Tag Archives: Follow Your Gut

The Retirement Calming Effect of More Cash and No Mortgage

There are a lot of financial decisions a retiree has to make. How to best fund their retirement, when to begin social security benefits, etc. But once that is settled, there’s a couple of decisions a retiree might have to make that can bug us to no end. How much cash should I keep and should I pay off the mortgage? If you have the funds to even consider these questions then the mental conflict is to just keep the money fully invested in the markets. That way it can possibly provide decent returns. I made these retirement money moves and can attest to one under-reported and powerful aspect to these decisions – The retirement calming effect of increasing cash and being mortgage free.  

The Retirement Calming Effect of More Cash and No Mortgage

My Retirement Calming Decisions of Cash and Mortgage

It’s certainly a first-world problem for those of personal finance success. Even talking or writing about it feels a little dirty knowing the struggles of many underfunded retirees trying to figure out how to pay for retirement when there isn’t enough. I am only able to reign in guilt when I think about where I came from to get here. Just another poor working stiff who used frugal living to feed an early retirement plan.

I never questioned retiring with a mortgage when I retired in 2009. There was about $100K still on the bank’s books and I budgeted for the monthly payment. As to cash, I left my first career with only about $20K available. The rest of my retirement funds were all in recession diminished stocks and bonds within my 401k and IRAs.

The Retirement Calming Effect of Cash

Going To One Year Retirement Funding Cash

I did wish that I had set aside more cash but it didn’t overly disturb me. It was just there in the background of the normal “what ifs” all new retirees go through. I had always planned on living a “retire early and often” lifestyle and after a few months put it to action. With my first stepped down retirement gig I continued to live off of my 72t distributions and I used my salary to increase my cash to around $35K. That represented one year’s retirement funding. I invested the rest of my paychecks into the offered 401K and my IRA.

That simple cash increase gave me my first retirement calming taste of having a bigger cash cushion. It reminded me of how I felt when I became non-mortgage debt free. This small cash jump gave me a feeling of calm knowing I added to my financial strength and it told me something about myself. Not only did I feel more confident about my retirement funding, but I didn’t sweat all the market swings as much during this 2010 through 2011 period of my early retirement.

I was a proud risk taker regarding my ditching a long career for early retirement. But I mentally preferred a bigger cash cushion when it came to my portfolio. Financially rational or not, I simply had less market worry and higher retirement confidence.

Going To Two Years Retirement Funding Cash

Two years into my early retirement I left the stepped down retirement gig and started what I call my encore career. I stuck to living off of my 72t and used the new gig’s larger salary like I had done before. Knowing the retirement calming effect I received with my first cash increase, I decided to increase my cash to cover 2 years retirement funding. It provided even more early retirement confidence. I discovered that I find financial calm in using cash to hedge against market volatility.

Going To Four Years Retirement Funding Cash

Years after my encore career and last paycheck ended I decided to once again increase my cash. The market was at all time highs and when running my numbers I found that I could take some chips off of the table to pump up my retirement cash. There’s no doubt about it, I’m really calm now. I should be able to easily outlast a recession or market downturn when it comes and for me there’s nothing more retirement calming than that.

The Retirement Calming Effect of Being Mortgage Free

As I mentioned above, I had never considered retiring mortgage free. It seemed out of reach without staying on the job I no longer enjoyed a lot longer. My total house payment was reasonable after refinancing to lower interest rates and it made for manageable payments in my retirement. I had already dropped below Federal Tax ‘Schedule A’ filing thresholds and wasn’t getting any mortgage interest tax benefits. It was during my encore career after hitting my 2 years cash goal that I made the decision to focus my salary on the mortgage. It was dispatched just 18 months later and I joined the small ranks of mortgage free homeowners. I was surprised at how eliminating this payment made me feel. No matter what manufactured market crisis occurred, I would own my home. It’s an intangible value that provides long-lasting retirement calm and happiness.    

