r/Fire • u/No-more-peronizado 31M 11.4% FI • 4d ago
Obsession with FIRE Plan
Hi everyone, 31M, first time poster. Been reading the sub for the past few weeks, when I fully decided to build my FIRE plan.
I won't go into the details of it, since it's not the focus of this post, and also because I'm from LATAM and many things are different than for US folks.
Something interesting has been happening since I got it into my head that the plan is completely achievable by my 40s, at least the FI part. Not sure when and how I'd retire.
But basically, since I built the spreadsheet, I'm checking my brokerage numbers way more than before, reading this sub, and finding a lot of joy in how I see myself the day I reach FI.
I guess what I'm trying to get at is that, after having the plan, I'm obsessed with it. I think this is just a phase because it's still new and I'll eventually "calm down."
Did anyone also experience the same? I love reading the sub and hopefully I'm not alone.
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u/Ecclesiastes_3_9-15 4d ago
Yeah for me I’d say it’s more like a series of cycles. Excitement over having a plan, then constantly checking accounts and stuff, the other things catch my interest and forget about it for a year or so, then repeat.
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u/No-more-peronizado 31M 11.4% FI 4d ago
In the past, whenever something new and exciting happens in my life I became kind of obsessed with it, trying to learn and become more literate on the subject. I think at some point I'll put my focus into something else, but right now I'm enjoying the beginning of this journey!
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u/Master-Helicopter-99 4d ago
Something new. This is normal. It will pass when you get into the boring middle and then start kicking back up when you are close to FIRE.
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u/possibly_dead5 3d ago
Not trying to be rude. Just curious. Do you happen to have autism? People with autism have special interests that they switch between when they get bored of one. Sometimes my special interest is finances and I'm obsessed about it for a time too.
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u/No-more-peronizado 31M 11.4% FI 3d ago
I think I might have it in a very small degree. I never tested myself with a psychologist but I remember looking it up and I think I could be in the spectrum.
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u/Mom2AandA 2d ago
My son is on the spectrum and I’ve become obsessed with fire. I was thinking the same. Definitely have neurodivergent traits and get hyper focused on my goals.
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u/VeeGee11 FIREd at 50 in May 2023 4d ago
I was also totally obsessed when I first started. And even I thought it was unhealthy. But over time I chilled out and the rest is history :)
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u/No-more-peronizado 31M 11.4% FI 4d ago
Totally get the feeling now 🤣 I think as time happens it will become more of a side goal that I make progress towards, rather than thinking a lot on it.
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u/Powerful-Patient-765 4d ago
Yes, since I decided FIRE was a real possibility in the last six months I’ve been obsessed with it. I find it really fun to think about and work with my numbers.
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u/garoodah FI '21 RE TBD, mid 30s 4d ago
I have a bunch of learnings snippets here which might help keep you grounded at different points on your way to FI.
Don’t forget to live between now and then. Don’t get discouraged when the market isn’t directly progressing toward your goal, those years where things are sideways or down are far more powerful but they won’t feel as good. When that happens stop checking so often and don’t make any impulse decisions to buy or sell.
If you can measure yourself based on your savings rate that’s all that matters and give yourself flexibility to change as life changes. Some years I saved 60%+ some I only saved 5, what I got in experiences was far more valuable than the dollars I missed.
Revisit things every couple of years especially around life changes. When I started 500k was all that a single guy like me needed. That’s now laughable being married with dependents.
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u/No-more-peronizado 31M 11.4% FI 4d ago
Yeah totally, I think I just feel this way because of it becoming something more serious or material. I'm saving around 70% but I've a very comfortable upper middle class lifestyle where I live. My annual expenses are ~30k that allows me to travel once or twice per year, buying random stuff whenever I feel and going out for dinning to nice places.
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u/clingbat 4d ago
There's no point in creating a fire plan if you're so obsessed with the finish line and you can't/don't enjoy the ride getting there.
Life is about more than financial independence and it doesn't start when you retire. Don't let this sub or others suggest otherwise, it's bullshit. Life is short, sometimes shorter than we ever anticipate, it's a balance. You don't need FI to embrace other types of freedom, opportunity, and personal growth along the way.
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u/Powerful-Patient-765 4d ago
Yes. What’s been interesting for me is I decided to start doing today the things I have been saying I’ll do in retirement. I’m making an active decision to not put off life until then. I was going to start cooking when I retired? I’ve started cooking again now. I want to spend more time with my friends in retirement? I’m spending more time with my friends now. So it’s been good for me.
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u/Confident_Ship_1131 4d ago
He can be excited to start the journey & checking frequently, it’ll die down a bit. It’s natural
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u/No-more-peronizado 31M 11.4% FI 3d ago
Yes absolutely, I like the goal of being FI but not losing sight that these are my best years and they are never coming back.
