My Journey to Financial Independence
(A New Chapter)
Background
Welcome! I'm glad you stopped by.
This blog began in 2014 as a way to document my family's journey toward Financial Independence (FI). At the time, I was married with two young children, and together we were working toward the dream of one day having enough financial security to live life on our own terms.
A lot has changed since then.
Today I'm 53 years old, a local government executive by profession, and a divorced father of two amazing teenagers. My marriage ended in August 2024, and like many major life events, divorce forced me to reevaluate nearly every aspect of my financial plan, retirement timeline, and personal goals.
Rather than ending my journey, it simply marked the beginning of a new chapter.
This blog is no longer just about building wealth as a married couple. It's about rebuilding, adapting, and continuing to pursue Financial Independence as a single parent while navigating everything that comes with divorce, co-parenting, retirement planning, investing, and everyday life.
Although this blog officially launched on March 15, 2014, my financial journey actually began many years before that. My former wife and I lived well below our means from the beginning of our marriage. Just seven months after getting married, we made the difficult decision to move back in with my in-laws so we could aggressively save money. Those early sacrifices helped us build a strong financial foundation through disciplined saving, investing, and a healthy dose of family support.
For readers interested in those early years, I've left the original series available:
My Current Goal
My goal is simple: retire in approximately four years, at age 58, just a couple of months after my son graduates from high school.
By then, I hope to have accumulated enough assets and passive income to comfortably support the next stage of life through a combination of my pension, retirement accounts, dividend income, investments, and savings.
Financial Independence has never been about becoming wealthy for the sake of wealth. For me, it has always represented freedom—freedom to spend more time with family and friends, pursue hobbies, travel more, volunteer, and simply enjoy life without being tied to a paycheck.
What You'll Find Here
As the blog enters this new chapter, you can expect a broader mix of content than before, including:
- Retirement planning and financial independence strategies
- Dividend investing and passive income updates
- Life as a single father after divorce
- Personal finance successes, setbacks, and lessons learned
- Travel adventures and experiences along the way
- The occasional look behind the scenes at balancing career, family, and life
I don't claim to have all the answers. Like everyone else pursuing Financial Independence, I'm still learning, making mistakes, and adjusting my plan as life changes.
My hope is that by sharing both the victories and the challenges honestly, this blog will encourage others who may be navigating similar circumstances—especially those rebuilding financially after divorce or raising children on their own.
If my experiences help even one person avoid a mistake, discover a new investing idea, or stay motivated to pursue their own financial goals, then this blog has served its purpose.
Thank you for visiting, and I hope you'll follow along as this next chapter unfolds. The destination remains the same—Financial Independence—but the journey has taken a very different path than I ever expected.
FFJ,
ReplyDeleteGlad to see we are both pursuing our FI dream in California. I think it is a bit harder to achieve this goal in our Golden State given the high cost of living and outrageous taxes, but I wouldn't want to live anywhere else. Stop by my blog sometime and see if any of the strategies I am using would work for you as well.
Good luck and best wishes on your continued pursuit,
Deets (freedom595.com)
Freedom595 - Amen, retiring in California can definitely be harder. It is tempting to consider retirement out-of-state but I don't think we'll be able to give up the California weather. We are on track to retire in 13 years, maybe sooner. Hope you stop by periodically to see our progress.
DeleteVisited your site...your passive income stream is very nice. More amazing is the rate in which it has grown. Keep it up!
Wishing you success in your personal journey! AFFJ
AFFJ:
DeleteI have some friends who are originally from my home state of Michigan. They established careers in LA and have spent the last 30+ years there. About 2 years ago, they retired and moved back to Michigan to be closer to family.
A couple months ago, they decided that they couldn't take another winter here so they moved to AZ (lower taxes than CA). Based on their experience, you are probably making a good decision on your desire to live in California's climate. For weather, it can't be beat.