Why How Much Retirement Cash To Have or Using Funds To Clear A Mortgage Are Tough Questions To Answer

The financial argument against cash is its inability to retain value against inflation. My cash isn’t dead money. I do get a little interest from my savings account and money market accounts. I am getting 2.5% from a 13 month CD and will continue to look at other higher interest earning opportunities. Yes, all pay less in interest than inflation. But the majority of my portfolio is invested in the market and I see the difference between cash’s earnings and inflation as the cost of what I call my retirement calm insurance. I find value in the emotional peace and that makes it worth it.

When it comes to paying off the mortgage the financial argument is about the loan interest percent saved in payments vs. the percentage that could be earned if left invested. I locked into a guaranteed return. No matter what else happens in the markets, I have that locked down. But the other benefit is it takes less to live on. When not working as I am now and living off of my portfolio, I’m able to reduce my taxable income by the payment amount. I not only have a guaranteed return but I now will pay less income taxes too.

The argument against both higher cash savings and mortgage payoff includes the lost opportunity for money left in the market for big market gains if invested right. Especially over the long-term. Depending on your goals, this can not only impact your long-term retirement funding but also any thoughts towards leaving a financial legacy to your family. That’s why it’s important to run your numbers through a good retirement calculator to make sure your portfolio will last at least as long as you do. You also need to have a clear legacy plan in place and make sure you can still meet it.

In the end, we all know markets don’t always go up which must also be considered in the arguments for and against having more cash and using funds to pay off the mortgage in retirement.

The Questions That Need To Be Answered

I’m not some super investor, had no inside secrets, nor received a windfall to retire early as I did. I am just an average Joe who decided that I wanted to be free of the rat race and figured out how to pull it off in a way that worked for me. But now that I’m retired, I prefer to not be looking over my portfolio’s shoulder all the time. I prefer the retirement calm of what the extra cash and mortgage freedom provides me.

The questions I needed to answer before making these retirement calming moves were –   

Is now the best time to pay off the mortgage?

We had considered long before retirement that we would sell our home and move to a smaller home in a less expensive real estate market. That way we could be mortgage fee. But after grand-kids came we nixed that plan. I don’t believe it would have made sense to use taxable retirement funds to payoff a mortgage. In my case I had income coming in and no mortgage interest income tax benefits. Payoff also meant reducing my taxable retirement funding needs in the nearer future. Yes, it was the best time to pay it off.

Do the numbers still work with so much cash on the sideline?

When I increased to one year and two years worth of cash this wasn’t an issue. I was happily in retirement gigs and used the extra income to grow cash. This question came in the jump to four years cash while I was relying 100% on my portfolio. Running the numbers through the FIREcalc retirement calculator was my first step. I then made my proposal to my CFP and they also ran my numbers. Yes, the numbers looked good.

If the numbers work, then why risk unnecessary injury playing in a game already won?  

The same question echoed during my decision to retire or stay on the job longer. Do I have something more to prove or can I be happy and satisfied by making the move. I never regretted giving up the title and salary of my career, I had enough. It was easy to answer this question. I had no doubts. I wouldn’t regret about my higher cash savings missing out on any market runs.

Would I really value this as retirement calm insurance?

History and numbers show that staying at two years cash with a diversified asset allocation would work fine over the long-haul. But what I was going for was gaining even less concern about market volatility and being able to fully enjoy my retirement without thinking about finances all the time. The sting of the last great recession hit me hard. When being truthful about what causes me more distress, either having this sidelined money miss out on a bull market run or not having enough cash to get through a long market downturn, the answer was clear.

Are there any other upsides other than the retirement calming effect of jumping up cash?

Along with the memory of the last great recession’s sting is also the memory of all the opportunities to buy heavily devalued investments if only I had some cash. In 2009 as the markets hit bottom and the years that followed, stocks were a bargain. Having higher cash reserves means being able to take advantage of any future investing opportunities.

 

Everyone’s risk tolerance is unique to the investor. Finding the perfect formula that meets both necessary funding needs without adding investor distress is the recipe for a retirement calming portfolio. My mentally preferred recipe just happens to love the higher cash allocation and being mortgage free.

Seek that which keeps you calm, Lokah Samastah Sukhino Bhavantu.

