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Interviews,

Interview #8 – Angry Retail Banker from AngryRetailBanker.com

Interview #8 – Angry Retail Banker from AngryRetailBanker.com

This is the eighth interview of my interview series, where I interview bloggers blogging about Early Retirement, Personal Finance, and related topics. After publishing my first book, I am writing my second book, which will be on what I learned interviewing millionaires. As you can see, I love interviewing people.

ARB actually gave me this interview in mid-2017 so this is why there is a leg in terms of timespan. Either way, it is a great interview, I hope you guys like it.

Q1 – Who is ARB?

Classified. Next?
[Ben: Too bad you can’t say anything about yourself ;)]

Q2 – What do you do for a living and what do you like the most about it?

As the Angry Retail Banker, I make a living being an angry retail banker. Specifically, I work as a licensed banker in a bank branch, selling insurance and annuities along with your standard banking products. As for what I like the most, I’d really have to say the benefits. The benefits for even a part-time teller straight out of high school with no work experience are absolutely amazing. Honestly, there’s not much past that to like. It’s a great job if you love meeting new people day in and day out. I hate the general public. As well as the nonsensical regulations, the tight leash we’re all kept on, the office politics, the low pay, and all the other hallmarks of being an employee of Corporate America.

[Ben: Corporate America and Corporate rest-of-the-word suck. FIRE is the way to go, especially if you have the general public. I also hate stress and dealing with people who I don’t really like. I feel your pain man!]

Q3 – Why did you start your blog and what is your main goal with it?

I started my blog as part of a plan to earn passive retirement for financial freedom. I’ve seen bloggers earn four to five figures monthly from blogging, and I thought “Why not me? Why not now?” Well, I’ve only earned about three figures in as many years, so that. But I also started a blog on banking (rather than something like cars, which I have zero interest in) for the purposes of venting my frustration with retail customer service, learning more about banking than I would during my forty hours per week and learning things that I wouldn’t know otherwise, and to help others with a part of personal finance that is so prevalent in our lives yet so misunderstood. Eventually, I would like to be earning a decent income from my blog (be it through Google Adsense, affiliate marketing, or sponsored guest posts) while becoming one of the bigger names in the finance blogging community.

[Ben: My experience tells me that if you do it for the money, you should have a well-tuned selling machine from day 1. Otherwise, you’ll only make a few bucks. Going the other way, as I did, will take you to much higher figures but will take you infinitely longer to get there.]

Q4 – Any big plans for your blog for the near future?

Other than not running it more into the ground than it already is? I have a few things that I’m looking to have happen by the end of this year, but I’m keeping that stuff close to the vest. Wait, “close to the vest”, no that’s not the term. What’s the expression? I swear I’m a native English speaker.

[Ben: Ahaha, not sure you ran it to the ground. Keep hustling!]

Q5 – What was the main reason for you to think about early retirement?

I hate working.

That’s really the number 1 reason. I know it’s the “wrong” reason, but it really is the case. I want to live the life I want to live. I don’t want to spend my days fighting customers over the verification requirements for their business accounts. I don’t want to spend my days worrying about neverending sales quotas. I have other things I want to do with my life, so early retirement to me doesn’t involve sitting around and doing nothing all day. But to simply not have to worry about work-related stuff–stuff that’s not even really important–and to have that stress off me is reason enough to shoot for financial freedom regardless of what I do or don’t do afterwards.

[Ben: I would not say that is the wrong motivation. If do you have working, then FIRE up!]

Q6 – At what age are you most likely to retire from your day job?

172

[Ben: Make sure you get some beers then, you’ll likely want to enjoy them!]

Q7 – What do you plan on doing after retirement?

Blogging full time. Running my side business full time. Traveling more (or rather, traveling in the first place). Volunteering my time to teach financial literacy (me and another banker are already considering doing that now, but other obligations have pretty much put the kibosh on that). Devoting more time to keeping my body healthy. Maybe starting another blog devoted to anime/manga reviews (“One Piece”=best manga EVER). Doing Youtube/Twitch Let’s Play’s.

I’ll tell you what I won’t do after retirement. Deal with customers.

[Ben: Angry customers. I see the problem.]

Q8 – What investments do you like the best, and why?

Income producing assets are the best, and I’m specifically a fan of dividend growth investing. If you buy dividend stocks across a spectrum of industries, geographies, and market caps, then you have a diversified portfolio of assets that can be nearly recession-proof even if you are only in one “asset class”. Being in one asset class is only a problem when all the assets are the same. With dividend stocks, you are investing in so many quality businesses all over the world. Plus, isn’t it wonderful to earn money while having ZERO obligations? Even a landlord has to fix a toilet or deal with a rowdy tenant every now and again; a shareholder collects his dividends and there is NOTHING expected of him.

[Ben: I agree that dividend stocks are AWESOME when it comes to obligations. In my company, I am trying to invest the surplus in stocks rather than RE. But I still think RE is the best investment vehicle to go with.]

Q9 – How about eleven places you love that you’ve visited or have lived in?

I haven’t been to eleven places.

