Know Your Blogger Series

FI for the People

My mission and purpose generally are to have fun scribbling down my musings. Also to hopefully persuade others to make changes that improve their personal finances, thereby enabling them to lead immeasurably better (or *gasp!* maybe their best) lives.
Check out our Q&A with FI for the People here.

Come read about the great personal finance blog, FI for the People.

Each week at Personal Finance Blogs, we publish interviews from amazing bloggers from the personal finance space. This week, we are featuring the blog, FI for the People.
During these weekly features, we are hoping to provide a way for you to interact and learn more about different blogs in the personal finance space.
Below, you can read more about the story behind FI for the People, learn about the author, and learn personal finance tips from FI for the People to help you improve your financial situation.
A big thanks for FI for the People for this interview! Now, we will turn it over to the author for this interview.

Tell us about FI for the People

I started my blog in December 2018. As for the name, the “FI” part is supposed to be read as “fy,” not “F I.” If you read it that way, it sounds like “Fight for the People,” which conjured up an image in my mind of me as a fighter. That made me chuckle as I . . . ummm . . . do not look much like a fighter. This was good enough for me. I didn’t want to overthink things.

What makes you and your blog unique?

Hoo, boy. That’s a good question. Maybe that my blog has more puns per post than any other blog in the personal finance space? No? Not exactly what you were looking for?

Perhaps, instead, that I thought that what the world needed above all else was a purportedly personal finance-focused blog written by a nebbishy, middle-aged white American male with no academic or professional background in (personal) finance. No need to thank me, world. It’s been my pleasure. That’s not striking a nerve either?

How about that I write from my own necessarily unique perspective about a few things that I think can help everyone immensely:

the value and importance of increasing the spread (in the right direction, of course) between earnings and expenses—no matter the amount—to in turn expand the number of options available to you
the vast benefits of contrarian thinking, and questioning everything
practicing constant gratitude
lessons I’ve learned the hard way, as to renting v. buying, simply saving v. actively investing, and paying off lotsa debt, among many other things
any number of other similarly trashy tabloid-worthy topics.

What does “being good with your personal finances” mean to you?

Well, at the risk of sounding glib, I think that, in part, it means not “being bad with your personal finances.” In soccer, there’s a term used called an “own goal,” which happens when a player accidentally scores against his or her own team. Many times, those own goals could have been pretty easily avoided. Just as in soccer I’d rather be tied 0–0 than down 0–1 because of some avoidable mistake, so, too, in personal finance would I like to be in a neutral position than a negative one because of my own mistakes.

Beyond that, there’s the invaluable advice to spend less than you bring in and be mindful about all of your purchases. And what should be, but isn’t, just-as-common knowledge: learn and practice sound, simple saving and investing tactics.

What are some habits you practice to keep your personal finances in order?

We’ve always lived below our means. But once I discovered FIRE, I started questioning almost everything affecting our income and expenditures, which led me make a lot of changes. In some instances, I ended up standing pat on budget items expensive enough to likely make some in the FIRE community clutch their pearls a little. Or finger wag. Or both. But as they say, personal finance is personal.

And while I appreciate the usefulness of writing down every income or expense event, that’s way too much work for me. I have a pretty good feel for our financial situation at any given moment, and use and frequently reference a dynamic net worth tracker to help me, too. Would I likely find and optimize unnecessary expenses if I wrote down every income or expense event? Probably. Would the expenses amount to a lot of money? Doubtful. So, would taking the time to write down every income or expense event be worth it? No, not for me. Are you getting tired of reading this hypothetical conversation in the author’s mind? No doubt yes.

What are your three articles people should read to get to know you and your message better on your site?

Before I answer that question directly, my first recommendation for anyone considering reading my blog is to first visit a salt mine. Once there, find the biggest grain of salt that you can find and take it with you. Large grain of salt in tow, you are now equipped to read my blog.

Now, in answer to the question, here are three blog posts that you (and your anthropomorphized grain of salt) might want to check out:

Law School Broke Me – A brief history of how law school wrecked me financially, but also led me to taking invaluable courses at the School of Life
The Pursuit of Happiness – Thoughts on what sorts of bright, shiny “things” are worth chasing after
How to Succeed in Business Without Really Trying (Part One) and (Part Two) – OK, I’m cheating here. These are two blog posts, which the math-whizzes amongst you will note, puts me over the “three” in the question. But they’re of a piece, and list several ways to do well in your job without being any sort of superhero or making much effort.

For someone looking to improve their financial situation, what’s your best advice?

First, increase the spread (again, in the right direction) between your earnings and expenses—no matter the amount. Even if you’re able to shave off only $5 in monthly expenses, that’s $60/year doing more benefit (or less harm) to you. Once you start trying to do this, you’ll likely find more opportunities to spend less and/or earn more.