Holiday Season: Time To Think About Home Security

The fast approaching holiday season means many wonderful things, celebration, good food, and most importantly time with loved ones. However, this oncoming season for many people often means time spent away from home, visiting family or vacationing. Especially for retirees who are able to be away for extended lengths of time. While this is wonderful, this also means our homes are left vulnerable to theft and damage. Don’t let burglary ruin your holiday season, prepare yourself and your home now by thinking about your home security.

Know the home burglary facts –

Break-ins can happen year round but we should be especially careful around the holiday season. Many of us go out of town and leave clear signs we are away this time of year. Many break-ins happen because of things like piling up newspapers or lights not going on or off.

Even for those of us who stay close to home during the holidays there is still burglary risk. Most of us will be away from our homes for what can be many hours doing everything wonderfully holiday related. Of course burglars know this so it’s crucial to know the facts so that you can prepare for the worst-case scenarios.

Be proactive to reduce burglary risks –

We can do simple things like set up automatic light timers, trim our landscaping for unobstructed views from the street or neighbors, properly install deadbolt locks, and when away overnight setting vacation holds on our mail and newspaper deliveries.

When expecting deliveries from Amazon or other online retailers we should be careful to be home or have a neighbor remove packages quickly. Not only are those porch sitting packages a huge attractant to thieves for the items themselves, it’s also a clear sign to burglars that we aren’t home.

We can also move our valuables out of our master bedrooms where thieves go first and put them in a floor bolted safe. At least move valuables to a less likely place in our homes hoping that their need to be in and out quickly means they don’t find them.

But will it be enough?

These things may give thieves pause in targeting our home or cause them enough time delay to at least lessen the loss from theft. However, that may not be enough as there is no guarantee it will work. For some of us, having additional home security should be considered. Not only to reduce any loss from theft but to provide additional peace of mind. There are a lot of home security system providers out there to choose from with varying levels of price, options, and service.

Know your home security needs –

Many people want a home security system that is pretty hands-free. If this is true for you then look for a system that is based around home automation. A good system should be easy to install, easy to use, and easy to understand.

It should cover:

  • Intrusion – Broken windows, doors, glass, etc.
  • Environmental – Fire, flood, etc.
  • Surveillance – Cameras
  • Life safety – Life alert and panic buttons

All of these should be covered to be a well-rounded home security system. If you need help identifying your needs or want more information this resource can be very helpful.

Know what to look for in a home security provider –

When it comes to protecting our homes we want transparency and clarity. When dealing with a service provider make sure to watch for things like transparent pricing and good customer support. Aside from the system itself, that should be another top priority in choosing the right home security provider for you. Since you will be trusting this system and these providers with the safety of your home and your family, they should check every box on your wish list.

Proudly Just Another Corporate Has-Been: It Takes More Than Money

Let me explain why I am proudly just another Corporate Has-Been and share the overlooked aspect. It’s beyond financial. A conversation with an ex-coworker reminded me of that. “You were at the top of your game, traveling the country, influencing national standards and the go-to engineer for the company’s multi-billion dollar revenue stream. Now you just casually stroll through life. What happened to you?”

Ouch… I had to think, is that really what he and some others are thinking?

Sadly yes but it’s what I think that matters.

Proudly Just Another Corporate Has-Been? What is there to be proud about?

Think about the definition of Has-Been: A person or thing that is no longer effective, successful, popular, etc.

Why should I be proud of that?

You see, I am now powerful. OK, in the eyes of the unaware corporate enslaved there is nothing for me to be proud about. In fact I may be seen as a loser from anyone still in that corporate world where title and salary is seen as the true measure of a person.

For too many people this is a world where you measure your accomplishments and success by the amount of revenue you can produce or retain, the amount of data that can be processed without defect or loss, the number of billable clients you can land, the size of the department and employee count that are under your control, the number of deals you can close, etc. It’s the all too common career mindset view of what a real winner is.

You get to also be measured by consumer measurements. The size of your home, the snob-status of your automobile, your exotic vacation factor. Then there are all the little trappings of life. Like your cell phone and plan; your Cable or Satellite TV package, fashion choices, the bicycle you ride, etc.