[Ben: Dude! Traveling doesn’t have to be expensive!]

Q10 – What are your goals for the rest of 2017?

Become a homeowner, leave retail banking, and not lock anybody in a room and set them on fire. All three goals are looking iffy.

[Ben: I am curious – how many have you achieved?]

guest post
Interviews,

Guest post by Derek Sall: How We’re Killing It on Just One Income

Today I bring you a guest post, written by Derek Sall, a well-known blogger and speaker at LifeAndMyFinances.com. His road to wealth is different than what I typically preach on From Cents to Retirement (as I love debt), but that is exactly why I invited Derek over to write an article on being debt free and provide you with a new perspective once in a while. Check out how Derek and his family are succeeding financially, even while his wife stays at home with their young daughter. Take it away Derek…

Ever think about living on just one income? I mean, do people really still do that? Is it financially possible?

One word: absolutely.

My wife stays at home with our daughter while I work a job that earns far less than $100k, and we still chunk $2,600 into savings every. single. month.

Sound impossible? It’s not, but there’s definitely steps that you’ll need to take if you want to get there.

How We’re Killing It on Just One Income

Your eyes are already rolling, aren’t they? I know, I know, you’re getting prepped for me to preach to you about minimalism or the tiny house movement, right?

Not so.

While I don’t think either of these things are inherently bad, they just aren’t for us. Instead, we decided to succeed in life via a different avenue: by getting out of debt.

Step #1: Beginning with the End in Mind

Before anyone can succeed at anything, I firmly believe that they need to know their ‘why’. What’s their purpose in what they’re doing? How will their actions make them a better, happier person in the end?

Our why – our reasons for taking action on our finances – was to live a very traditional, simple life. One where Liz would stay home with our kids, where I would go to work, and where we’d live relatively basic, but happy lives. This doesn’t just happen these days. Not with the rising cost of education, healthcare, and the general cost of living. This future euphoria of ours wasn’t just going to fall into our laps by chance. It was going to take some very intentional planning.

But you know what? We were up for the challenge. We always are. 🙂

What’s Your Why?

Our ‘why’ was to get my wife home with our child, but this might not interest you in the least. Before you even think about moving on to step #2, you’ve got to figure out what it is that’s going to make you move!

What do you want more than anything else in this life?

  • Retiring early?
  • Working a job you love instead of one you dread?
  • Setting your kids up with a beefy college fund?
  • Or maybe, it’s just to have the option to do whatever you want down the road!

Find your ‘why’ and your drive will improve dramatically. Things will absolutely change in your life. Ignore this step, and your dreaded life will continue as usual…

Step #2: Getting Out of Debt

So….this is pretty much the opposite plan that Benjamin talks about here on this blog, but that’s okay. There’s more than one way to financial stability and independence. In fact, we’ve already mentioned four in this article alone!

When Liz and I met, we had roughly $20,000 in consumer debt and another $54,000 in mortgage loan debt (I say we…but we all know the truth…it was all mine). The payments on those debts totaled about $1,500 a month. Pretty steep on a $3,000 a month income.

Almost immediately, we decided to tackle this debt head on. I did everything imaginable to make a few more bucks here and there:

  • I wrote articles for bloggers,
  • mowed lawns,
  • flipped some cars, and
  • Liz became a pro at living on the cheap.

We cleared all of our debts in just two years! Suddenly, our payments went away and we didn’t owe a single cent to anyone.

Related: How the Debt Snowball Really Works (Free Tool Included for YOUR Debt Snowball!!)

How Much Debt Do You Have?

Step back for a second, grab a pen and paper, and start writing out your debts:

  • Car loan – $$
  • Credit card balance – $
  • Student loans – $$$
  • Personal loans – $

Total up the entire loan amount and then total up the monthly payments.

Pretty ugly, huh?

Now what if all that was gone. You don’t owe anyone a single penny and every dollar that comes into your account is earmarked for you – not a creditor, not the bank, and not the dealership – it’s all yours to do whatever you want to do with it!

It’s 100% possible.

Just enter your info into the debt snowball (you can find it in the related article above), figure out how much extra you could pay on your debts each month, and then take a look at how long it would take. I know it’s scary, but for most people, they’re actually surprised at how quickly they could get out of debt.

Step #3: Increasing Our Income

When we got out of debt, our drive didn’t stop. We knew there was more work to do to make our dreams a reality. We needed to develop some more income!

Our main goal: keep stock-piling money and use it to buy a rental property with cash.

Ha, yup. You heard that right. Not only do we go against the grain by paying off all our debts. Now we’re investing in real estate with cash!

On November 30th, 2015, we stroked a check for $81,000 and bought ourselves a fixer-upper – a 3 bedroom, 1 bath house in a pretty decent part of town. Today, just two years later, that property is worth $140,000 AND it’s improved our cash flow by $10,000 a year as well.

On top of this, Liz has started a photography business on the side. The dollars aren’t huge, but they’re something! And, I’ve got a bit of income coming in from my personal finance website.

Currently, we have just one day-job, but by working hard and constantly thinking of other ways to make money, we actually have four active streams of income!