Second, if you are able to save money into investment accounts, automate the deposits, whether from your paycheck or bank account. As something like a gazillion people have said before, you likely won’t notice or feel the reduction in your paycheck or bank account balance. And once you set it and forget it, you need do nothing else, unless you want to.

Third, there are so, so many fantastic FIRE/personal finance blogs, books, podcasts, YouTubers, and books. Explore them and definitely dive deep into the archives. Once having found those you like, follow them. You’ll learn so many great tips that’ll help you in your own life. The Personal Finance Blogs directory is a perfect place to start.

What’s an area of your life which has benefited from improving your personal finances? Have there been any areas of your life which have suffered?

Discovering FIRE was transformational for me and my family in so many ways. First, it introduced me to the concept of FIRE, which was huge. FIRE is something I’m sure I never in a million years could have thought up. Much less achieved absent the knowledge I’ve gained. Second, it led me to make changes that brought my FIRE date up by many years. And third, it all but immediately opened up new options to me and my family.

But my pursuit of FIRE hasn’t been all rainbows and unicorns. As so many others have done, I went pretty hardcore into pursuing FIRE after discovering it. Along the way, I’ve from time to time made some changes/decisions that it turned out weren’t the best for some of my family members. Nothing major, but still regrets that I have.

What are your favorite personal finance blogs and bloggers you have been inspired by?

There are so, so many great personal finance blogs out there. The second post on by blog was devoted to thanking many of the bloggers behind them. They literally changed the trajectory of my life. Others that I’ve since discovered, started following, and very much love include: Financial Chain Breakers, Accidental FIRE, and rich & REGULAR. Take a look and, please, explore, explore, explore.

Oh, and if anyone knows why Bayalis Is the Answer (one of my all-time favorite blogs) went dark, I’d love to know.

In your opinion, what’s better? Renting a place or buying a house to live?

There are sound cases to make for both. And there are blog posts—like this one on Afford Anything and this one on Millennial Revolution—and the New York Times’ Rent vs. Own calculator to help you with the cold, hard, unsentimental math. But it’s also a personal decision.

For us, we’re happy renters. In part that’s because we had less-than-ideal owning experiences. But, also, because by renting, we don’t tie up a lot of money that could be working for us in other productive investments. Along those lines, we were able to take the post-sale equity in our last owned property, shovel it into investments, and realize positive growth that has played an admirable role in allowing me to hurtle toward my FIRE date, which hopefully will come at the end of 2021.

Notwithstanding my earlier statement that renting vs. buying is a personal decision, I will say that it’s my sense that far too few people even consider renting. And far too many put owning a home as their top priority for when they have some (even if nowhere near enough) means to buy. That’s a terrible shame. I think everyone should do a hard, objective rent vs. buy cost-benefit analysis when they’re looking to move. It’d surely result in way more smart decisions being made.

What’s a non-money related interest you have and what do you love about it?

I love learning new things, with a focus on history, politics, and current events. Sometimes my newfound knowledge comes from the many magazines, newspapers, blogs, podcasts, and news programs that I consume daily. Other times it comes from engaging in deep discussions with people, whether I agree with them or not. And sometimes it comes from putting myself in positions where I’m all but certain to learn something new or just doing my own independent research on a subject that’s piqued my interest.

There’s no shortage of helpful information in my flea-addled head that I’ve gained this way. But the number of silly, if not wholly useless, facts in my brain is equally vast. In short, I’d be a formidable player on Jeopardy! I’d not have it any other way.

Why do you believe learning about money and caring about personal finance is important?

This might sound dramatic, but I’m convinced that proper understanding about, and care for, money and personal finance could go a long way toward addressing some of the root causes of people’s frustration, cynicism, anger, and lack of trust in people and institutions. Make no mistake, lack of understanding and care isn’t the only cause of these feelings. Not by a long shot for many people. But I think that it is one. And a big one at that. Thinking that it’s impossible for you to get ahead and that others have secret knowledge and/or legs up, and experiencing getting scammed/ripped off can do that to people. I’m not excusing this thinking and any resulting lashing out. Just rationalizing it.

So, I think that many benefits could come from a basic knowledge of, and care for, money and personal finance that equips people to make better decisions for themselves. Maybe that’s by helping them to cut any number of expenses, or to generate income, or both. Or to understand and take advantage of ways to lower their tax bill. Or being able to spot and avoid a scam or rip-off. If my blog persuades and/or helps even one person make positive changes, I’ll be over the moon.

How You Can Contact FI for the People for More Information

You can learn more about FI for the People at https://fiforthepeople.com/ and follow them on Twitter at @FIForThePeople
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Thank you for reading this interview, and thank you, FI for the People, for providing us with some great personal finance tips!