For those in the world’s consumerist and career minded track, people are measured by how well they keep up with the Jones’s to satisfy their social class peer acceptance and all of its perceived view of success.

I am proudly just another Corporate Has-Been because I know that is all horse crap

Proudly Just Another Corporate Has-Been: It Takes More Than MoneyThere is pride for my successfully living a frugal lifestyle beyond the reach and concern of what others think and my becoming a super saver. Thus earning my freedom from the rat race. But there is something else that must be done to proudly go where few go.

It is important to get this right and become our own rock. We have to be confident and with purpose. Don’t think for a second that everyone we know is going to celebrate our decision or understand retiring early to a free but frugal lifestyle.

When it comes to those close to me who are confused about my pitching the big-time I get it. I was once the unaware corporate slave who didn’t realize I was climbing farther and farther into the rat race trap. Always climbing and volunteering for more responsibility or accepting my corporate masters dumping it on me. All for some promised or falsely perceived corporate status and career mindset prize.

The cruel truth is until you reach the point in the trap where you are no longer able to move, of which I mean have a life outside of and free from the pay-check source, you don’t even know you are in a trap.

An all-consuming trap of both job status and possessions with its associated debt. All geared towards some false feeling of success and approval from our social class peer group. It is all taught to us as being the normal way of life. Make money, spend money. Make more money, spend more money. A vicious cycle of dependency. Job, paycheck, debt, stuff.

So I understand why my unenlightened ex-coworker pal sees my early retired lifestyle as a wasteful casual stroll through life.

I can also see why my early retirement lifestyle looks like nothing for me to be proud about in the eyes of the trapped. Even though they can’t understand me I can empathize and understand them. I was once them.

The Overlooked Aspect to Proudly Being a Corporate Has-Been: Our Ego

Every occupation has its trappings and meaningless life measurements of success. They are either self-applied through years of working with career mindset conditioning and/or by our close circle of influences.

Certainly it takes financial independence to proudly just be another corporate has-been. But to win at this game it also takes letting go of our ego. It takes both. Having one covered without the other isn’t going to cut it.

There are all kinds of people sharing tips on the financial side of things. This site has plenty written about it. But the overlooked side is all in our heads.

Think about it. There are a lot of people who make a lot of money and are set financially for life. Enough to be financially independent even if they are irresponsible consumerist. But if they lost their job, title and career based identity they would be miserable. That career title and all they felt important would be gone and their ego will hammer them. Money is no problem but their head is a mess. This can happen to anyone at any income level and often does.

This is especially a problem when the corporate world is finished with people who are still clinging to it. I have seen many who were financially secure discharged with every business and economic bump. Some never really recovering from a depressed self-worth.

Even people who successfully planned their retirement can and do suffer a loss of self-worth if their ego hasn’t been addressed. A conversation like the one I had with his shared negative perception could have anyone questioning their reason for retiring early. Certainly it could challenge retirement happiness.

How to Tackle your Ego in Early Retirement and Proudly Embrace being a Corporate Has-Been

Here is how you can proudly be another Corporate Has-Been.

It takes time to reinvent your self-identity. It is easy to link our identity with our jobs. I have turned down some great opportunities to come back and do what I have retired from.

Early in my retirement I would think how I could easily do a job similar to my long career and my ego would push me to investigate it further or at least question myself until my gut told me otherwise. It took time for my ego to let go of who I used to be and the false need to reprove myself.

I purposely retired early while on the top of my game. Sure I took some hits but I won the big game and walked away. I knew I didn’t want to continue serving the soul damaging corporate system and that there was a more meaningful way to live. Yet I still had my ego telling me I could still play the game at the same level.

Fortunately I was able to quiet and now control my ego. My ex-coworker’s comments didn’t rock my world or early retirement lifestyle. It reaffirmed the reasons I am on the journey that I am on.

When I started my encore career it was all within a passion driven mindset. When it no longer met my interests and desires I quickly retired again. Ego did not have me walk into another career mindset trap and stay longer than I wanted to.

