Today is the 10-year anniversary of the day I quit my job.
More accurately, it’s the 10-year anniversary of my last day of employment. Exactly 10 years ago today, on April 4, 2008, I finished my final day as a salaried employee.
I have never been employed by someone else since.
The notion that 10 years have passed since that fateful day sounds crazy. Ten years isn’t that long. It’s one-third of a 30-year mortgage.
But volumes have filled the cavernous space between April 4, 2008 and April 4, 2018.
When I quit, I didn’t have any concept of financial independence. I had no intention of staying out of the workforce permanently. I assumed I’d quit for two years, enjoy a mini-retirement, and then find a job again.
I didn’t realize that once I had a taste of unemployment, the thought of returning to office life seemed unbearable.
Here’s the backstory:
When I was in college, I wanted to study abroad. But those programs were prohibitively expensive — $15,000 for a single semester. Ouch.
I pondered my options and realized I didn’t want to study — I just wanted to travel abroad. It would be cheaper to graduate, work for a few years, save money, and then travel.
And that’s exactly what I did.
I graduated in 2005, worked an unpaid internship for a summer, and worked a poorly-paid internship in the fall (earning $200 per week for 16 hours/week). By winter, I’d parlayed those internships into a job offer.
I accepted a full-time position as an entry-level newspaper reporter. I wrote for a newspaper with a circulation of 40,000. (To put that in perspective, this blog has 51,000 email subscribers.) My starting salary was $21,000.
I lived four blocks from the office, walked to work, and ate free samples at the grocery store on the days I forgot to pack lunch.
My final day at work was April 4, 2008. At the time I quit, I earned a salary of $31,000. That’s the maximum I’ve earned as an employee. Adjusted for inflation, that’s $36,000 in today’s dollars.
Yet despite the pay, I was terrified of quitting. Newspapers were in decline; many aspiring journalists considered me lucky to have a job, any job. Besides, it was early 2008. The U.S. was on the cusp of the Great Recession; millions of people were losing their jobs. Voluntarily quitting at a time like that sounded preposterous.
My friends warned me that I was committing career suicide. They said I’d never find a job again.
In hindsight, they were right.
____________
During my stint at the newspaper, I lived on my salary and freelanced on the evenings and weekends. I saved 100 percent of my freelance income, all of which I stashed into a travel fund. I amassed $25,000, which averages to a savings rate of around $800 per month.
(Note: I was an intern though summer/fall 2005; I started collecting my baller $21,000/year salary in winter 2005. That means my actual salaried time at the newspaper was roughly 28-30 months. Those were the months in which I freelanced for my world travel fund. I also sold my car before the trip, which accounts for $3,000 of the total. I also sold my one and only piece of furniture, my mattress, which brought in another $120. I got that mattress for free, so I was particularly proud of that infinite return-on-investment.)
That’s the position that I found myself in, exactly 10 years ago on this day.
I had no idea that “financial independence” existed. I had no concept of “passive income” or “rental investments” or “exercise” or “flossing.” I didn’t intend for unemployment to become a permanent state of being.
I just knew that I needed to get out, away from the florescent lights and lukewarm office coffee. And I trusted that I’d figure out everything else along the way.
___________
I’d like to share an old journal entry that I wrote on this day, 10 years ago:
___________
April 4, 2008:
I quit my job, moved out of my apartment and have a 10-week ticket to Europe
Well, the headline says it all. In the course of the last four days, I’ve quit a job I’ve held for three years (today is my last day at work), moved out of my apartment, and prepared for a 10-week bicycle tour through Spain with one of my best friends.
My checklist is nearly complete. Buy a digital camera, check. Donate, sell or store my belongings, check. Create a training manual for the guy who’ll replace me at work, check. Download Spanish lessons onto my ipod, check. (Thanks Will!)
Now I’m sitting at an empty desk, 4:30 on a Friday, knowing that the next step is to box my bike and board a plane. I don’t know what’s going to happen. I don’t know what routes we’ll ride, where we’ll stay, how we’ll afford to eat in a land where sandwiches cost 5 euro. But I do know this much: I can’t wait to see Kim’s face at a baggage carousel in Madrid.
