Hey friends! My name is John, founder of tightfistfinance.com.
I graduated with a degree in Engineering, and it wasn’t long until I had a job.
I learned a few surprising things about finances early on in my career. However, one of the most shocking things I learned came from my coworkers over 50.
There were two types of engineers over the age of 50:
- Some individuals worked in high-paying careers their entire life and didn’t have a lot of money saved for retirement.
- Others had enough to retire twice over, but their money is invested in a 401k. Having all their money invested into a 401k meant they had to work even longer to withdraw money penalty-free.
Learning about these individuals blew my mind.
Watching my young coworkers is funny because I can already tell which 50-year-old they’ll be.
The college grad who bought a $60k sports car because ‘the money was just not being used’ will most likely not be able to retire. However, the coworker who has been investing since 18 is probably going to make it.
I looked at myself and asked, “Which person do I want to be when I’m 50?”
I came to a realization. I decided to design my life, starting with the end in mind. Deep down, I knew:
- I don’t want to work any longer than possible. Life is better when you’re financially independent, and work is a choice.
- I don’t want the entirety of my money trapped in a 401k. Life is short, and I may want access to my money before 59.5. To be clear, I still invest in a 401k, but I also prioritize investing outside of a 401k.
- Prioritize owning assets over stuff. Owning enough assets can buy you time-freedom and cool things.
- I want to be able to provide for my family and give them EVERYTHING.
- To succeed, I will continuously learn and work my tail off to make early retirement a possibility.
Knowledge is power. I have constantly studied personal finance and building wealth at every opportunity. Every chance I get, I:
- Listen to financial podcasts or audiobooks
- Read personal finance blogs and books
- Watch content on investing and finance
- Have conversations about finance with anyone willing to listen
I’m off to a great start, but there will always be room for improvement. We’ve paid off the majority of our mortgage and have a healthy investment portfolio.
I founded TightFist Finance to share my love of personal finance. It is my hope that you’ll get value out of the content I share.
Personal finance is personal, but we can all learn together.