Ego Management Tips

Forget about approval from others

Concerning ourselves with what others think allows ego to mess with us. Our ego loves being told we are popular or admired. This human need to feel accepted by our peer group does nothing but misdirect us down wrong paths. It leads to irresponsible behavior.

How many have been financially ruined by keeping up with the Jones’s or wasted their lives and relationships chasing an all-consuming career? The answer is too many.  By retiring early we are responsible for our own self-worth and new life with purpose. Don’t allow ego to have you treat that irresponsibly.

Stop Greed to starve Ego

Greed is Ego’s super food. Know when enough is enough and start living life on your terms. Ego loves to drive us farther into situations that we don’t enjoy or even hate being in. If you feel the need for more stuff and more money than you really need then ego is alive and well.

When I was looking at starting my encore career I took money off of the table and only viewed the opportunity from a passion driven mindset. Then once the perfect match came my way I negotiated salary appropriately for the position. Our time is finite. Trading our time for money shouldn’t be ego driven.

Let go of what we were

I think anyone who was successful in their career, even if they grew to dislike it, will have thoughts of returning to prove they are still a top performer.

Let go and be thankful of what we were and tell ego not again. Time for something new and more meaningful to dedicate our finite time to. Refocus all of our energy and drive that gets us to early retirement to passion driven pursuits.

If it’s a return to a prior position then at least do it differently and more aligned with your values. Not what you decide it was time to retire from.

End the comparing and competitive urges

Ego’s sibling is envy. It can happen to anyone. Together these two sibs can be very powerful. Seeing others accomplishments or possessions may make our ego want to have it too at all costs. That’s the problem with this. It WILL COST TOO MUCH. Wasted time chasing the wind. There is no top in this kind of ego driven endeavor.

It is nothing more than chasing your tail. There will always be someone better and you will always be looking over your shoulder at who is coming up behind you. Allowing ego to make your life a competition with others will only lead to unhappiness and frustration.

A better strategy: Count our blessings and stick to our plan.

Conclusion

To my misguided ex-coworker I may be wasting a productive life. However instead of letting him lay a downer on me I just told him

“I am proudly just another Corporate Has-Been. How happy are you in the trap?”

“Happy? What does that have to do with anything?”

“Everything.”

What makes me proud is that I did it. Putting the rat race behind me with my early retirement has been the most enjoyable adventure of my life. I don’t care if from a corporate world perspective that I am now no longer effective, successful, or popular. Their point of view is a false measurement of success.

If I could describe the way early retirement freedom feels it’s like being a kid again but without having anyone telling me what to do all the time. When someone THINKS they can tell me what I need to do I get to laugh, mock, blow a kiss, agree only with any good advice, or silently ignore and mentally dismiss them. Try doing that as a corporate slave.

In all honesty and full disclosure, I do still have to submit to any law enforcement and the rules of the universe even if I don’t necessarily agree with it. Oh, also my wife which may fall under the rules of the universe.

If you have the financial side of early retirement and escaping the rat race figured out make sure you also get your head straight and tame your ego. I say tame because aside from Gurus, you can never conquer it.

It will be a process and it will surprise you. I feel that after leaving the corporate world I will always be in recovery. Were ego and career mindset trappings will always raise its head and tempt temporary wrong thinking. The trick is to be aware of it and stay focused on what really matters. That being the rest of my life on my passion driven terms.

Have you ever found that your ego is pushing you in the wrong direction or leading to unhappiness?

Voodoo Retirement Planning

It is far too easy to fall under the spell of seeing exactly what we want to see and enter into Voodoo Retirement Planning. Especially if we are short of generally accepted retirement savings goals and really want to retire or stay retired. Voodoo Retirement Planning is any retirement planning strategy perceived as being unrealistic and ill-advised. OK, I am taking the definition of Voodoo Economics and applying it to retirement planning. I just like the sound of it and who can resist saying or writing the word Voodoo.

As I posted earlier I am in early retirement and I have paid my financial planner. Paid him to create my ongoing retirement plan. I should get the results in a couple of weeks. I could research and lay out something myself and believe me I do all the time. But I decided to pay for professional advice because it is far too easy for me or anyone to enter into Voodoo Retirement Planning.