___________
I posted this photo with it, which illuminates my poor judgment; apparently I thought wearing pigtails as a 24-year-old was a good idea.
In case you’re wondering, the 10-week bicycle tour turned into “a couple miserable weeks before Kim’s bike got stolen and we hopped a bus from Malaga to Madrid.”
Our plans to travel Spain turned into a more nomadic jaunt through Spain, Portugal, Italy, Austria and Germany, almost-never paying for a single night of accomodation in that 10-week timespan. We camped a lot, and couchsurfed, and once slept in an abandoned shack. Here’s what that looks like:
And then we flew back home, I picked up Will and my friend Laurel, and the three of us flew to Cairo on a one-way ticket. We spent six weeks in Egypt and Israel. Then came Nepal and India. Then Thailand, Laos, Cambodia, Vietnam, Myanmar, Malaysia, Indonesia, Singapore, Australia and New Zealand. I didn’t come back to the U.S. for nearly two years.
And THAT’S when my journey into passive income / rental investments / financial independence began.
Now, here we are. Ten years since my last day of work. Eight years since my return to the U.S. and my decision to stay unemployed forever. And roughly seven years since I used my freelance income to buy my first rental property, which led to the second, then the third, fourth, fifth … and ultimately, to enough passive income that I don’t have to worry about my basic needs anymore.
Wow. So all of this has happened in the past decade.
And the catalyst that started everything was quitting my job.
Ten years ago.
Today.
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Just got through hearing a bunch of noes for a loan (for a rental property) after following a similar trajectory…I’ve been living/ traveling abroad for a while.
Thanks for saying “hey, I’m here!” from the other side. I needed that today.
I heard a bunch of “no’s” when I started, as well. Keep going until you get a “yes.”
And remember that in the beginning, accessing money might be expensive (e.g. you might pay a higher interest rate, or need to pay upfront points). We’ve had to deal with that, as well. 😛
Shoot an email to erin (at) affordanything (dot) com, and I’ll introduce you to my mortgage guy. He might be able to help.
Congrats on this amazing anniversary Paula! You are amazing and my hero. I am working towards never working for corporate America again myself. I quit my job to travel & scuba dive 5 years ago, hoping that I’d figure out what I want to do during that time.
Came back to the US after 3 months and was no closer to figuring out how I was going to not work a corporate job again. (I’m not just responsible for myself, I support my mother financially too, so I had to figure something out). I ended up getting a couple part time gigs before doing a year-long contract at my last employer for a year.
Fast forward a few years – I traveled for a bit after the contract job ended and am now back to a full-time job (booooo) that I’ve held the last 2 1/2 years. HOWEVER…since I got this job, I’ve been working towards generating passive and online income via P2P investing and buying/operating niche sites. I plan to quit my job later this year to have another adventure in the South Pacific, and then focus my full-time efforts on getting my online business ventures fully off the ground.
I’m hopeful that this time around, I will be quitting for good!
Thanks for being an inspiration and sharing all your stories and knowledge.
Enjoy your adventures in the South Pacific, Emily!! I love that you’re well-balanced … supporting your mom, handing everything like a rockstar, and building passive income through multiple streams. You’re doing amazing!! 🙂 🙂
Sometimes it’s enough to know what you don’t want and to be brave enough to go figure out what you do want. Sounds like that’s exactly what you did. People are often afraid of trying for fear of failing. Just imagine where you’d be if you’d been too afraid to try. Stagnation is costly!
Stagnation is SUPER costly!!
You know the popular saying, “you’ll regret the things you didn’t do, more than the things you did?” When I look back on my own life, I find that’s 110% true. 🙂
Happy 10-Year-I-Don’t-Have-A-Job-AVersary!! As someone quit her job 4 days ago, this is incredibly inspiring. Thanks for taking the leap 10 years ago and proving it was possible!
Congrats to YOU for taking the leap 4 days ago!!!!!!
