From baby steps to pillars: 10 ways ChooseFI changed our lives in 2019

I came across the ChooseFI podcast in April 2019.

We had been walking the Dave Ramsey baby steps for a few years by then.  We had eliminated consumer debt and learned to save with discipline.  We paid cash for our wedding and honeymoon, our cars, and our travel.  For the first time ever, we had an emergency fund and were saving for a house down payment (although we had long ways to go if we wanted to buy where we were living at the time). 

I was a frequent listener of Dave’s radio podcast; his show kept us encouraged as we ran our financial marathon.  His teachings also convinced us of the importance of making a modest home purchase.  We ended up taking a few leaps to make our plans work.  

With every financial decision there was a personal victory below the surface.   Addressing our financial habits led us to explore what was important in our lives.  We became intentional with our choices and began to feel empowered about our future along the way.

In hindsight, we were setting up important pillars for financial independence (FI) including low cost housing, buying used cars, and avoiding consumer debt.  We were focusing on happiness and creating a life that prioritized our joy.

Time for a financial boost

Getting out of debt and saving for the first time felt like a huge victory.  Being able to pay for home improvements with cash was a milestone that once felt like an impossible luxury.

The problem was that we were stuck there:  no debt, an emergency fund and saving for purchases. An improvement from where we use to be but along with that, we were experiencing analysis paralysis when it came to investing.

Following the baby steps recommendation, we had interviewed a few financial professional and officially started to work with one in December 2018.  We opened a Roth IRA and a 529 for our son. We set up small monthly contributions to both accounts with plans to increase them once our emergency fund reached a year of income (as suggested by our new advisor).

Aside from that, our only other investment was my 401k at work to which I had been contributing 5-6% of my income to get the full company match.

Our financial life was healthier than before, but I was losing enthusiasm.  It felt uneasy to have someone else manage our investments; especially for a hands-on person like me. However, that was the recommendation of the plan we had been following and that had work well thus far.

ChooseFI to the rescue

They say the teacher comes when the student is ready; and I was ready for a reset on our financial trajectory.

I encountered ChooseFI thru a Facebook ad while scrolling my app feed.  I got curious, clicked the link and started reading their content.

Brad and Jonathan were discussing financial and life-optimization topics in a way that felt fresh to my ears.  The conversations they led with their guests were filled with variety. It was refreshing to be exposed to diverse stories and opinions about the various ways to tackle challenges (not just financial ones); I was immediately hooked.

I began listening to the ChooseFI all the way from episode 1 and it took me about six months to catch up with the show in real time.  Aside from consuming their content, it was fun to ride the time machine of the host’s lives in a condensed version that turned years into months. 

The podcast introduced me to FIRE (financial independence retire early) and I started going down the rabbit hole and re-encountering with information I had read years prior but never acted on.  

This time information wasn’t going to stay stagnant.  Every Friday in the ChooseFI facebook group, Brad prompt us to share the action steps we took to get closer to our goals and make life more enjoyable. I look forward to add to the comments on his Friday post as often as I can 🙂

The perfect combo to enhance our finances and our lives

Impeccable timing, relevant information and the weekly encouragement to take action was the ideal recipe to make 2019 a pivotal year for our finances. 

I couldn’t end the year without a post dedicated to ChooseFI and the propagated effect the podcast had on our lives.  If all these changes happened in a single year, I cannot even imagine the possibilities for the future.

Beyond impacting our savings and retirement plans, ChooseFI introduced me to a community where I could have a voice too; that has jumpstart me on experimenting with my ideas in a way I have avoided for years.  I am extremely grateful for their example of what is possible when we act on our callings.

These are the top 10 ways ChooseFI changed our lives in 2019:

By the start of 2019, the major projects in our recently-purchased fixer upper were completed, we were finally able to channel the surplus of our monthly budget to savings.  

The emphasis the FI puts on savings rate helped us guide our saving goals and evaluate where our spending needed to be reevaluated.   Our savings traction became unprecedented and rather than depriving, the new goals felt exciting and realistic.  

Our overall savings rate increased from ~6% to 30+% in 2019. 

In the same way we saved aggressively for our new siding and roof, we kept the momentum going to beef up our accounts. By setting up higher automatic transfer to our savings and investments, we took ourselves out of the equation while increasing our net worth. 

We avoided creeping up our spending now that there wasn’t a major house project to save for, all we did was shift the purpose of the surplus as we were already use to living on a the smaller budget.

We switched cellphone carriers – Instant $120 savings/month

Finding out what the average FI enthusiast was paying for cellphone service was eye opening to say the least.  We had been paying almost two hundred dollars a month for our unlimited plans!  And that was just the service because we owned our devices.

We switched to a lower cost carrier and don’t even notice the difference aside from the triple digit savings that now go towards our investments.