Voodoo Retirement PlanningPlease let me explain.

With Voodoo Retirement Planning there will be just enough factual truths to make people miss the dangers. There is no magical voodoo retirement plan that can safely allow anyone to retire on insufficient funds for a lifestyle that will cost more than the acceptable withdrawal rate. There is a lot of information available from all kinds of sources. How that information is presented and how we accept it plays into how far we go into uncharted or ill-advised strategies to make things work for us.

That “acceptable withdrawal rate” also adds to the allure of the Voodoo Retirement Planning spell. Experts can’t even agree what that safe withdrawal rate is. Most say it is 4% with yearly inflation adjustments. While others claim it should be 3%. Then there is the argument that by foregoing yearly inflationary increases it can easily be up to 5%. The latest is that it can’t be a “set it and go” withdrawal rate. It must be adjusted each year based on portfolio performance. Any confusion in acceptable retirement planning practices can be used to add legitimacy to a Voodoo Retirement Plan.

The Signs of Voodoo Retirement Planning

First off. If we have enough financial knowledge and we find that our gut feeling is it is too good to be true. Then it probably is. We must activate our skepticism and tread carefully. Go in with open eyes, not blindly in a zombie trance toward an easy meal. That said there can be just enough truths to a Voodoo Retirement Plan to lure anyone in.

Changing Portfolio Return Assumptions to Meet Targeted Needs

Voodoo Retirement Planning starts here and it is backwards to what should be done in a sound retirement plan. Sound plans start with what your portfolio can safely support. Support funding for a long amount of time. Or at least just long enough. If our targeted and needed retirement funding will need a 7% withdrawal rate from our portfolio. Then changing the portfolio investment return assumptions to generate +7% to create our retirement plan is a potion for disaster. It is no more than voodoo magic. Magic giving the false illusion of it being a sound plan. It is a Voodoo Retirement Plan based on wishes instead of sound estimates.

Whether it is a 5% or 10% total portfolio withdrawal rate wanted to get the desired retirement income amount, reality should dictate what the sustainable withdrawal rate and strategy should be. If that reality is not enough. Then we have to adjust our lifestyle cost or contribute more to the portfolio before fully retiring.

Over allocation of high risk investments to hit Voodoo Retirement Plan return assumptions

To get the returns to make taking a high withdrawal rate appear legitimate. Voodoo Retirement Planning will make the case for having too much invested in high risk assets. Asset investment diversity gets overlooked for the case of higher gains. Using long-term trends may make sense when looking at overall market performance for these high risk assets over very long periods of time. However if our retirement falls in a long bad market cycle or cycles. Then those long-term trends mean nothing to us. We or should I say our portfolio is the living dead as far as retirement funding goes. Nobody wants to hear the portfolio cannot support what we need to retire on. So the pitch is the fund can grow itself with a very high risk investment strategy.

Using historical returns to lock-in a strategy and return assumptions

Historical return statistics are great for seeing the past performance. But that doesn’t mean they will repeat in exactly the same fashion during the years we are in retirement. Voodoo Retirement Planning will embrace the stats that support the unrealistic income needs. As an example, look at government bonds. Historically it will come up that they return 5% to 6% a year. But there is no way we can expect that today or even in the near future. Using assumptions like that in our calculations to support a higher withdrawal rate is going to kill a portfolio. The same goes for short history stats for hot new asset classes. Some may sprint within just a few years to a fast start with high growth. However jumping on new asset classes using those figures to make our going forward portfolio return assumptions is a crazy-scary plan.

In Closing

We need to create a sound retirement plan while living with unreliable financial return assumptions. To do that we should run multiple diversified asset classes with reasonable return scenarios through our calculations to understand all the different possible outcomes to our retirement plan.

By doing this we can test our plan to give us a higher feeling of plan confidence. We can gauge what our retirement funding risk really is. It also allows us to create worst case contingency plans to counter bad portfolio return cycles that may/will come up.