Congrats to both of you on 4- and 10-years. I’m celebrating 3-years! 🙂 Although I teach sailing part-time during the summers. But no corporate life for me in 3 years 🙂
Congratulations on the milestone and thank you for the continued inspiration and motivation, Paula! Inspired by your blog and podcast, my husband and I have many incredible and deep conversations about our goals in life, our finances, and our plans. We are even evaluating our (potential) first investment property! As we searched the market and identified properties, we kept coming back to your advice and the tips you have given over the years.
Keep up the good work and thank you again 🙂
Thank you!! Awesome job on re-evaluating your priorities. 🙂
No matter what you decide (investment property vs. index funds, chocolate ice cream vs. chocolate cupcakes, etc.), the most important thing is that you’re making decisions that are conscious, deliberate, and aligned with a vision for how you want to live in 5+ years.
Huge Congrats Paula! Love that pic of the shack in Spain. Seeing that reminds me of how I spent most of my college years 😉
Keep doing what you’re doing, I really enjoy your podcast and content!
Haha, thank you!! 🙂
Congrats Paula on your 10 year milestone!!! I listen to your podcast often and you are great inspiration and motivator on not only my financial goals but also life in general. Keep it up with everything you do.
Thank you!! 🙂
Awesome!!
Good god I missed a bunch. 10 years ago, I was a depressed teenager! Congrats to you Paula on ALL of your success! Congrats on 10 years, keep going love! I would love to look back on my blog in 10 years and see what I’m writing 🙂 totally jelly!
10 years from today, you’ll look back and think: “I kicked ass!!” Here’s to the next 10!
Go Paula!! So inspiring! I’m working on my first property right now, and also looking forward to your course! 😊
Thanks! Me too! I still don’t know when I’ll be finished with it, but I’m excited for the eventual launch …. 🙂
Congratulations!
I first heard of you on the bp forum . Years later I see an article about someone traveling the world and its you! Too cool.
Since that time I have moved to Atlanta, your old stomping grounds. I have a bunch of rentals that make me more than when I worked so I stopped working altogether. It can be done!
I spend maybe 2 hours a month on them as the property manager does most of the heavy lifting.
I really enjoy your writing, informative and entertaining.
How did Birmingham work out. I have a few rentals there.
Anyways, here’s to the next 10 years.
Nice!! Congrats on your rentals — I love that you’ve invested in enough properties to make more than you earned at your day job. That’s awesome!
I’m going to start looking more seriously at Birmingham later this year, after I finish writing / filming / launching the course. First things first!
That’s quite an amazing story. That is really inspiring. Why didn’t you stick to the “working abroad” lifestyle? I know a lot of entrepreneurs travel throughout the world and work online.
I came home because I missed the U.S. and I wanted to be back! I wanted to establish roots and community, after being nomadic for two years.
These days, I prefer to live in the U.S. and take frequent trips (5-6 international trips per year, over the past few years) … it gives me a good combination of rooted + exploring.
Thank you so much for sharing your journey with us. Reading your story just validates the thought that I can have an extraordinary life too. I can prioritize and make it happen! I decided that I wanted to peruse my dream of early retirement and bought four properties in the last three months. One year ago I would have never thought it was possible.
I can clearly see my husband, children and I creating memories that would have otherwise not been possible. Since I have adopted this new mindset I inadvertently inspired others to take control of their destiny as well . It is an awesome feeling being able to encourage and motivate others to pursue their dreams and give them references of others who have properly prepared and then bravely taken a leap of faith.
Looking forward to reading more from you.
Best wishes!
You bought 4 properties in the last 3 months?!?! CONGRATS!!!!!!! That’s amazing. You’re so much closer to early retirement. 🙂
Congrats!!!!
And high fives
Congrats!!!!
And high fives 🙂
High-five!! 🙂
It is so inspiring how you started with such a small income and achieved FI so early. I know you always had your talents with writing/freelancing/negotiating/speaking etc., but the fact that you were able to do it starting with a small income means that anyone should be able to do it if they want. This is why I think I have been an avid follower of yours. If I ever self-doubt, I can always look at you and say it is possible. Keep up the good work Paula. You have really shown that “you can afford anything.”