Actually, my in-laws just retired in July and moved to AZ at the end of August. The thought has crossed my mind because I could probably retire in 8-10 years if it meant retiring in AZ. Aside from the fact that my kids will still be in high school, I just don't think we would be happy there long term. The next few years should give us a little insight on retirement in AZ living vicariously through my in-laws. :)
DeleteThanks for visiting and for your comment. Best Wishes! AFFJ
You are about the same age as I was when my kids were your children's age. The one thing I really never counted in my early calculations was the private schooling and the activities. It was good that I had the kids later in life because I saved early, but now when the snowball could be truly rolling along with added savings, I am limited in the amount I can contribute. You got a really nice plan in place. Keep rolling along.
ReplyDeleteKeep cranking,
Robert the DividendDreamer
Thanks...my wife and I have had many discussions on schooling and activities. We definitely want to keep them active so we do feel that is important but hopefully they find enjoyment from the lesser expensive activity. haha As for schooling, we are blessed to be living in an exceptionally great school district. In fact, it is one of the primary reason we choose to live where we do. Private school is something we do not anticipate, but then again we can't always predict everything ..but fingers crossed! :)
DeleteThanks. AFFJ
Just found your blog through Div Hawk Paper and am truly looking forward to seeing you reach your goals
ReplyDeleteGlad you found us Tyler. Certainly glad to have another person to witness our journey towards FI. AFFJ
DeleteBest, clearly-written, detailed blog I've ever read.
ReplyDeleteAlso a Gov't employee, was wondering what your yearly salary is as well as percenatge of annual increase.
I may have missed this information in the blog somewhere...
Your family is fortunate to have such a strong and focused financial leader.
Great blog. I'm in a similiar spot with my age & our children but I'm living in Florida!
ReplyDeleteWhen I first saw your house price, I was shocked! And then I realized you live in CA. ..
Thank you for stopping by and commenting. Appreciate the feedback. Hope you continue to follow us on our journey.
DeleteAnd yes, California home prices are outrageous. Price we pay for the weather I guess. :)
So glad to find your blog. Very nice and helpful content. I totally agree that it is important to have yearly goal and primary goal.
ReplyDeletesince you are a government employee you may be able to transfer to a more reasonable part of the state or country if your a federal worker and save tremendously on your housing expenses. wishing you the best of luck.
ReplyDeleteThanks for the suggestion. I wish it was that easy. I am a city employee that is ties to a CA state pension system. It's not transferable to another state and most of Cali is expensive. :(
Deleteappreciate the idea. Who knows, maybe I will move and consult in another state in retirement. :)
best wishes! AFFJ
Hi ;)
ReplyDeleteYou should be glad you have children its the best investment.
But if I could ask you would you like to have children later then u did or earlier?
Greetings from a Swedish Dividend Investor ;)
Hi! I completely agree—my kids are by far the best investment I’ve ever made! đ Looking back, I think the timing worked out pretty well for me. I was a little more established financially and in my career, which definitely helped. If I could do it over again, I probably wouldn’t change the timing much.
DeleteThanks for stopping by and commenting. Greetings from California! đ
I'm new to this blog and truly impressed about its content. My wife and I also live in a really nice part of California (the Ojai Valley), and we too plan to retire in about 9 years. We will sell our home and use the equity to buy our retirement home in or near Asheville, NC with cash. While it's more expensive to live and to retire in California, building equity isn't more difficult.
ReplyDeleteThanks for stopping by and for the kind words! Sounds like you and your wife have a great plan in place. California certainly isn’t cheap, but you make a good point about the opportunity to build substantial home equity here. Using that equity to buy a retirement home in cash could put you in a great position. Best of luck on your journey to Asheville and retirement!
DeleteThis blog on retirement planning offers a clear and concise overview of a topic that's crucial for everyone's financial future. The guidance and insights you've provided can be invaluable for individuals at all stages of life, from young professionals to those nearing retirement. Your emphasis on setting clear goals and the various retirement account options is a great starting point for those looking to secure their financial well-being. It's a timely reminder to take control of our future. Thanks for this informative and motivating read.
ReplyDeleteThank you for the thoughtful comment! I completely agree that retirement planning is a journey that evolves over time. The earlier we start setting goals and taking action, the more options we give ourselves down the road. Thanks for stopping by and reading!
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