As late starters, we long for a strategy or any tips that will catapult us into financial independence territory in a hurry.
After all, we are already so behind, with traditional retirement looming ahead, let alone daring to dream about retiring early.
We struggle to understand why we are not further along the path to financial independence despite working hard over many years.
The truth is, without practising the most important money habit of all – spend less than you earn – we will never get far ahead.
If I can summarise all the teachings on how to achieve financial independence, it is this – increase the difference between your income and expenses and invest this gap wisely – appropriated from Paula Pant of Afford Anything podcast.
The wider this gap is between income and expenses, the more options we have. We can use this gap to save for an emergency fund, eliminate debt, invest in index funds, purchase rental properties, start a side hustle etc – anything to move us further along our path to FI.
Why is it so difficult for us to live below our means? I know we all struggle with this, based on the many stories fellow late starters have shared in the Late Starter to FI series.
I don’t think it is entirely our fault.
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Temptation is Everywhere
Our every day lives are bombarded by advertisements – on TV, radio, at the bus stop, on billboards along the freeway, in newspapers, magazines. And now they are more personal by getting into our social media feeds. And targeting us specifically with advertisements about stuff we googled while bored.
They promise us we’ll be happy if we just buy this gadget, wear these cool clothes with the to-die-for accessories; we’ll be relaxed and rested if only we purchased the spa experience, the luxurious resort holiday; the wonderful tools we must have to make our lives more organised & productive.
Our lives are messy and complicated even without a pandemic. Who doesn’t need help with making life a bit more bearable? A bit easier to cope with?
One of my favourite TV shows is Gruen on ABC – a panel of ad executives share their insights into various advertising campaigns, hosted by comedian, Wil Anderson. Once we are aware of how we are marketed to, we are more able to resist their messages.
Credit is Widely Available
Credit cards, interest free purchase, buy now pay later schemes, store credit … there are a myriad of ways to purchase something without paying up front these days. Plus there are redraw facilities or off set accounts on home loans where you can withdraw some of the money if you are ahead in your loan repayments.
I’m not going to bash credit cards. They have a place in managing my money as long as I pay the balance in full when they fall due. They are a convenient form of record keeping. I also love the flight reward points I earn. These days I no longer pay for flights on overseas trips.
It is so easy though to use these forms of credit to get what we want right now and worry about how to pay for them later. If we do not pay our credit card balance in full, we will pay an inflated interest rate on the balance. If we only pay the minimum amount due, we will fall further and further behind in our payments. And it becomes a vicious cycle.
Having a redraw facility on my mortgage was very convenient and dangerous – sometimes I forgot the money wasn’t mine to begin with. Because if I am ahead with my repayments, I can spend it, right?
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Then there is Lifestyle Creep
Over the years, as our incomes improve, so do our tastes – we desire better quality goods and a more luxurious lifestyle. I know I desire expensive French cheeses on a regular basis 🙂
We want bigger houses, prestige cars, exotic holidays … always wanting the upgrade, the best of everything.
Our friends tell us we can afford it, that we should reward ourselves for working so hard. We deserve it.
And before long, we are working all hours in the day and night just to fund this lifestyle.
But we have a Choice
While I do think there are many external influences as to why we are unable to live below our means, I also believe we have a choice.
No one can dictate to us how we should be spending our money.
That includes the advertisers, whose sole job is to make us want what they are selling, whose job is to sell us stuff.
It includes our friends and colleagues – who may not be telling us the truth about their finances. Their luxurious lifestyle may be funded by debt. Beautiful instagram feeds don’t show us how stressed they may be, trying to make ends meet.
We don’t have to buy the latest gadgets or cars or clothes or kitchen accessories just because we’ve been exposed to the ads or because our friends have them. There is no need to upgrade to a bigger house if we can’t afford it.
We get to decide how we want to spend our money.
Assess our Priorities
It is time to assess our priorities.
Do we want to achieve financial independence? And live a reasonable lifestyle in retirement, whenever that is?
If the answer is yes, then we have no choice but to spend less than we earn, to create that gap between income and expenses. So we can invest that gap.
Why do you want to achieve financial independence?
For me, it is to gain freedom and time. I want to be free to pursue whatever I want – to slow travel around the world, care for my parents, spend time with family overseas, commit time to some charities, indulge in new hobbies … to just live a fuller life than I have up to this point. And hopefully before dementia claims me as it has my mother.
When things are tough, when we resent cutting our expenses and modifying our lifestyle, it helps when we know why we are doing it.
And sometimes, we need to be brutally honest with ourselves. If we can’t pay our credit card balance in full each month, we can’t afford our lifestyle. Full stop.
Mindful Spending
Now it’s time to assess our expenses – what do we spend our money on?
I started tracking my expenses at the beginning of my FI journey. Then I looked at what is really important to me, what I value. Can I have the same experience by spending less?
For example, drinking good quality coffee is important to me. Is buying a takeaway coffee every day, at an average of $4 a day the only way to achieve this? Probably not.
