77. Stages of Financial Independence

Chris Mamula documented his path to Financial Independence for several years before achieving his own FI goals and leaving his career as a Physical Therapist at age 41. Today, he regularly writes about Financial Independence while expanding the conversation around retirement at CanIRetireYet.com. He’s also the author of the book, Choose FI. On this episode of CFO at Home, Chris and Vince discuss his personal definition of Financial Independence, the stages of Financial Independence outlined in the book, and more.

Key Takeaways

• Chris’ personal definition of Financial Independence
• • Saved over 20X of annual expenses (25X is the standard definition of Financial Independence)
  • • Enough to sustain him and his family for a long period of time by drawing less than 5% annually
  • Maintained low expenses (paid off house, cars) 
  • Goal was not traditional retirement, but to have enough financial resources to make lifestyle changes based on more than just income considerations

• Stages of FI from Chris’ book
• • Getting to Zero - Moving from a negative to 0 Net Worth
  • • Allows an individual to leverage tax advantaged accounts with savings
  • Fully Funded Emergency Fund
  • Six Figure Investment Portfolio 
  • • Investing after building your emergency fund helps you to maintain the momentum and consistency needed to be a successful long-term investor
  • Half FI - ½ way to getting to FI savings goal
  • Getting Close
  • FI

• “Valuest” - aligning your spending with your values. Making conscious decisions

Resources

• Book - Choose FI 
• Blog - Can I Retire Yet?

Ways to contact/follow:

•  Twitter- Chris Mamula 

Contact the Host - vince@thecfoathome.com