You may have heard of the saying “Personal finance is personal.” It depends on each person’s or couple’s money goal. Should we invest in our retirement accounts or pay off the mortgage early? Should we start a 529 account for our child or buy a bigger home? Or, for some families, there is just enough income to cover the cost of running the household, i.e., food, rent/mortgage, car loan, and needs of the children. There are so many scenarios to consider, and there is no one simple answer.
When it comes to money, my default mode is to save. Read that again. I said save, not invest. For most of my adult years, I focused on saving instead of investing because I did not know much about investing and did not want to take the risk of losing money in the market. That was how uninformed I was about investing. I did not know then that by keeping my savings in cash in the bank, I was losing value or purchasing power due to inflation.
I have made many financial mistakes: not signing up for a 401K in my first job, purchasing different types of life insurance that I did not understand just because the agent is someone I know, saving cash in a certificate of deposit instead of investing, not maximizing my retirement accounts, buying a new car, and many more.
My goal for pursuing financial independence is for time freedom, also known as time affluence. To do what I want to do when I want to do it. That means creating memories with loved ones, traveling, volunteering, supporting causes I care about, learning new skills, teaching, mentoring, working when I want to, and fully living an authentic life.
Here are some books, podcasts and Youtube channels that have helped me to get closer to my Coast FI goal. Here’s the list:
- Book: Your Money or Your Life by Vicki Robin https://vickirobin.com
- Podcast/Youtube: The Money Guy Show with Brian Preston and Bo Hanson https://moneyguy.com
- Podcast: Retire Sooner with Wes Moss https://www.wesmoss.com/podcast/
- Podcast/Youtube: Ready for Retirement with James Canole https://readyforretirement.co/podcast/
What is your personal financial goal and why is this important?
The journey continues…
Kathy Kaye R.
Moments and Journey 
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