"Early retirement cannot be achieved,
It's not possible,
Did you strike the lottery,
Are your parents rich,
etc..."
There are a whole load of comments I get when I talk to people, friends, family, etc...
And it's tiring sometimes.
Cos you see, I got to where I am by making many decisions which aren't mainstream.
Studying hard, getting better than average grades, getting into a job paying quite well, keeping expenses super low, being prudent with my spending, buying things within my means, getting a BTO which is considered fairly cheap housing, I currently don't have kids, freegan living, etc...
So there are a lot of decisions which led me here, and how I paid up my house and everything.
When people ask me how I manage to live without working, and I try to explain it, I get a lot of... comments.
And people tend to pick up small bits which they don't agree with and conclude it's not achievable for themselves.
Example
Oh ERSG probably struck the lottery, that's why he can do it. I'm not so lucky.
Oh ERSG probably has rich parents, that's why he can do it. It's unfortunate I don't have rich parents.
Oh ERSG doesn't have kids. I have kids, so it's not possible for me.
Oh ERSG studied hard. I'm not good at studying so I didn't get good grades so I can't do it.
It's often, that people I meet pick up one or two points to give themselves the excuse that they can't do it. So that they can just brush it aside and not attempt to do it. Or they conclude that such a lifestyle is not for them and that it's a life of suffering and they wouldn't want to retire the way I do.
Of course change is required if anyone wants to retire earlier than normal. What do they expect right?
They expect me to say, "Oh yea, that's exactly the life I'm living, same as you, just do exactly what you're doing now and you can retire like me."
Cannot be right? But yet... many times, I feel that's what they expect me to say.
People pick that I don't have kids and conclude that just cos they have kids, they can't retire earlier...
I agree kids are an additional expense. But that doesn't mean it's an impossible task. It will be harder to achieve. But the whole idea about being prudent with money and lowering expenses and investing, is all about HOW to make it work for THEMSELVES.
If some folks aren't good at studies, the question becomes learning HOW to achieve early retirement with a lower income? Or HOW to attain a higher income without academic requirements.
It's not just concluding that it's not possible cos there's some differences between me and them.
Everyone's situation is different. It's about learning the concepts behind early retirement.
Earning, earning more, spending less, being prudent with money, investing, being happy with less items, etc...
It's easy to say it's not possible cos "I can't live like that".
Cos it's always easier to wake up everyday and not make any changes and carry on with life.
And that's absolutely fine... As long as they are aware of it and have chosen to do it that way.
But don't say it can't be done just cos some slight circumstances are different between them and me. That's just an excuse to make themselves feel better.
That's it for today's post. Slight rant about some folks I've encountered along my journey. There's a lot of these people around.
Now, I feel people who like to work should continue working. People who don't want to retire can do whatever they want.
But don't use our differences in circumstances to conclude that it's not possible and use THAT as an excuse not to pursue early retirement, IF they really want early retirement.
Hmmm... But then again... that's really their problem as well... Cos in the end... I still live my life this way and they can continue living their life that way.
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