Retirement Planning

The quote above exemplifies one of my favorite concepts: working smarter over working harder.

And so I present to you:

Allie J's 5 Step Guide on How to Retire Before Age 35

1. Step one: configure how much you spend on a monthly basis:

Rent/house payment and bills: $800
Food and things like deodorant and Draino: $200
Gas & insurance/car stuff: $150
Misc clothes & gifts: $60
Total: $1,210

2. Annualize step #1 (e.g. multiply by 12)
Round up to the nearest thousand to encompass the S that you can't plan for.
1,120 * 12 = 14,520
$15,000 = this needs to be your yearly income to live comfortably.

3. Find an acceptable rate of return in a mutual fund. Let's say a nice, even 10%. Divide the number you found in step #2 by this percentage.
15,000/.1 = 150,000
This is the amount that you need to invest in said mutual fund.

4. Figure out a feasible spend/save ratio. For example, if your paycheck is $1,200 every two weeks, you can probably save $1,000 every month (based on the number we found in step 1). This leads to a total savings of $12,000 a year.

5. Divide step  3 by step 4.
150,000/12,000 = 12.5
Add that number to your current age.
12.5 + 22 = 34.5
That's the age you can retire.

Argument #1: "Retiring young means that you'll forfeit company benefits like a 401(k) and IRA plan and SSA benefits and so on and so forth."
These plans are designed to provide retirees with a steady stream of unearned income. My plan does just that without a stupid age requirement! Also, you'll probably save money on taxes since you'll be in a lower bracket than you would be if you kept working. Win.

Argument #2: "You're not contributing to society in a meaningful way when you get out of the workforce prematurely."
I whole-heartedly disagree. For you see, your time not at work could be spent to do more useful things. You could grocery shop. And play in the yard. And drink coffee while reading a book on your porch on a random Wednesday morning. You could join the 2 pm Zumba class at your apartment complex and actually work out with others at a reasonable hour!  My plan is all about life enrichment not societal detriment.
I am in favor of working hard, BUT: I am not in favor of working when you don't have to.

Argument #3: "You give up other company benefits like health insurance and other coverage."
I'm kind of counting on Obama's healthcare reform act to pass, so by the time you retire, you'll be able to go out and afford your own.

Argument #4: "What if the market does poorly and you don't earn your expected return on the invested income?"
First, invest wisely. Choose investments that do okay even when the market sucks (like food, electricity, etc) and state and local government bonds. These have lower returns, but they're less risky (and the bonds are tax-exempt income for the most part).
Secondly, get a part time job to supplement. Chances are that after 6 months (or 2 weeks, if you're me) of being unemployed will begin to drive you mad. So getting a 10-25 hour/week job will help you keep your sanity and money in your pocket!

Argument #5: "It's not FAIR that you get to retire young and I can't because of x, y and z! Retiring that young is selfish!"
Talk to your spouse, plan ahead, and you can very well do what you like.

Argument #6: (and this is my favorite one) "It's not Biblical to only work part-time."

Really? You're going to play the God card?

My plan is not about working less because I'm lazy. It's about working less because you planned and worked smarter in the front end. I doubt God would frown upon using your brains, being healthier, and spending more time with your family. Also, you'd probably have more time and energy to be more active in church ministries.

SO BOOYAH.

Mike and I fully intend to follow (some variation of) this plan and retire young working only part time.
I don't want to be one of these people that work and work and work full time like they're "supposed to" and then when I'm fifty-five or sixty-five or however old the retirement age will be then, recline on my fat ass on all my gobs of money and be like, "What now?"

Estate planning is actually difficult for people with no kids because they have all this money and no where to put it, which means they spent so much time working when they really didn't need to.

TIME.

After busy season was over, I got to choose whether to turn my overtime into cash or leave. My dad said he would've chosen leave all the way, but I decided to go half-and-half because I'm saving up for stuff.
Looking back, I should have chosen all leave. The deposit of money into my bank account did not bring me joy. It wasn't material enough to make a difference, really.
But getting to sleep in and enjoy the warm sunshine on my back laying outside by the pool at noon on a Tuesday? That would have made me happy.

I have finally learned that TIME > MONEY.

So I go forth, ye breadwinners, and retire!

We're happy free confused and lonely in the best way,
TWS

22; Taylor Swift