Baby, Let’s Pursue Financial Independence Together!
When a couple pursues financial independence together, it is easier for them to reach their money goals!
-Peerless Money Mentor
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Synopsis
Susanna and her husband Jack Oswald are constantly arguing over money. Ever since she discovered FI, she has been trying to convince him to save more of it. He is tired of hearing about all the acronyms she has learned. When she comes home from work, the first thing out of her mouth is HSA this, ESI Money (Earn, Save, Invest) that.
The woman is a confirmed personal finance addict. She checked off every sign when reading 10 Signs You Are a Personal Finance Addict. Although her zeal for personal finance is understandable, she has been a bloody spike in Jack’s abdomen lately. Susanna sends her husband 10 personal finance articles daily and expects him to read them all.
When Jack informs her that he has not read any of the articles she sent him she goes on a tirade. Her blood starts to boil and she goes gives him a lethal ad hominem attack.
Susanna’s AD Hominem Attack
Susanna: Jack, you need to change your consumer mindset behavior. You ain’t nothing but a slave to consumerism. We will never be financially free until you adopt my frugal mindset. Haven’t you heard Dave Ramsey say that the borrower is slave to the lender!? Do you want to remain a slave?
Jack Swings Back
Jack: Susanna, first of all, never use that name Dave Ramsey in my house ever again! While I do not want to remain a slave to consumerism, I love my tech gadgets. You used to be more fun before you discovered this FI community of yours. Bring Ms. YOLO back because you have become wack.
Susanna’s Second Attack
Susanna: Jack, being a slave to consumerism is wack. You may not realize it but we are a part of Broke Phi Broke. Our net worth is -$50,000. I bet you are too ignorant to calculate our net worth. Let me enlighten, you, sir!! Net worth is our total assets less our total liabilities.
Jack’s Response
Jack: I may not know hot to calculate our net worth but I know you have become a nagging woman. Have you heard the saying, “It is better to live on a corner of the roof than to share the house with a nagging wife?”
Intervention
A guy by the name of Peerless Love Doctor grew tired of hearing the couple’s daily money arguments. He lived next door to the Oswald’s and their daily arguments would wake him from his slumber on many occassions. One day he decided to visit their house and offer his services for free. When he knocks on the door, Susanna is home alone. Jack has decided to move into a hotel for a week to escape all the aggravation.
Peerless Love Doctor Speaks!
Peerless Love Doctor: Good evening, Susanna! I have heard you and your husband argue daily over money. Sometimes you all interrupt my sleep. As you may know, I am a a love doctor. Let me offer you some solutions that might help you fix your marital problem!
Susanna: I am so sorry, Doctor! When we were having our money fights, I was not aware of the fact we were too loud. Jack has left me so you do not have to worry about us arguing any more. I would love to hear your suggestions. They just might save my marriage.
Potential Solutions
- Stop speaking to your husband in a condescending manner. Read the Five Love Languages by Gary Chapman to discover your partner’s language of love. After discovering his love language, create a discussion based on why pursuing FI together will allow you to give him more of what he wants.
- Keep the discussion simple in the beginning. Stop overwhelming him with every finance acronym you have learned. I have even heard you speaking to him about Lump Sum or Dollar Cost Average Investing? Stick to the basics!
- Have a conversation with him about the big picture. How will the decisions we make now affect our future?
Susanna: Wow, Peerless Love Doctor. These sound like great solutions. Let’s work together to expound upon them.
Peerless Love Doctor: Okay, I will help you build a solid case for each potential solution I mentioned!
*After speaking for a few hours, the two come up with solid arguments for each potential solution.*
Five Love Languages Solution
What are the Five Love Languages?
- Receiving gifts
- Quality Time
- Words of Affirmation
- Acts of Service
- Physical Touch
What is your love language?
Without taking having her husband take the Five Love languages quiz, she is able to identify his strongest love language. Her husband Jack enjoys hearing words of affirmation and spending quality time together. With Peerless Love Doctor’s help, she crafts the following statement
We will have to sacrifice time spent with each other in the beginning but it will be worth it so we can spend more quality time forever!
