If you're new here, this blog will give you the tools to become financially independent in 5 years on a median salary. The wiki page gives a good summary of the principles of the strategy. The key to success is to run your personal finances much like a business, thinking about assets and inventory and focusing on efficiency and value for money. Not just any business but a business that's flexible, agile, and adaptable. Conversely most consumers run their personal finances like an inflexible money-losing anti-business always in danger of losing their jobs.
Here's almost a thousand online journals from people, who are following the ERE strategy tailored to their particular situation (age, children, location, education, goals, ...). Increasing their savings from the usual 5-15% of their income to tens of thousands of dollars each year or typically 40-80% of their income, many accumulate six-figure net-worths within a few years.
Since everybody's situation is different (age, education, location, children, goals, ...) I suggest only spending a brief moment on this blog, which can be thought of as my personal journal, before looking for the crowd's wisdom for your particular situation in the forum journals.
If you enjoy the blog, also consider the book which is much better organized and more complete. You can read the first chapter for free, listen to the preamble, or see the reviews (1,2,3,4,5,6,7,8,9, A,B,C,D,E,F,G,H,I,J,K,L,M,N,O,P,Q,R,S,T,U,V,W,Z). Subscribe to the blog via email or RSS. Get updates on the facebook page, join the forums, and look for tactics on the ERE wiki. Here's a list of all the ERE blog posts.
There are two different ways to achieve comfort. Comfort is one, if not the prime value of utility or satisfaction, and so it is wise to study ways to achieve this comfort. The first way is external (and by deduction, the second way is internal, obviously).
Striving for comfort by external means has become the standard approach. Typically, the means are sought in the market. Comfort is bought. Buying is expensive and this is why people still work so hard to achieve it. Furthermore, purchasing is not the most efficient means of achieving all kinds of comfort. Yes, I can buy a mattress that will make me more comfortable, but no, buying an oversized vehicle to make up for a small ***i* will only go so far.
By the way ***i* stands for brain 😀
Internal means are somehow old, ancient, or wise. I believe such are far superior to external means. With a high tolerance for discomfort, discomfort becomes comfortable. This I do not try to make things lighter or easier so I can engage them comfortably. Rather I make things heavier and harder so that normal becomes easy and impossible becomes merely challenging. The internal way moves the zero-point that evaluates whether something is comfortable.
For anyone that seeks comfort externally, anything outside of the optimal range will feel uncomfortable. Anyone that seeks comfort internally, the comfortable range will be much wider.
Originally posted 2009-07-12 21:59:51.
