Evolving perspectives of FF

So far I’ve written about my general framework and preferred pathway to FF. One of the objectives for this blog is also to reflect on my personal life transition. This post will make a start on this by considering how my personal/internal perspective of FF has changed over the years, which has been quite substantial. Apologies if it’s rambling but that can be the nature of self-reflection.

As mentioned in the very first post, when I started out my career it was all about accumulating wealth as soon as possible. Work was a means to end. And the “end” clearly in my mind was being permanently parked on a picturesque beach, golf course, or other similar pleasurable location. I guess it’s a common aspiration for many young, ambitious graduates (and even the older, less ambitious variety too!). I used to track my net worth each month in a book, and drew satisfaction in the slow but gradual accumulation of this wealth pile. I was inching towards my goal and it was an excellent way to keep focused and driven in my career, budgeting, saving and investing habits.

My mindset stayed like this for around 8-10 years. I can’t recall the exact point, but somewhere in this timeframe and approaching the 30 milestone, I noticed my perspective starting to change. In retrospect, I reckon there were a few factors involved in this. When you are starting out, the FF goal is a long way off and rather abstract. It is easy to keep your head down and focused, safe in the knowledge that you are heading in the right direction and will one day reach the hallowed land. However, once you start making tangible progress towards FF and it is no longer a dim flicker of light at the end of the tunnel, but really coming into sight, then it starts to take away from everyday focus and becomes a substantial distraction in its own right.

This can manifest in different ways, a few of the key issues I encountered were : 1) lower tolerance for work / boss ”issues” that in the past would be easily accommodated as a necessary evil, 2) questioning the end game and if I would really be able to while away 40+ years on the beach and golf course. In some ways these are good problems to have. It’s like an enlightment to finally take more conscious control of one’s life and re-discover your intent and purpose. That is of course, provided that you really know what you want to do with your life ! This can also be a disorientating and destabilizing phase. After spending the better part of a decade on autopilot and happily tolerating the daily grind for the pursuit of later rewards, it can require a huge adjustment in mind set to revisit these basic questions, especially without any strong financial motivational force. I guess it could even be like the Shawshank Redemption movie, where the freed prisoner has been in jail so long that he/she no longer knows what to do when finally being granted freedom, and might even prefer to stay in prison, as crazy as it might sound.

I struggled for a long while on this, some years in fact. Mainly it was a challenge career-wise as I lost motivation and direction. Previously my career goals were always clearly aimed to progress and grow my salary and bonuses in order to accumulate enough wealth for early retirement. I knew what to do and didn’t question it, so things just chugged along. However when I began to deliberate these issues - the need to continue, more “meaningful” pursuits, etc – the answers didn’t come so easily. There was a sense of limbo or “no man’s land”. In some ways I wish I had been braver and declared FF at an earlier point, like Mr Money Moustache and others. But I was always a bit conservative and wanting a bigger buffer or margin of safety. Also I became quite attached to my job and resident country and it was quite easy to keep postponing the decision another year. Finally as already explained, I didn’t really know what to do with myself next and wasn’t quite mentally ready for FF, even though the balance sheet had probably passed that threshold some years earlier.

I’m pleased to say that as the time of FF now approaches, the uncertainty and instability is melting away and replaced by excitement and newfound enthusiasm. Perhaps the hard part for me was deciding, as one can agonise especially over timing. It’s always tempting to defer and accumulate a bigger reserve in case of the unexpected. However, after booking the one way flight home and giving notice to the boss, the decision is now made and we are past  the point of no return. I’m looking forward to the final weeks of “salaried life”, finishing off this chapter well, and eagerly await the opening of a new life chapter in the coming months!

So in reflection, there has been a massive change in what FF means to me. The initial dream of hedonistic life was useful to put me on the path and stay motivated. But as I started to make serious progress, the reality also came to me that it would not be satisfying to park on the beach for decades. This was disorientating because 1) it meant I had to find a new end goal, and 2) substantially brought forward the timeframe for FF. The second point is due to the huge difference between assuming no further employment income and an opulent lifestyle, versus some continuing employment income and a moderate lifestyle. Gradually I have recalibrated my idea of FF and the key point is being Free to choose if, what and how one might work. Not necessarily that you will never work again. I am really excited about the possibilities of working in areas where I have a deep passion, genuine interest and the chance to directly help people in need. Of course these possibilities always existed but before now my priority was Earning, which led me to other pursuits instead…….

This has been a longwinded post but if I were to draw one key conclusion it would be that there is a lot of psychology that supports (or can derail) ones progress to FF. It’s important to be aware of your own internal dialogue, assumptions and motivation, as well as how these will change over time and as you get closer to FF.