Paid insurance premium yearly instead of monthly – Instant $400 savings/year

Increasing our cash position opened the door to the many savings available when monthly installments are no longer needed.  Being able to pay for our vehicles’ insurance in full for the year rather than monthly was an instant savings per month (I actually had no idea there was a monthly installment fee); and like the cellphone switch, there was no sacrifice involved.

Began travel hacking by getting our first Credit Card Bonus – minimum $1,500 saving

Being a Dave Ramsey follower made me develop and anti-credit card attitude; but to be honest, it was a necessary shift back then. 

Now that I have developed the discipline to not spend more than we make and our mindset on consumer debt is solid, taking advantage of credit card point and miles felt like a great opportunity to save on travel.  We got our first credit card bonus this year and are currently working on our second one.

We are strategizing our travel hacks for 2020 thanks to the way ChooseFI and many in the community introduced us to this hack.

After rebuilding our savings account, it was time to finally act on the investments information. 

We were dipping our toes with investing by working with the financial advisor, but it didn’t take long to determine that actively managed funds were not on our best interest.

Learned about low cost Index-Fund Investing

I devoured the Stock Series by JL Collins after I heard him on the podcast.  Unlike the fee structure of my newly open Roth IRA, I felt I could confidently explain the information if I had to recall it out loud.

We became confident about the idea of handling our own investments with broad based index funds being at the center of our strategy.  This was a game changer when it came to finally invest a significant portion of our income on a regular basis.

I also began to look more into my 401k options and for the first time noticed the expense ratios and fees associated with not just that account but the Roth IRA I had recently opened (ouch!).

Maxed 401k, HSA and Roth IRA for the first time

As with savings, setting up automatic contributions to retirement accounts was key.  We started with my 401k by significantly increasing the contribution amount when I am expecting a large commission for the month. 

I started looking at my commission statements and account balances in the same way I look at my sales targets and standings at work- numbers on an excel sheets.  This allowed me to stay emotionally unattached to the amounts I was directly sending to retirement.

When the 401K was maxed out, I calculated how much my contributions to our health savings account (HSA) had to increase to max it by year end.  I adjusted my paycheck deductions accordingly.

When it was time to tackle the Roth IRA, we decided to open Vanguard accounts and fund them aggressively.   In the mean time I kept sending my minimal contributions to the Roth IRA I opened with the advisor (this was purely out of procrastinating our break up).  

Invested HSA using index funds

Before finding the FI concepts we were using the HSA funds to pay for all medical expenses and none of the funds were invested.  Having a fully funded emergency fund allowed us to finally invest most of our HSA balance- using index funds of course. We started implementing The Mad Fientist HSA strategy and letting our money grow.

My interest in personal finance had already led me to follow a few personal finance influences with my personal social media accounts. 

After finding the podcast, I became part of the ChooseFI community in Facebook. I was inspired by the many content creators that share their tips and personal stories and I decided to share mine too.

Launched the Fimigrant blog

It was exciting to be part of a community that openly discusses personal finance topics considering my close friends and family aren’t that interested in the subject.  However, when I found myself writing comments that could fill an entire brochure, I knew I had to find another way to share my perspective.

Jonathan’s enthusiasm during the episode about starting a blog convinced me to go ahead and start this space as an outlet for my thoughts and a way to keep our family accountable.

Began to actively participate in the #dfc & #FIcommunity online

Starting the blog encouraged me to be a more active participant on the debt free and financial independence communities.  I began to ask questions and share my experiences with others; it was great to have a place to bounce ideas around and get useful feedback from others walking this path.

Connected with people that lifted us up

And the best part of being part of a community is the connections I have made with others whose journey, background or lifestyle resonate with mine. 

Granted, I am fortunate to be surrounded by magnificent people in my real life but only a very few share my enthusiasm for money talk.   I readily connected with people online that somewhat felt like long-time friends. 

The personal finance community is its own world.  It has all kinds of people and I am convinced that it is that diversity that makes it powerful and life-changing.

And if that wasn’t enough…

Aside from big changes, there were other little changes too.

We began tracking our net worth using personal capital.  Doing so helped me support the show while showing me a nice-looking dashboard of our financial picture.

Improving and simplifying our finances also led us to declutter and organize our home.  This is a work in progress, but it is a significant step I have been putting off for longer than I care to confess.

The money conversations at home also changed for the better.  They are now ongoing chats about our dreams and plans as a family rather than how we can save another buck or two.  I LOVE that shift plus I bet my husband loves it even more.

If you made it this far, you can see why I am not exaggerating when I say coming across ChooseFI has truly changed our lives.

I am so incredible thankful to Brad, Jonathan and the ChooseFI team for creating a transcendent community that feels like home.

Thank you, Gracias, Obrigada

I hope we all find the courage to execute on our ideas the way you two have.

😊

What about you? What has been you most influential content on your FI journey? Who got you started? Share in the comments!

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