Two for Tuesday: Fire vs. Suze Orman + Free Solo
Here’s our first edition of “Two for Tuesday” – enjoy!
Here are a couple of things I’m finding really practical, interesting to ponder, or just pretty cool, which I’ll share every Tuesday.
1. F.I.R.E. vs. SUZE ORMAN
Have you heard of the F.I.R.E movement? It stands for Financial Independence, Retire Early. In a nutshell, it’s all about people who’ve embraced a goal of cutting back spending drastically through a minimalist lifestyle in order to retire early (e.g. in their mid-30s) or significantly reduce their work load or dependence on an income from an employer.
Responding to this trend, financial pundit Suze Orman “fired back” (pun intended :)), warning that people should be more cautious before thinking they can retire. In her opinion, one would need at least $5 million to retire that early, not only to sustain one’s lifestyle for so many years of living, but also to survive any catastrophic events likely to occur, such as a health care emergency or long-term recession. There was certainly a lot of criticism and push-back from her comments, with many quick to point out Orman’s own high net-worth and extravagant lifestyle.
Where do I stand in all of this? Not surprisingly, firmly in the middle. I LOVE that people are looking to reduce consumerism and spending in an effort to create a simpler life that they love and that emphasizes the things that are important to them – family, free time, nature, etc. However, I also totally agree with Orman that you likely need more than you think during those non-working years, so it’s probably a good idea to find ways to continue earning income for as long as you can.
2. FREE SOLO
On a whim, we saw the newly released documentary Free Solo over the weekend and it blew me away. The story follows Alex Honnold, a world-class free climber, and his quest to be the first person to scale El Capitan in Yosemite without any ropes. It was truly one of the most incredible feats I have ever seen and the filmmaking was spectacular.
What I found so amazing about Honnold was not just the fact that he actually accomplished such an impossible goal, but also – and perhaps more importantly – the process by which he did it. I am NOT a risk-taker when it comes to physical activity. But what I found so interesting was that Honnold arguably is not either. He was so meticulous and painstaking in his preparation, detailing notes after every practice climb, examining every crevice and nuance of the granite wall, strengthening his fingertips rigorously by doing regular “finger push-ups” on the side of his van, visualizing where things could go wrong and making every tedious adjustment necessary to prevent disaster – so that, on the morning of the climb, it was almost effortless (so much so that I couldn’t believe he was actually caught smiling 5000’+ up!).
You may not have such an audacious goal, but where can you apply the same tenacity and preparation to your own life?