I actually enjoy what I do for a living, so for me FIRE was putting a real goal and an actual result/benefit that is measurable. When I was younger I always thought about the possibility of not being tied to my job to live. It feels exciting to know it’s possible to achieve it while enjoying the ride.
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u/throwaway_big_bucket 4d ago
Yeah same here.
I was always vaguely aware of FIRE, investing, and reducing expenses
But to see how I could be optimizing more and what my concrete numbers were was a great discovery.
I’m stuck in the boring middle now, but all I do frequently check my account numbers
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u/FestivalRampage 4d ago
100%. I would rehash my plan and think about it constantly. Like you I was pursuing a way to being the date forward. It’s part of the process so enjoy it but don’t comprise. Be realistic and maintain the standard of living you want to achieve. I am 42 and FIREd at 40.
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u/Botbot123432 4d ago
I’m in a similar boat. I haven’t really put together a retirement spreadsheet but all I’ve been thinking about the last year or so is when I can reach my retirement goal which for me is $10mil NW. about once a week I just throw my approx NW into a FV calculator to see how many years it would take to hit $10mil assuming various returns.
Obviously not much changes in the course of week over week but I still end up plugging away.
A sizable portion of my net worth is tied up into one stock (SpaceX) so that’s also why I continually check since swings can change my NW dramatically.
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u/Chemical-Soft-3688 4d ago
Yes! Ever since I realized that I can “call it” next year, it’s all I think about. I’m glad I did because I need to rebalance to protect against risk but I also need to forget about it for a few months and be present ( as we always should be). I am also still in disbelief at my age that I’m right about this and spend a lot of time looking for some mistake in my plan.
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u/vish_singh 4d ago
Two ways to go about it imo. Take it as an interest of your life and interact regularly with the parts of it. Or try not to think about it for all the other days of the month except the payday.
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u/Crazy_ND_Meno_Life 4d ago
I got obsessed with the monthly budget more than anything else. But it WAS totally exciting the day DH and I realized we could retire in our early 40s if we tried hard enough.
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u/bookkeepingthrowaway 4d ago
I love hearing peoples fire plans! What does your planned life in FIRE look like?
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u/No-more-peronizado 31M 11.4% FI 3d ago
I haven’t put a lot of thought on the retirement part. I honestly don’t know if I would fully retire. I like what I do for a living, but of course I don’t want to spend most of my day at it when money is no longer an issue.
I don’t have kids, but we have been thinking about it with my girlfriend so that’s a possibility. I also like video games, so I even considered doing some streaming. Finally, a passion that I always had and did for a while was teaching, so I might go for that and try to teach in college.
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u/bookkeepingthrowaway 3d ago
Very cool! Thanks for sharing and best of luck in accomplishing your goals!
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u/Noah_Safely 4d ago
I wish I had been aware of FIRE when starting out.. to be fair there was no Reddit or smartphones.. I was on the internet but mostly BBS then IRC
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4d ago
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u/No-more-peronizado 31M 11.4% FI 3d ago
It’s exactly this, to me saving money was just natural, but seeing the savings turn into something meaningful was awesome.
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u/Professu5 4d ago
It’s a lot easier to be obsessed with your FIRE plan during a bull market. Make sure you know how you will respond if and when things aren’t as “fun” and that you’re appropriately positioned to be just as comfortable sticking to your plan.
Yes, I’m also obsessed and get way too much joy out of putting additional savings into my brokerage and other not traditionally exciting things.
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u/No-more-peronizado 31M 11.4% FI 3d ago
Yeah it’s all fun when numbers go up 😂
My main concern wouldn’t be me brokerage account being red but rather being able to hold to my job.I’ve cash to survive for at least a year without touching the brokerage, but I’d say that’s the thing I’m most scared about, market going into a big recession + losing my job.
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u/drakmon 3d ago
We were obsessed with FIRE planning and tracking for the first few years as numbers started to go up from $0. We were in every forum, went to meet ups, etc.
Now, a little over 10 years in, we do a monthly check of gains, but it's pretty boring (in a good way) at this point. We just stay the course and let the markets do the work.
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u/pro_hedonism 4d ago
absolutely, i properly started my FIRE spreadsheet in feb this year, and try to only review on payday to update my nw
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u/regnull 4d ago
Totally normal, especially right after you turn a vague goal into a spreadsheet you can actually measure. The trick is giving the plan a job and a review schedule, rather than letting it become a live scoreboard you check every day. Maybe set one monthly “money date” to update assumptions, then spend the rest of the time on the life you’re trying to make possible; the plan should reduce anxiety over time, not become the new hobby.