How Could You Increase Your Income?

We decided to ramp up our income with a rental property, photography, and a personal finance website, but these avenues might not be right for you. Everyone has their own unique talents. All you have to do is discover yours and figure out how to make money with it.

Here’s some ideas that can get you started:

  • Furniture refurbishing
  • Mechanic
  • Carpentry
  • Tutoring
  • Singing or playing an instrument (for weddings, church functions, night clubs)
  • Phone repair
  • Website builder
  • Buying cheap, selling at retail
  • Cutting/styling hair

The list could really go on and on. Once you figure out what you’d like to do, tell everyone you can and just get started! If you do well, they’ll refer you to their friends and the ball will just keep on rolling!

Step #4: Constantly Re-Investing

While I believe that the first three steps are necessary to live a stress-free, balanced life, this step is the key to actually building wealth with it.

When I started mentioning our plans of renting out real estate a couple years ago, many people were supportive (which was nice), but I noticed a trend when it came to their comments:

“Rental income sure is nice. We had a rental to help pay for our kids’ college years ago…”

“We made a few bucks with our rental property – heck, it even helped fund our vacation – but it just got to be too much of a hassle.”

In other words, they all earned a bit of income, but they missed the most crucial step — re-investing with it. Most people just use the extra money to spend on depreciating assets, which really defeats the purpose of having another stream of income – and in my mind, it just wastes it!

Liz and I saved every penny from our first rental property. AND, we also stashed away as much as we could from my full-time job. Because we were so aggressive in doing this, we’ve already saved enough money to buy a second rental property. In fact, we’re closing on it this week! This will double our rental income and will allow us to buy a third house (with cash) less than two years from today – and remember, we’ve only got one full-time job!

When you constantly re-invest and let your money work for you, life just gets easier and easier.

What About You? How Would You Like to Have Just One Full-Time Job?

It’s your turn. Now you’ve learned another method to kick-butt financially, and it’s super simple to get just started and succeed.

  • Just set a goal,
  • get completely out of debt,
  • build up some passive income on the side, and
  • re-invest again and again and again!

Seriously. Anyone can do this. What are you waiting for?

Remember…if you do nothing today, nothing will change tomorrow. Make a change, however, and your future can be whatever you want it to be. Just continually drive toward your goals and you’ll get there!

investment hunting interview
Interviews,

Interview #7 – Erik from The Mastermind Within

This is the sixth interview of my interview series, where I interview bloggers blogging about Early Retirement, Personal Finance, and related topics. I have published my first book recently, and I am writing my second book, which will be on what I learned interviewing millionaires. As you can see, I love interviewing people.

This time, I bring you Erik from The Mastermind Within. I hope you enjoy it.

Q1 – Who is Erik?

Erik is a 24-year old living in Minnesota in the United States. He is passionate about learning and helping others become more successful. In his spare time, he loves playing various sports (golf, basketball, softball, etc.) and reading.

(Now to 1st person) I’ve been working on myself for the past 5 years in an effort to become more valuable to the people around me. Growing up, I was very quiet and reserved. I was a little bit socially awkward, but always aware and a great listener. I’m excellent with names, faces, and other aspects of human interaction. Now, I’m continuing to improve on my communication, public speaking, and writing to continue to grow.

[Ben: I think that is what makes your Quora and blog posts so valuable. You are quite of a learner, I can see that!]

Q2 – What do you do for a living and what do you like the most about it?

In my day job, I work at a regional bank performing statistical analysis. I have 3 computer screens and run analytics for credit risk each day. Other days, I’m involved in presenting our model’s results to regulators or senior management.

I love building things – I love to code and build models. I’m good at picturing a solution to a problem and then implementing it.

What I don’t like about it is it ties up my time and is not scalable. I’m not a revenue producing analyst, as a result I’m not going to get commissions or big bonuses. It motivates me to work on my side hustles.

[Ben: Dude, that sounds like a pretty awesome job! This actually reminds me of my previous job…]

Q3 – Why did you start your blog and what is you main goal with it?

I was sitting with my good friend Henry in Late December 2016 and we were brainstorming business ideas. We were sitting in his living room hanging out when I said, “hey, let’s start a blog and do book reviews. We both read a book a week, why can’t we spend 2 hours a week just writing up our thoughts on each book and get Amazon Affiliate revenue?” We started The Mastermind Within in December 2016 and are almost 9 months old.

The main goal is to provide value and help people. At the end of the day, money doesn’t matter. Many people will start a blog to make money and that’s not our goal. We are looking to increase the value of our site by offering freebies. In April, we came out with a FREE Debt Destruction Tool. With the Debt Destruction Tool, you type in your debts and it calculates your interest savings for the snowball and avalanche methods.

Eventually, we hope to build it into a community where like-minded individuals can come and openly share their thoughts. We do book reviews, personal finance help, posts on entrepreneurship, and self-development.

[Ben: I think you guys are hitting your goals. I can see a lotta value on your blog…]

Q4 – Any big plans for your blog for the near future?

