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.
I have added a link to bicycletutor.com in the right sidebar under useful tools. What I like about this site are the video tutorials, which for me is the most effective way to link how to do anything manual—I can’t put the things together by reading about them.
In addition, the tutorials describe what tools are needed (very important to a tool challenged person like myself—when it comes to tools, I’m the equivalent of asking “how did you know where to find the “save button” in Word?”—AND they provide an easy way of acquiring them via amazon.
I used the instructions for cotterless crank removal and cone and cup bottom bracket overhauls to fix the bottom bracket on my folding bike. Hence, I was finally able to do something more complicated than fixing flats and cleaning my chain. As this was quite empowering, I plan to do all repairs and tune-ups myself in the future.
Originally posted 2009-06-23 13:21:47.
