I first learned about Financial Independence in late 2017. At the time, I was not convinced that I wanted to pursue it. Based on the stories I’d heard, pursuing FI seemed like a life of deprivation. People seemed to put off their happiness until after they reached FI and, then, be no happier once they reached it.
In mid-2018, I heard an interview with JD Roth on the Afford Anything podcast. In the interview, JD shared that he, too, had taken this approach. Throughout his debt-freedom journey and life, he used money (or lack of it) as an excuse for not doing things that would improve his life.
When he was catapulted to financial independence in 2009 after selling his blog, Get Rich Slowly, a realization set in.
Money was no longer a barrier, but things didn’t magically get better.
He shared that money was not a cure-all and encouraged people to focus on improving their lives all along the journey to their desired financial goals.
This post originally appeared at The Fioneers.