YES. For The Mastermind Within, we are looking to continue to provide value through freebies. I’m working on standardizing my income statement and balance sheet reporting I do for my own personal finances as a giveaway to our readers and subscribers. I’m going to continue to look to produce solid content with actionable steps. We are focusing on some SEO and it’s been paying off as the months go on. We are only making a few bucks a month, but this should increase over time.

One new thing for me and my business partner Jake is a Kombucha Subscription box service called HOWLinfuse. Kombucha tea is a fizzy, fermented tea which has probiotics and a great taste. Many people in the United States home brew Kombucha, but there does not exist a subscription box which will send you the ingredients and instruction required. We are currently bootstrapping this company and grinding it out each day and night. We launch June 1st.

For HOWLinfuse, we are going big. We are doing a Kickstarter campaign, a Thunderclap campaign, and working with various virtual assistants to help with social media, graphic design, and general feedback on our ideas. This is a fantastic learning experience for me and something I’m super excited about!

[Ben: Sounds like really big projects! I wish you all the best!]

Q5 – At what age are you most likely to retire from your day job?

I’m targeting March 2018 to leave my day job. I will be 25, but I don’t think it will be retirement. For an actual retirement, I’m not sure. I want to be financially free by 35 – but I’m sure I will continue to work and strive for the next big thing whenever I get to financial freedom!

Q6 – What do you plan on doing after retirement?

When I retire, I want to do a few things: volunteer and give back my time and skills to help younger people achieve their goals.

Right now I participate in mentoring for high school and college students. To be able to give back is something that is incredibly important to me. You make a living by you get through your job, but you make a life by what you give!

Another thing I plan doing is being active with my family and friends. I love playing a variety of sports: golf, basketball, softball and like to work out at the gym.

Also, I want to travel to many different places and widen my perspective on the world.

erik the mastermind mind

Q7 – What investments do you like the best, and why?

I really like real estate. I have a house and have 2 roommates paying me rent. It’s a fantastic deal for me because my roommates almost cover my mortgage – I get to live practically for free!

  • Real estate is:
    • Accessible – Anyone can buy it
    • Appreciable – Can increase in value over time
    • Leverageable – You can buy on margin and borrow against equity
    • Rentable – Cash flow baby!
    • Improvable – Through sweat equity or contracting out
    • Deductible/Depreciable/Deferrable – Amazing tax benefits

Personally, I think the stock market is a casino, but I still do get the company match and max out my IRA.

[Ben: a casino where you take calculated shots, though ;-)]

Q8 – How about eleven places you love that you’ve visited or have lived in?

I’ve lived in 2 places:

  1. Born in Wisconsin
  2. Lived in Minnesota for the past 20 years

I haven’t traveled much, which is something I’m looking to do once I get my businesses off the ground. Honestly, can only give you 6 places! This seems to be an area of weakness for me to address in the near future!

6 places I love that I’ve visited

  1. Hawaii
  2. It’s paradise.
  3. Colorado
  4. The mountains, the atmosphere, andthe people are all great
  5. Arizona
  6. Hot and cool scenery
  7. Quebec
  8. Lots of fantastic French history
  9. Northern Minnesota to friend’s and family’s cabins
  10. Serene, peaceful, and beautiful
  11. Florida
  12. Disneyworld!

[Ben: that is a nice list, I think you’ve traveled more than you think!]

Q9 – What are your goals for 2017?

I have a few blog goals, personal goals, and some newer goals.

For the blog, I’m looking to get 15k views in a month by the end of 2017. I want to have 250 posts on The Mastermind Within. Right now we are averaging about 4k views a month and are on pace for 240 posts – time will tell if we can reach our goal!

Personally, I’m reading 75 books in 2017. I’ve read 25 in the first 4 months, and am looking to crush 6-8 books in May. I want to widen my perspective on the world – what better way than to do it through books!

Another personal goal of mine is to save/invest/build equity of $35,000 in 2017. I’ve been able to get through about $18,000 of that goal so far 🙂

For other goals, I’m looking to experiment. I’m only 24 – why shouldn’t I look to take a bunch of risks? Why not go talk to that super cute girl at the coffee shop? Why not work 18 hour days so I can work 2 hour days in the future?  What can I do now that I won’t regret later?

That is what excites me about HOWLinfuse. I bought into a majority share of a company for less than $5k and now have the potential to crush it. We are the FIRST Kombucha Tea subscription box. What’s interesting… while I’ve brewed kombucha a few times and enjoy it, I’m by no means an expert and am learning each and every day. That’s the beauty of it – the entrepreneurship process is amazing and I’m learning each and every day!

[Ben: you guys are doing GREAT! I love the health benefits of Kombucha, BTW. You ship to Portugal? 🙂 ]

Q10 – What did you like the most about my blog, From Cents to Retirement? Do you have any advice for me?

I like how you mix lifestyle with your investment goals. I also love your pictures! I hope to visit you someday when I’m successful, financially free, and travelling the world!!

My advice for you is to work every day towards your goals. Consistent effort over time will lead to massive results. I’m pretty sure you already do this given your blog posts and determination, but it’s still a crucial point to make.