I now buy beans from my favourite roaster and make it at home with my moka coffee pot (affiliate link) for $1 a day. The experience is much more enjoyable and I begin my work day with less stress. I still indulge in a cappuccino when I’m out with friends because I value the social interaction and experience. But the bulk of my coffee expenses is dramatically reduced.
Eating good food gives me a lot pf pleasure. So I am happy to spend more on tea leaves instead of tea bags, organic free range eggs instead of cage eggs and so on.
But I also make sure I don’t waste any food, that I clear out my pantry, fridge and freezer regularly. And I am mindful of the prices I pay. I stock up on regular every day items when they are on sale. I cook a lot of my own meals at home instead of eating out or ordering takeaway. It doesn’t mean I don’t splurge every now and ten – I do but I just don’t do it automatically.
These are small examples of every day living expenses that can be reduced and were the easiest for me to tackle at the start of my FI journey.
Through discovering FIRE concepts, I’ve come to understand that mindful spending is not about deprivation. It is about spending that is aligned with my priorities and values.
Other Recurring Expenses
I looked at other recurring expenses next – the monthly or quarterly utility bills, the annual home and contents insurance, health insurance. These expenses often creep up without us noticing.
Where can I achieve some savings? How can I reduce these necessary expenses without sacrificing my comfort and peace of mind?
By installing solar panels, changing my shower head, changing insurance company etc – some are once off changes while others will be reviewed once a year to ensure I am on track.
Know Thyself
Discretionary spending is the hardest. What are your spending weaknesses?
Is it self care, kitchen gadgets, latest technology, comfort, conveniene, clothes, travel?
When do we spend? Why do we spend?
We know ourselves best.
I never thought about my spending habits before embarking on my FI journey. But I now realise a few home truths after analysing my spending patterns and habits.
Truth #1 - I LOVE spending money
I love that hit of endorphins when I spend my money – it makes me happy.
Truth #2 - I have many, many spending weaknesses
One is food – be it an exotic ingredient in a recipe I want to try or expensive indulgences such as French cheeses or fine dining experiences. I view these as luxuries now and I will indulge in them, just not regularly.
My other spending weakness is kitchen accessories or gadgets. I used to love wandering in kitchenware shops and will inevitably buy something which I will use once or twice. I no longer do this. I’ve also unsubscribed from online kitchenware, homeware retailers’ email list. The less ads I see, the less I am tempted by the latest gizmo.
I also love travel experiences. So I have a travel fund and a weekly amount is automatically deducted from my pay and deposited here. This gives me peace of mind that when the urge to travel is upon me, I already have funds available.
Truth #3 - I spend more when I am stressed, tired or bored
I cannot be bothered to cook so I order takeaway or I don’t have time to do a weekly grocery shop so I end up buying things on the run. I now freeze extra portions when I meal prep so I always have a ready to eat meal for the times I don’t feel like cooking.
However, I am at my most dangerous when I’m bored. I have been known to buy a plane ticket to Japan because I was bored at my work one day.
Truth #4 - I am IMPATIENT
I want it and I want it NOW.
These days, I leave my items in the online shopping cart then decide if I really want the items a week later. Most of the time, I don’t.
If I do, I use Cashrewards, a cash back site to earn a little money back from my purchases.
The point here is that once I understand why I spend money the way I do, I can put in strategies to limit that discretionary spending.
In addition, my spending behaviour has changed because my priorities have changed – I know I need every cent to invest, to get me to financial independence. I have to weigh it up – spend on this item, experience or invest that money instead?
So … now, I just direct that love of spending towards investing – I get that hit of endorphins when I purchase another parcel of shares. Win, win?
Why don't we just Increase our Income?
Good question.
Of course we can.
But if we don’t learn to spend mindfully or understand why we are spending in the first place, then the more income we earn, the more we will spend it.
And we are back to square one. To the vicious cycle of needing to earn more and more to pay for our lifestyle.
Combining the two strategies ie decreasing spending while increasing income is incredibly powerful. And undeniably the best way to increase the money we need to invest and thus get us to financial independence quicker.
In my case, I do want to increase my income – but I also don’t want to be burned out again or live a stressful life. I’ve regained my weekends and week nights since transitioning to my new role. And I value that time I’ve gained for myself.
For most people, increasing income is not as simple as asking for a raise. And may not be possible if we are already earning at the peak of our incomes.
It is much easier for late starters to look at our spending habits first (all those opportunities to reverse lifestyle creep) and then tackle the income part.
Final Thoughts
Every strategy and tip to get to financial independence starts with the money habit of spending less than you earn.
Therefore learning to live below our means is the FIRST step towards financial independence. We have to start creating that gap between income and expenses and invest that gap.
And while in our ‘advanced’ age (haha), we may not want to sacrifice certain aspects of our lifestyle, it is not impossible to reverse some of our lifestyle creep. And discover new ways of having what we want at a lower cost.
After all, we need to start saving towards our retirement that is just around the corner.
