Page 55 - Kiplinger's Personal Finance - November 2018

FROM THE EDITOR

Mark Solheim

Being Mustachian funds and a rental house or two.”
What I like about FIRE is that many
of the financial-freedom tenets sound
a lot like the advice Kiplinger has dis-
pensed for seven decades: Cut excess
spending. Never spend more than you
bout a year ago, I got an e-mail mostly among millennials who didn’t earn and (its corollary) avoid debt. In-
from a reader with a suggestion want to spend decades with their nose vest in low-cost index funds. Cultivate
Afor reaching younger readers. He to the grindstone at jobs that didn’t sources of side income, such as real
was barely 40 himself, he said, and had reflect their values. estate investing. Follow the 4% rule for
been reading Kiplinger’s since he was retirement withdrawals. Many of the
a teenager. He credited this magazine Financial freedom. But it’s the FIRE FIRE success stories sound similar to
with much of his financial success— blogs that have given the movement stories I’ve heard from you, although
starting a business when he was 18, legs. And the most famous one is retiring before age 40 is rare.
buying a farm when he was 22, putting penned by Mr. Money Mustache, a.k.a. But retiring doesn’t mean what it
away 20% to 30% of his gross pay each Pete Adeney, who has become some- used to. We sent contributing editor
year and paying off his mortgage early. thing of a spiritual leader of the FIRE Lisa Gerstner to MMM headquarters
But he said younger people these days movement. “Maximum Mustache” to meet Adeney and talk to some Mus-
are searching for ways to pay their is a brand of FIRE delivered with an tachian disciples, and she had this
student loans and mortgages more ironic, muscular attitude that disdains observation: “For nearly everyone I
quickly and save more, often with consumerism and waste, but the finan- spoke to, FIRE isn’t so much about
profits from a side business. ‘retiring’ as it is having the free-
“If you were to include an article dom to spend their days doing
or two about FIRE—financial WHAT I LIKE ABOUT FIRE the work or activities that they
independence, retire early— AND MR. MONEY MUSTACHE enjoy, without being beholden
each month,” he wrote, “it to a rigid schedule.”
would appeal to more people IS THAT MANY OF THE
in their twenties to forties.” FINANCIAL-FREEDOM Update: Thanks to all of you who
He said he loved reading the TENETS SOUND A LOT LIKE responded to my column in the
FIRE blogs and that many of THE ADVICE KIPLINGER September issue with article
the reader comments were suggestions. I mentioned that
from people in their for- HAS DISPENSED FOR we were still looking for an in-
ties to sixties who wish SEVEN DECADES. vesting writer, and some of you
they had found out generously offered to contribute.
about the FIRE move- But soon after the issue went to
ment earlier. cial principles press, we hired a new writer: John
This month we take are similar. As Waggoner. You may know John from
a look at FIRE (see Adeney writes his columns in USA Today, where he
page 36). As senior on his website, had a 25-year career, or through his
editor Eileen Ambrose he retired at age freelance work for Money, Morning-
explains, FIRE traces 30 “not through star and the Wall Street Journal. I’m
its roots to publica- luck or amazing certain he will help make our invest-
tion of the book Your skill, but simply ing coverage even better.
Money or Your Life, by by living a life-
Vicki Robin and Joe style about 50%
Dominguez, back in less expensive than
1992. Sometime in be- most of our peers and POON WATCHARA-AMPHAIWAN
tween the tech bust and investing the surplus
MARK SOLHEIM, EDITOR
the financial crisis a de- in very boring conserv- MSOLHEIM@KIPLINGER.COM
cade ago, FIRE ignited, ative Vanguard index TWITTER: @MARKSOLHEIM

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