I’m pretty sure we would get along very well J We both have a strong work ethic and I know you will reach your goal of 670k sooner rather than later!

Thank you for interviewing me Ben!!! This was a whole lot of fun!

[Ben: please do visit me! Thanks for sticking around too!]

investment hunting interview
Interviews,

Interview #6 – Be Smart Rich from Be Smart Rich.com

This is the sixth interview of my interview series, where I interview bloggers blogging about Early Retirement, Personal Finance, and related topics. I have published my first book recently, and I am writing my second book, which will be on what I learned interviewing millionaires. As you can see, I love interviewing people.

This time, I bring you my fellow Canadian Be Smart Rich from Be Smart Rich.com. I hope you enjoy it.

Q1 – Who is Be Smart Rich?

Hi everyone, I run a personal finance blog BeSmartRich. I was born in Seoul, South Korea and moved to Canada alone about 10 years ago with my life savings when I was in the early 20’s. I was a high school graduate, had zero English skills and just got out of South Korean military.

be smart rich military

(I used to live in that APC (Armored Personal Carrier) for 2 years)

Similar to other immigrants, I worked anywhere as long as it paid me something. I made less than minimum wage ($7/hour) for a while but I was glad to save up money to get a proper education. I have been always good with numbers so I decided to major in accounting and studied my ass off just to survive through university. Luckily, I got a job offer from an accounting firm that changed my life. I earned CPA in 2013. This is my 7th year of my career in Canada.wife be smart rich

Toronto, Canada but I am originally from South Korea. I traveled to Vancouver first when I was 23 and I loved it so I decided to stay in Canada. I moved to Halifax (my second hometown) to do my university then came to Toronto when I was around 30. I got my Canadian citizen 1.5 years ago. Big changes so far and I am still loving it.

 

I am married to a beautiful wife that I met here in Canada about 3 years ago and have a monstrous greyhound that eats like a horse.

For more, check out About Me.

[Ben: your picture is definitely one of the best pictures I’ve had in my interview series. Awesome! And you’re a lucky dude, you’ve got a gorgeous wife! I also love the fact that you came all the way from Korea and you worked hard and became Canadian. Props to you.]

Q2 – What do you do for a living and what do you like the most about it?

I am an accountant. Currently working as Controller of a fintech startup company. The company has many challenges but is growing at 200-300% every year. Until the company becomes one of the major companies in Canada, I won’t stop. 🙂   The work is stressful but at the same time quite exciting and enjoyable. Never a dull moment and that’s how I like it.

[Ben: pretty impressive you emigrated to Canada with no English Skills and you’re working for a company that has the potential to become of the major companies in the country…]

Q3 – Why did you start your blog and what is your main goal with it?

I just wanted to I want to encourage hard working people to study, work smartly, save, being frugal and invest wisely for better future. Think about it. I was poor, had no family member living nearby, my language skills were terrible and was a high school graduate making less than minimum wage. I worked very hard with smart plans and I am quite different now as compared to who I was 10 years ago. I am nobody compared to all the successful people who sold their companies for billions but I want to share all the tips that I know with people regarding how a regular person just like me has a dream to be a millionaire and getting closer every day and people can do it as well.

Blogging is only one of few ways to reflect my thoughts. I love sharing aspect as well. I am happy to inspire people and educate them how to invest and get them focused in building their nest eggs. All they need was to be exposed to great blogs so that they can follow suit if makes senses.

I want to help anyone who reads and enjoys my blog to be more responsible for their own financial destiny. It really starts from looking in the mirror and tracking your family’s net worth and realizing where they are at and where they will be. Setting up goals and reach one goal at a time.

[Ben: we see things pretty much similarly. I wish you the best success blogging. I love your story and your blog.]

Q4 – What was the main reason for you to think about early retirement?

I have been through a bit with my life and I realized whenever I go through a rough time, only thing (other than my family and close friends) that saved me to get through was money in the bank. I learned importance of saving very early and started working ever since I was 11 years old. I used to be a newspaper delivery man, gas station assistant, convenient store cashier, dish washer, bakery assistant, flyer handout man, buffet and various restaurants server, computer store assistant etc… I saved every single penny from the work and all the saving from the jobs was used in university education in Canada. It was very worth it.

I did not really think about financial independence until I ran into some personal finance blogs. The blogs changed the way I think about money. I opened my direct investing account in September 2014 rather than putting money in mutual funds immediately after the encounter of the blogs and started tracking my net worth. It has been longer than 2.5 years and things are going pretty well.

numbers be smart rich

Thanks to the inspiring personal financial bloggers, my average annual return is at 9% and total return since September 2014 is 25.69%. TSX (Toronto Stock Exchange) stayed flat during the same period.

About a year ago I reached $200,000 from $2,000.

numbers be smart rich

[Ben: I am not sure what I like the most: your hustle and your saving mentality or your progress and gains from your investments. I am a very goal-driven dude myself.]

Q5 – At what age are you most likely to retire from your day job?

