". Expensive, fun (tropical holidays \ designer suits) are delayed. In budgeting and saving (investing) diligently you will build the capital to be financially free for you to pursue your dreams in a surprising time frame. Could this be true?<i> </i><br>
<br>
<blockquote class="tr_bq">
<i>"Don't forget  you could be knocked down by a bus tomorrow. So don't be silly LIVE FOR TODAY! consume, enjoy your shiny gadgets - forget about financial freedom that is only for the wealthy you are a worker bee in the middle class. If you are a good little worker and make it to 70 you can retire on us" - Anon </i></blockquote>
<br>
Advertising, peer pressure, fear and not being part of the crowd are very powerful influences on everyone in society. How is the financial independence blogosphere really going to get its point across? Are people going to give their precious time between distractions like films and the challenges of our hectic daily life to understand the benefits of saving like mad? <br>
<br>
My concern is the powerful media message to buy, buy, buy is backed by the best advertising talent and research money. It tells us how to spend our money and is very persuasive to boot. We are exposed to advertising from a very early age when we have very few defenses. Society has been educated to listen and be a good consumer of needs that are actually wants. A lack of inquisitiveness has been instilled in young minds. Subordination to hierarchy is "normal" in the western education system. Young people are at its mercy and do not have the mature skills to critically challenge the status quo.<br>
<br>

10 Rules of Extreme Saving

Is a 50% saving rate really possible? Living in a high tax and benefit system such as the UK saving 50% of your pay seems extreme. I...

Four Key Planning Rules

Contender 0 Compound Interest, Critical Thinking, Planning, Risk, Rules, Saving 21:44

<br>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhFTNGn9mqYdCB-M52lodoYGULz5iQbgfTOomJgwuErpvT68bjmUPK6pLYaq-VCn9W2n_5RRXIvqkyst_gVwwF4NxtYeZbtT4CqMYOYDaBeZ7RxBahJLdgMZvPhpTedr1evW9AOYjkavgJp/s1600/On+The+Ropes.jpg" imageanchor="1" style=""><img border="0" height="77" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhFTNGn9mqYdCB-M52lodoYGULz5iQbgfTOomJgwuErpvT68bjmUPK6pLYaq-VCn9W2n_5RRXIvqkyst_gVwwF4NxtYeZbtT4CqMYOYDaBeZ7RxBahJLdgMZvPhpTedr1evW9AOYjkavgJp/s280/On+The+Ropes.jpg" width="280"></a></div>
<br>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<h2>
<b>Pulling himself off the floor and onto the ropes - Learning to fight back</b></h2>
</div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
</div>
<div style="text-align: left;">
</div>
<div style="text-align: left;">
<br>
<b>THE.CONTENDER</b> has always had a go at work and life challenges and took some knocks along the way. <b>THE.CONTENDER</b> never liked failure and generally took failure to heart (still the case). Perhaps that was because <b>THE.CONTENDER</b> was never really taught that failure was actually a really good thing. Learning from mistakes is a gift and structured feedback is invaluable (but don't repeat the mistake again!).<br>
<br>
<div style="text-align: left;">
<i><b>THE.CONTENDER </b>has learned a some very important lessons and skills from my failure in work that are invaluable in my personal life. </i></div>
<br>
Interestingly, in my corporate career, having a go was not really encouraged. Generally it was do as your are told and cover your back. <b>THE.CONTENDER </b>found that having a go in work came at a cost to my career. Steady as she goes and take you time to set expectations. Expectations were everything.<br>
<br>
<i><b>THE.CONTENDER </b>may have been late on a few projects but why the demonisation of the late delivery? The new process </i><i><b>THE.CONTENDER </b>had devised off his own back was saving significant time and money. It was all politics, egos and control tactics. As a result the majority of people kept their heads down and just wanted to go home each day. Is this true in other workplaces?</i><br>
<br>
Failure at a young age should be embraced and encouraged. With extra coaching expectations can be managed while problem solving and common sense nurtured. <b>THE.CONTENDER</b>'s mistakes in the work environment could have been "learnt" earlier. Here are some of them:<br>
<br>
<a href="http://getintheringwithme.blogspot.co.uk/p/muff-tools-and-check-lists.html" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;" target="_blank"><img alt="" border="0" height="161" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj2_tJJBfdEcjYj8hSe6G74uOkYPZdhtdvUjHlD66iDSU-DDkHu3ga_HfgHks_i1d_8T14tBYvTCra_s6KmbaqeiUZkh0TVDkWPeTO1BasqeCXSrNbM009OsiGvcohCmAN1cKCIvm1mpU_e/s200/Muff+Tool+Kit+v6.jpg" title="PLANNING TOOLS AND CHECKLISTS" width="200"></a><br>
<ol>
<li>Keep it simple stupid -  being well educated I expected other people to be able to understand complex issues as well.</li>
<li>Setting expectations and planning ahead - being over optimistic can cause problems come up with a plan make sure it is realistic (criticize it) make sure if it is going wrong you are open and address the issues early.</li>
<li>Falling for the latest gimmick - this can being sold some thing you don't need at great cost and time to making bad choices (where to live, choice of job, latest investment mania)</li>
<li>Is there another way to get this done faster what are the risks if we go down this route and how do we manage them?</li>
</ol>
This blog is my attempt to take some of the "work" tools and skills and adapt them to life in general. Here are the 4 core principles of this blog which may well expand with time.<br>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<iframe allowfullscreen="allowfullscreen" frameborder="0" height="210" mozallowfullscreen="mozallowfullscreen" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/u5um8QWWRvo?feature=player_embedded" webkitallowfullscreen="webkitallowfullscreen" width="280"></iframe></div>
</div>

Four Key Planning Rules

Pulling himself off the floor and onto the ropes - Learning to fight back THE.CONTENDER has always had a go at work and life ...