A popular trend in the health community is cleansing – setting aside a week to 30-days dedicated to reigning in bad eating habits, losing weight, finding energy, or maybe just feeling better. Cleanses can help people reach short-term health goals faster, change their eating habits, and find new motivation to turn short-term discipline into a long-term lifestyle. Imagine what could be done if more people applied this concept to purging out the bad things “feeding” […]

There are too many ways for a scammer to outsmart you if you know nothing about buying key comics. Image source: Unsplash Collecting key comics is like buying high-value paintings, art and sculptures, wine, sports trading cards, vintage vehicles, and so on. Many people don’t see it that way, but valuable key comic books are financial assets you could add to a portfolio. You should understand their financial, historical, and current marketplace value before buying […]

For many people, financial planning fails not because they are irresponsible, but because the process quickly becomes exhausting. The spreadsheets become another source of stress. Budgeting apps send constant notifications. Advice online swings between unrealistic discipline and extreme optimization. Somewhere along the way, managing money begins to feel like a second job. That is one reason many people avoid looking closely at their finances at all. Some put off checking their accounts after an expensive […]

Hello from New Hampshire! I know, I know. I keep saying this newsletter goes out “up to once a month,” but the stats put me closer to once a quarter. But at least it’s been long enough that I can complain about something other than the snow. Either way, welcome back to the DQYDJ Weekender, and welcome aboard to all the new subscribers. And if you are new, sorry the first thing I do is […]

I’m convinced that AI will not destroy our need for personal connection, humanity, stories, and expression. The reason I’m so convinced of that is because of one word. Culture. When people talk about AI, they underestimate the power of culture. As in common values and thinking. The slow, invisible force that decides what actually sticks in our lives and what doesn’t. Here’s what most people miss. When something new arrives, it has to pass through […]

Goooood morning friends! Got another book to pass around to ya if you’re in the mood for some good financial reading?! 🙂 This one comes from long-time reader, and financial planner, Bill Hines, who’s always kind enough to give us free copies of his books as they come out. This latest one is an update to his original work by the same name, only pumped up a bit more and co-authored by a financial counselor friend of his, Grady Moshay. It’s called “Plan Your Money Path: A Guide to Create Your Own Financial Plan,” and we’ve got 3 copies to give away today! Here are the core concepts of it that AI gave to me which I really liked – straight to the point 😉 ****** Mathematical Confidence: Focuses on replacing vague financial goals with definitive data, giving you actionable paths to fund your future. Practical Tooling: Guides readers in utilizing robust, inexpensive financial software instead of simplistic online “dumbed-down” tools. Real-World Application: Takes you through the exact inputs, assumptions, and steps needed to model a successful financial strategy ****** That “robust, inexpensive financial software” it mentions? Pralana Online. I’ve never heard of it before (have you?) but Bill loves it! I’d be curious to hear your thoughts if you ever check it out… Another financial tool I’ve recently been told about is ProjectionLab. Mad Fientist just did another blog post around it and says it’s the most powerful financial planning tool he’s ever seen! I don’t really use any software these days personally, but I’ll admit I am tempted! At any rate, if you’re interested in a free copy of this book, tell us what *stage* of your finances you’re currently in and you’ll be entered to win 🙂 Are you in the beginning, data-collecting portion? The middle, cranking away – head down – and just getting the job done state? Or perhaps your towards the end of your accruing journey and now just dotting all your i’s and crossing all your t’s? Or maybe this is the first time you’ve ever landed on a money blog before and you’ve got no idea what the hell is going on??! Haha… I remember that part well… It was scary for a little bit, and then all of a sudden super exciting once things started clicking!! Which it eventually does, so you’ll be great! In either case, drop your answers in the comments below, or via email if you’re reading this in our newsletter, and you’ll be entered to win. We’ll randomly pick the winners at the end of the weekend – good luck! And big thanks to Bill for always keeping us in mind and sharing the wealth. I hope the new edition flies off the shelves, buddy!! Your friend, whose currently in his sabbatical phase of the journey, (I’m close enough to the end where I don’t have to worry about money as much, but too tired/lazy/unconcerned enough to wrap it all up, lol… The “details” part

Hello friends. I hope you’re enjoying the summer break as much as my son is. RB40Jr just wrapped up an incredibly busy freshman year of high school. Now, his main goal seems to be playing video games until 3 a.m. and waking up at noon. Actually, I have no idea exactly how late he stays up because I’m out cold by 11 p.m. Life is sweet for a teenager when school is out. Things are going pretty well on my end, too. My glacial pace transition to full retirement is almost complete. I left my engineering career way back in 2012 and have been meandering toward the finish line ever since. This year, I dialed back on blogging to once a month and cut way down on my catering delivery side gig. That translates to about 15 hours of work per month. These days, I’m staying busy with pottery, ukulele, home repairs, and just goofing off. However, I do have a bit of a confession. The Post-FIRE Reality Check Cutting back on blogging totally killed my interest in the FIRE movement. When I was writing more frequently, I sought out other FIRE blogs and articles for inspiration. Now? I rarely look at personal finance content online. The internet has changed tremendously due to AI. Everything is served up on a silver platter, and old-school blogs are becoming irrelevant. Ouch, that’s kind of harsh. It’s still good to read real experiences from real people. AI doesn’t have that real-life experience we can relate to. Truthfully, it’s been a struggle to write lately. Writing less often means the words don’t flow like they used to. I don’t really know what to write about either. At this point in my life, the financial equation is pretty much solved. We spend less than 3% of our net worth and live a comfortable, moderate lifestyle. The only major financial challenge left is minimizing taxes during our withdrawal phase. That’s a pretty boring long-haul project. Life Beyond the Numbers I still have plenty of challenges, but they have nothing to do with money or FIRE. They are simply about midlife. The Sandwich Generation Dilemma: Mrs. RB40’s parents are older and need more assistance. She has been spending about half her time down in California to help them out. This is a challenging situation for us. RB40Jr gets along with his mom, and he needs her around. Long-Distance Family Support: My dad is also getting older and needs more support. Earlier this year, he underwent radiation treatment for prostate cancer. The prognosis is good, but he feels weaker than ever. I want to be there to help him recover, but I need to be here for my son during the school year. Fortunately, my dad has a younger “friend” who is stepping in to help. I’m heading to Thailand soon to see what I can do. Teenage Life: RB40Jr had a tough freshman year. He loaded up on challenging classes and activities, and

It appears to be an overlooked part of retirement planning. While we should always invest within our risk tolerance level we should also match our investment portfolios to the retirement cash flow plan. The plan gives the marching orders for each account. If you create a portfolio to plan mismatch, you could increase the risk of depleting an account too soon. On the other side if you are too conservative where an account has the […]