My conservative prediction is before 45. That is 10 years from now. Considering my salary growth, my wife’s financial help from her job starting in about 1 year and improving investing skills, I may be able to reach the financial freedom even before 42-43. I will retire when my expenses are covered by non-work related passive incomes.

[Ben: I checked your portfolio and I actually think you could do it before you’re 40, if you took advantage of geographic arbitrage.]

Q6 – What do you plan on doing after retirement?

We love travelling and we will travel around the world for about a year. After that we will travel at least 4-6 countries per year until we mark all countries in the world in the world map.  There are so many better things to do than working 9-6 everyday for the rest of our lives. My family will travel at least once a month or two. I will probably join a band playing the guitar and focus on enjoying the life to the fullest. I always wanted to have lots of kids because my wife and I do not have any family in Canada so as long as my boss (I mean my wife) is ok, then we will try our best.

[Ben: If you stop by Portugal, please do let me know! I am happy to know that your wife is running things at home. ;-)]

Q7 – What investments do you like the best, and why?

I like buying stocks among all investments. Several reasons. Firstly, I can do all fundamental analyses myself due to my accounting background. Second of all, I always loved the concept of owning great companies. Lastly, I believe that the world has been and will be moving forward not backward due to nature of humans’ desire for wanting better things. Companies are at front to take advantages of technological advancements.

I like investing in super high quality companies. I used to mimic Ben Graham’s value investing so I had been buying so-called severely undervalued companies that are going through troubles with chance of survival and turnaround. However, I realized more and more through experience and readings (thanks to Charlie Munger and Phillip Fisher) that quality matters the most.

I do not mind owning a house but the Toronto housing markets are quite crazy now so I will wait until correction comes and things settle.

Q8. If you could only use one metric to evaluate a stock, which one would you choose?

Dupont analysis. I wrote an article about how Warren Buffett analyze stocks.

Buffett also loves Dupont analysis. My second favorite is free cash flow analysis. No matter under any circumstance, cash flow is the king.

[Ben: Interesting. I wonder what you think of the metrics I use.]

Q9 – How about eleven places you love that you’ve visited or have lived in?

I have been to most of major cities and travel destinations in Canada – Vancouver, Toronto, Calgary, Halifax, St John’s Cabot Trail, Rocky Mountain, Niagara Falls etc… and been to some American cities such as Seattle, New York, Boston etc… I used to be an auditor working with an accounting firm so anytime I had to be on business trip, I took extra days off to sightseeing. It was great.

My favorite was Cabot Trail, Cape Breton, Nova Scotia – Driving beautifully paved shoreline for an hour was unbelievably fun. Not to mention so many beautiful beaches around the shore. I went there with my girlfriend (my wife now) and our best friends couple.

picture be smart rich

Q10 – If you could go back in time, what investment advice would you give to your past self?

Start early. I mean really early. I would have been a millionaire by now if I started when I was 18. That’s quite alright though because it is never too late to start.

[Ben: So agreed!]

Q11 – What did you like the most about my blog, From Cents to Retirement? Do you have any advice for me?

I love the online income updates. It is really honest and detailed. Hard to find any other bloggers showing honest advices that work. Great job!

[Ben: Thanks buddy!]

investment hunting interview
Interviews,

Interview #5 – Nathan from Investment Hunting

This is the fifth interview of my interview series, where I interview bloggers blogging about Early Retirement, Personal Finance, and related topics. I have published my first book recently, and I am writing my second book, which will be on what I learned interviewing millionaires. As you can see, I love interviewing people.

This time, I bring you Nathan from Investment Hunting.com. I hope you enjoy it.

Q1 – Who is Nathan?

Who is Nathan. How much time do you have. Perhaps I should just have my therapist send you her condensed version of my story ;-). Seriously though, Nathan, better know as Investment Hunting lives in the beautiful San Francisco Bay Area. Nathan is married, my 20-year anniversary is in two weeks. Nathan is the proud father of two children. My daughter is 19, a junior in college. My son is 15, a sophomore in high school.

My investment style is pretty simple, I’m currently a dividend stock investor and an options trader. I’ve recently started dabbling with P2P lending and real estate. But the bulk of my investments are in dividend paying stocks. My history is not typical. In 2008, I lost everything and started over. This of course sucked, but it made my family much stronger.

I bounced back and started investing again in 2013. I’ve been able to get my net worth above $400,000 in three years buy saving and investing. I’m putting away more than $50k each year in an attempt to retire comfortably before I’m 65. It will be close, but with a little luck, I’ll be able to retire and enjoy my golden years.

[I think its super inspirational that you lost everything in 2008 and you had to start over. I can see that you have a diversified portfolio, and you know more about Ponzi schemes now, so I am sure that you have been growing stronger and wiser. And great job on those $400k.]

Q2 – Why and when did you start Investment Hunting?

I was inspired to start a blog after reading blogs like Dividend Mantra, DivHut, and Dividend Diplomats. I figured, why not me, I can do this. I started blogging in December 2014 under the name Dividend Dreams. Long story short, I was forced to close this blog because a company owned the name. I launched Investment Hunting in August 0f 2015 and my second blog Options Hunting in September of 2016.