I also feel that for some people there is a huge benefit, myself included, in having a second set of eyes. Eyes belonging to someone professionally trained in financial planning. With a trained brain to recommend the best retirement plan. In my case it will add a lot a comfort in knowing that we aren’t under the spell of some bad Voodoo Retirement Planning assumptions.

Voodoo Retirement Planning can be very tempting. It is nothing more than telling us exactly what we want to hear. Not based on sound, fully factual, or sensible assumptions.

Have you ever been tempted by a too good to be true voodoo retirement plan?

Never Say Never Just Say No Thank You

I was just reminded of my diplomacy mantra “Never Say Never Just Say No Thank You” when I need to reject an opportunity. I also use it on myself to quell ego and greed. Two insidious human conditions that are counter to the way I want live now. You see, sometimes when you least expect it and are least prepared an opportunity can present itself. After the initial surprise my best instinct is to follow my gut. But then my brain kicks in. You may think that is how things are supposed to work. But my making a shift to a passion driven mindset means thinking beyond money when living my retire early and often lifestyle.

My brain is very good about identifying financial benefits.

Especially after all the exercise it got during the long trek to financial independence. My brain can’t help itself, running the numbers starts-up immediately. However my being open to opportunity in my early retirement does come with important limits. After all it is my finite time I am trading for money when I CHOOSE to accept paid work. In this case the opportunity was aligned with what I have previously identified as work I enjoy doing and have interest in. It even matches up with my last early retirement side hustle but this time my gut immediately said something else to me. It said, “Hell no, not again”.

Passions Can Change so Never Say Never Just Say No Thank You

Sometimes I see or hear about opportunities that look interesting because I have done them before and I am very good at doing it. My ego then will have me consider stretching the work interest and passion limits that I have set. My brain runs the numbers and lets greed chime in to make its case.

But my gut is the gate-keeper trying to calmly keep things balanced and aligned with the passion driven way I have chosen to live. This time with this latest opportunity offer my gut had something important to say.

  • Perhaps it was how my last side hustle turned into an extension and didn’t go as promised.
  • Perhaps the corporate world is just more than Leisure Freak Tommy wants to deal with anymore.
  • Perhaps I am just having too much fun now not doing paid work and not ready for any paid work.
  • Perhaps I just have too much planned now. Projects, travel, celebrations, and whatever I want to do.
  • Perhaps my passions and interests have changed as it just doesn’t fit well with me anymore.
Putting Trust In My Gut

There was no “perhaps” about it. After some self-assessment of what my hesitation and gut was telling me it was all the above.

I hadn’t given it much thought until now so I am surprised with the results of my honest self-assessment which put money totally aside. I really don’t want to engage in Tech anymore. Not as a telecom engineer or technician. Not working in IT and being a business, data, or systems analyst. I am no longer interested in any of it and have scratched those skills and work from my passions list. At least for now. They served me well with my first career, my encore career, and even my early retirement side hustle but I want to move on. I checked off some bucket-list items doing it and now it is time for new adventures when I am ready to begin another.

So to this opportunity I simply said to myself Never Say Never Just Say No Thank You. To the consulting company I replied No thank you, due to current obligations I am unable to accept the opportunity at this time.

It is a truthful response.

How to Walk Away from the Money

  • Ask yourself, if money was no object, would you want to do this work?
  • Set Retire Early and Often (working in retirement) limits tied to and aligned with your interests and passions.
  • Live by the interest and passion limits you set so you won’t dread any paid work you accept.
  • Remember your mortality. I see the government actuary tables  show my life expectancy to be 84. Simply do the math. No sense wasting any of it in misery for money.
  • Remind yourself that your health is best now while younger and don’t put off doing what you want to do until later when older age physical conditions will change.
  • Trust your gut. If it doesn’t feel right it probably isn’t regardless of how much money it pays.
In Closing

I use saying to myself Never Say Never Just Say No Thank You to cope with the fact that my passions and interests can and will change. For all I know someday I may have a change of heart and would enjoy doing tech work again. So I leave myself open to that fact this way.

Life and early retirement is an adventure. You never know what you will find along the way.

How about you. Can you see how your passions and interests can change but see the benefit of saying never say never?