Baby, if we pursue FI together, we will be able to spend more quality time with each other in the long run. I really appreciate all of your hard work. You definitely deserve to play with your tech gadgets. However, what we can afford and what we deserve are two separate things. Let’s use the power of delayed gratification to take control of our money. When we take control of our money, we will gain more freedom to do the things we love. I remember you telling me that you wanted us to take a trip around the world. While that may seem like an out of reach goal for you, I read about this as a reality for many bloggers daily. We will have to sacrifice time spent with each other in the beginning but it will be worth it so we can spend more quality time forever!
Keeping It Simple Solution
Baby, I would like to apologize if I overwhelmed you with all of my financial acronyms. The math behind financial independence is surprisingly simple. We must start spending less than we earn and reducing our debt to income ratio. It is the only way our net worth will improve. I have learned some side hustles from Financial Panther that will allow us to achieve financial independence faster. He has recently written about how he monetizes his life. Once we start increasing our income, we can use Paula Pant’s method of growing the gap and guarding the gap. I know you don’t like to read so I have found a video where she speaks about this topic for us to listen to. Afterwards, I will discuss some more stuff I have learned about the math behind financial independence.
To achieve financial independence, we should have a portfolio that is 25x our annual expenses that will allow for a 4% safe withdrawal rate. Since I am conservative, I would like to aim to set aside 30x+ our annual expenses. One of my favorite podcast personalities Paula Pant has written about this topic on The Balance. In the article titled Don’t Confuse These Retirement Rules of Thumb, Paula highlights the differences between the 4% Rule and the 25x rule. If you are confused by any of this, we can use retirement calculators online to figure it out.
Big Picture Solution
Baby, let’s pursue financial independence together so we can create a legacy for our children and grandchildren. While some people in the personal finance space would like to retire early, I just want to have the option to walk away from work if I have to. Saving and investing our money will allow us to weather the financial storms of life. It will also allow us give more to our community and do our part to make the world a better place.
My dream of making the world a better place includes creating a scholarship fund for the people in the world who need a helping hand. When we pursue FI together, we must remain aware that it is a privilege to be able to live a free life. With that freedom comes the power to change lives and have a positive impact on our society. I need your help to achieve this goal, Jack!
*After discussion the potential solutions in depth, Peerless Love Doctor leaves Susanna’s home. She attempts to contact Jack but his phone is turned off. *
To Be Continued…
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Author: Jerry
Jerry is a Business Insider Contributing Writer who is obsessed with personal finance. He believes you can improve your financial situation by applying principles taught by the financial independence community to your financial life.
If you are having trouble saving, he recommends that you join the SaverLife Savings program where you can get a $60 reward after six months (no income requirement). All you have to do is put a minimum of $20 a month into a savings account. Easy, right?
For a fun read, check out his article 10 Signs You’re a Personal Finance Addict to see if you are a personal finance nerd.
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The 5 Love Languages is a book I recommend to almost anyone who is looking for success in their relationships. It applies to both friendships and intimate relationships!
Great post 🙂
The Mastermind Within recently posted…Mustard Seed Money Paid Off his $400,000 Mortgage in 7 Years, Could You? – Episode 6
Thanks for dropping by, Bro! I see we read some of the same books. I definitely agree that the lessons learned can be applied to friendships as well!
I see you have a new podcast available. Will check it out tonight!
I have to admit that none of this was really an issue in our relationship. When K found the FI community, she sat down and talked to me about it in terms of how the idea of it appealed to her because of the freedom it entails. And the idea of FI appealed to me because it means I can work towards spending my energy on writing.
But your tips on keeping it simple is probably why it was never really an issue in our household to begin with. It was quite clear from the get-go what she wanted to communicate and that was what got me on board quickly. Thanks for the post 🙂
Thanks for stopping by and commenting, E.R.
It’s awesome that you all were able to get on the same page so easily! To me, the ultimate goal of FI is to create free time for yourself and family members.