My primary goal is to document what I do, step-by-step for my children and grandchildren. Hopefully they’ll get inspired and start their own journeys towards financial independence. Afterall, if they start investing at 18, the road to retirement has far less bumps in it.

[Never heard of a shutdown because a company owned the name. I am sorry to hear that. Indeed, I can see why you do that and I agree that it will be very inspirational for them.]

Q3 – What is Investment Hunting all about?

Investment Hunting is focused on my journey to financial independence. I track every stock I buy and sell and I list my reasons for each transaction. The site isn’t and advice blog or an affiliate blog. I do have ads on my site to offset hosting costs, but I’m not in this to become a professional blogger. I want to tell my story, not to sell hosting plans or affiliate programs to my readers.

My hope is that readers find new ideas or that they get value out of my stock analysis. Lastly, Investment Hunting is about me. It’s a selfish pleasure. I get to share what I’m doing with the world and get feedback and advice from others.

[and nobody can blame you for that!]

Q4 – What are your favourite blogs?

I visit hundreds of blogs every week. I have too many favorites to list here. My top three blogs are:

Dividend Diplomats

DivHut

DivGro

Q5 – What is your end goal regarding money?

To become a billionaire; we’ll at least a millionaire. My goal is to have enough money to live comfortably and to be able to travel. I don’t need fancy cars or an expensive home.

[I too like to set the bar high and fail then setting it low and succeed. Best of luck!]

Q6 – What do you think you’re good at, when it comes to money?

I’m a good saver. My wife and I both save our money. This saving habit has allowed us to get back on our feet and to rebuild our net worth in a short amount of time. If we can maintain this we’ll retire early. She’s recently gone back to work after a 8-year stay-at-home hiatus. This new income will allow us to double-down on 401ks and invest more money.

[Awesome. Maybe the retirement date will be <65 this way?]

Q7 – What are your goals for your blog and your personal life, for 2017?

I set my 2017 goals back in December 2016. The goals are a mix of personal and investing goals. I’m focused on heavy investing, $50k into the market and $10k into P2P lending. I’m also hoping to $7,500 in dividend income and $7,500 in options income. This income gets reinvested, so if I hit these goals, I’ll add $75,000 in fresh capital this year.

One constant about life is that it always throws wrenches into well thought out plans. My goals this year have changed. I just bought a house, this was unplanned. The house came with a bunch of equity ($400,00), so I couldn’t pass on it. This acquisition will force me to reduce my stock market investments. This transaction was a true win-win opportunity. It’s sort of a reverse mortgage. I’ll write a detailed post about this purchase sometime next month.

My goal for my blog is to start posting regularly. The regularity of my posts has fallen over a cliff the past 3-months. Work has gotten crazy, and honestly, I’ve lost some of my inspiration to blog. I’m working on getting this back and returning to multiple posts per week. Taking part in interviews like this one helps me to recharge my batteries. Thanks for interviewing me.

[As a goal driven guy – see my goals for 2017 here -, I love to read this type of stuff. It seems that you’ll throw a lot of money into growing your investments. Please do let us know about the property you bought and what you gained! I’d like to see more posts from you, so good luck with that. Thank you for being here.]

investment hunting interview
Interviews,

Interview #4 – ESI from ESI Money

This is the fourth interview of my interview series, where I interview bloggers blogging about Early Retirement, Personal Finances, and related topics. I have published my first book recently, and I am writing my second book, which will be on what I learned interviewing millionaires. As you can see, I love interviewing people.

This time, I bring you ESI from ESI Money. I hope you enjoy it.

Who is ESI?

I’m an early 50’s guy who’s been married 25 years and has two kids (son, 20; daughter 18). We live in Colorado (and LOVE it!).

I enjoy exercising, hiking, soccer, chess, and money — not necessarily in that order. 🙂

I reached financial independence a few years ago, retired nine months ago, and now share the steps I took to develop a multi-million dollar net worth.

[So many people living in and loving Colorado.

You’re one of the first people I interviewed who has already achieved financial independence, this will be fun!] 

 

What did you do for a living and what did you like the most about it?

My 28-year career was spent as a business executive, initially in marketing and then in general management later in my career.

After college I got an MBA, then worked for a combination of Fortune 500 companies as well as smaller businesses.

Eventually I became the president of a $100 million company with 800 employees.

I enjoyed the challenges of business the most. There are always obstacles with multiple ways to potentially solve them. Selecting one and then working on it to meet company objectives was a blast.

[It sounds like you had an awesome career and I bet it helped you reach financial independence much faster!] 

Why did you start your blog and what is your main goal with it?

My site, ESI Money, is a blog about achieving financial independence through earning, saving, and investing (ESI). There’s a bit more to personal finance, of course, but if a person concentrates on these three areas, they will do quite well financially. As such I focus on the few topics that will get readers the most results.

What makes the blog different is that it’s written by someone who is wealthy taking about what he’s done to amass a sizable net worth. I combine this knowledge with concise, practical, and proven tips. If I can do it, anyone can. But they can do it better as they can avoid the mistakes I made along the way.

