Downsizing to The Shithole
How we made our lives richer by living in 1/3 the space
Why are We Moving Again?
Back in September, I unwittingly discovered a whole new world of financial independence bloggers. They all claim that retiring early is within reach, so long as you save a decent chunk of earnings. They cunningly refer to this as your “Savings Rate.” Ideally, they say, you should be saving 50% or more of what you bring home. Fascinating!
Ha! I’m a successful small business owner with an Ivy League MBA. My analytical brain was on overdrive. I quickly ran the numbers and determined that I was saving a whopping 3% of earnings. Wait, what?
I did some more research. A lot more.
Retirement Shmirement
Even given my excellent credentials, it turns out I’m shite at forward planning. You can be highly successful on the hamster wheel, but still not really going anywhere.
According to all the personal finance gurus and retirement calculators I tried (mostly because I didn’t believe the first few), I could retire in 80 years, give or take. That’s given my 3% savings rate and assuming a steady income stream (optimistic, given I work in the retail sector). But good news: if I stopped splurging on lattes, I’d be able…