For those who are interested, I’ve written a free ebook on how to reach financial independence that gives the highlights.

[Indeed, that makes a huge difference. I didn’t know you had this ebook, I am certainly going to read it!!!]

Any big plans for your blog for the near future?

My goals are all long-term. I just started blogging seriously a few months ago (when I retired). Over the next two to three years I just want to write good content and have it impact people’s lives.

Eventually I’d like to get to the point where the blog delivers $10k-$20k per year in profit. Doing this will allow me to diversify my retirement income which is currently heavily weighted on real estate.

[I will follow you as much as possible, because I know it will be awesome. And I second you on creating another source of income and diversifying your income streams!!!]

What do you do now that you’re retired?

I provide regular retirement updates to my readers (here’s my six month update) to keep them in the loop, but here are the highlights so far:

  • I run ESI Money. As you know, a blog takes a lot of time and effort and I probably spend four hours a day on some aspect of it.
  • Exercise. I do cardio three times a week and weights three times a week. In addition I walk at least 10,000 steps a day (I’m training to hike up Pikes Peak). I’m in the best shape/health of my life.
  • Spend time with family. My kids are still both at home so we regularly go out to eat, catch a movie (Tuesdays are reduced prices and no one is ever there, so that’s when we go), and explore nature (lots of hiking trails around here). I walk a couple times a day with my wife for 30 to 60 minutes each time.
  • Volunteer. I’m on the board of a local non-profit that helps the homeless.
  • Read. I read a ton — blogs, magazines, and books. Now that I have the time I can read for enjoyment as much as education.
  • Travel. It’s been mostly driving trips so far, but we’re headed to Seattle, Portland, D.C., and Dallas later this year. Next year we’re looking at spending the entire month of January in the Caribbean (see below for how many islands there we love).
  • Taking life slow. My stress levels are at all-time lows and I enjoy letting each day simply happen. It now annoys me a bit when I actually have a meeting or appointment scheduled. 🙂

[Love how close you are with your audience – I do the same. Indeed, blogging takes up A LOT of time, if you want to take it seriously. Sounds like you do a lof of the same I think about doing once I retire myself.]

What investments do you like the best and why?

While I was growing my net worth, low cost index funds were my main choice. For years and years we socked away a good amount in them, investing with Vanguard.

In 2010 shortly after the real estate crash, I bought 14 rental units which I still have today. I knew I needed retirement income and these places provide 70% of our income now, allowing us not to have to spend any of our assets in retirement. Because I bought near the bottom of the market, the places have performed well both from an income and appreciation standpoint.

[I’ve come to think that ETFs are really the best investment if you are not a hands-on guy. 14 rental units is HUGE. Many congrats!]

How about eleven places you love that you’ve visited or have lived in?

Here they are, not in any particular order:

  • Colorado Springs, CO — We live here now and it’s AWESOME! The weather is great and there’s so much to do in Colorado.
  • Nashville, TN — We lived in Nashville for five years in the mid 90’s and loved it. It’s a lot more fun and a lot less “country” than most people think.
  • Michigan — We lived in West Michigan for 14 years and it’s where my kids still consider “home”. Winters are brutal but summers are great.
  • Washington, D.C. — Been there several times and headed back this fall. Love the city — so much to see and do. My daughter will be attending college nearby starting this fall, so we’ll get there even more often.
  • Chicago — Love the vibe and stuff to do in the Windy City. Oh, and the pizza is to die for!!!
  • Moscow, Russia — We have been here three times and love the history and culture.
  • St. Martin — We’ve been to many Caribbean islands and this is one of our favorites. Clean, safe, and beautiful.
  • St. Thomas — One of the U.S. Virgin Islands, it’s an awesome spot to vacation. It’s centrally located which makes it easy to get from here to several other great islands. This is our leading candidate for our January stay next winter.
  • Barbados — The clearest, warmest water we’ve seen in the Caribbean.
  • Antigua — We have been on a catamaran that spent the whole day going around the island (we did this twice). Simply beautiful.
  • Aruba — Went here with my parents before we had kids and want to get back soon.

[St. Martin, St. Thomas and Barbados… you’re into the good stuff! Never been there.]

What are your goals for 2017?

My blog goals are detailed here. The site had its first post in November of 2015, but I didn’t begin posting regularly until August 2016, so I still consider myself less than a year old. My main plan is to simply keep writing great content that readers want to read.

As for personal goals, I break those down into categories — family, finances, fitness, etc. There are too many goals to share but suffice to say I have both daily tasks and annual goals I want to hit in every area.

[Awesome, enjoy the post-financial freedom road!]

What do you like most about my blog, From Cents to Retirement? Do you have any advice for me?

I like 1) that you live outside the US (it’s good to have different perspectives), 2) that you’re young and starting out (so interesting to see how people make their way), and 3) you have a big goal (retiring at 36.)

My advice would be to earn, save, and invest as much as you can as soon as you can. Everything else will take care of itself if you do those three.

[Thanks for the tips, and thanks for the interview bud! All the best.]