Thank you! I’ve done it by embracing a lot of unconventional approaches: “househacking” to get my out-of-pocket housing costs to $0, intentionally moving to low-cost-of-living areas, focusing on side hustle / freelance income to boost my income, and aggressively saving and investing that income. And for me, those unconventional approaches + time = financial independence. 🙂
Great story! I really wish I lived in an area where rentals could be had so cheaply. I’m in California and it requires so much (cash/income) to get started. I’ve been a land lord for 10 years this year but buying the second property is way out of reach.
Good for you!
Try investing out-of-state … follow the returns. 🙂
Here are a few podcast episodes about how to be an out-of-state landlord:
http://podcast.affordanything.com/92-hire-star-rental-property-team/
http://podcast.affordanything.com/106-ask-paula-estimate-repair-costs-file-taxes-rental-income/
Thanks Paula. I’ll give those a listen.
Heya, Paula! Congrats! (I’m 10 years to the month out from my last full-time job too. You’ve covered a lot more ground than me, literally and figuratively.) Well done!
Congratulations on your 10-year-quitaversary!!
You are gutsy and fabulous! Cool story about you and Kim camping in Europe. I bet you two have fun reliving those stories of that trip together. I hope many young people are inspired by your life and can figure out ways to achieve early financial independence. So many adventures await when you have freedom from corporate life.
“Gutsy and fabulous” — I’ll take it!!
Thanks, RocDoc!
An inspiring story, and well done, congratulations. Been following you for some time but didn’t realize how amazing your last 10 years have been. Awesome.
Thanks Pete!!
Congratulations and thanks for showing people that there is another way besides the traditional 9 to 5 until you are 65!
Thanks Stephanie!
“9-to-5 until 65” — that has a nice ring to it. 🙂
You’re definitely a role model for many folks around the world, Paula! Knowing that there are other options to being stuck in the rat race for many decades is truly inspiring.
Congrats and here’s to your next ten years!
— Jim
Thank you Jim!!
Hi Paula,
Congratulations on the past 10 years! Sounds like you’ve had a lot of learning experiences. One question though, what did you do about health insurance? I am contemplating leaving my job but the only thing that is holding me back is health insurance. I’m worried that something would happen and then eventually I’ll end up spending all my saved money on medical needs, then end up in a cubicle . . . Again.
Thanks!
I buy an individual health insurance plan with a high deductible. My current plan is $270 per month, and it carries a $6,000 deductible. I also max out my HSA accounts every year.
I’m 10 years in to my “no job” lifestyle as well. I usually just find a high deductible plan on the exchange. They are getting more expensive each year, however. I pay $400 a month now for a $6000 deductible. It’s got me wanting to pack up and move to Bangkok!
Lol “flossing”. Congrats Paula on this amazing anniversary and thanks for sharing your journey publicly. I think it helps people move past the dreaming stage and into the doing stage by having examples like yours of people who have taken the leap.
Taking action is THE most important thing. Any accomplishment is a result of a series of small daily choices. 🙂
Awesome 🙂
Hi Paula
I only came across your site yesterday and am loving it. Also love all your things on you tube which are very informative.
I was lucky enough to become FI a few years ago now and enjoy spending time now with my family and doing things I enjoy. I use diverse dividend paying stocks (funds mainly) and reinvest what I don’t need yearly.
I read an article from a successfully retired foreign exchange trader who said the number 1 asset in the entire world is freedom! I could not agree more and is exactly what you preach so well.
Not a day passes when I don’t realise how fortunate I am and I actually sometimes go around my house touching the walls and say ‘you’re all mine house and nobody can take that away’!!
A bit weird some might say but hey I feel so lucky.
Everyone can reach FI and I wish everyone well in achieving freedom.
I look forward to reading many more of your blogs and thanks for all you do.
Best wishes from Scotland
james
That’s a heck of a story. Congrats!I graduated from college in 2008. It took me a year and a half to find a full-time job. Knowing what I know now, I wish I would have sold all of my belongings and traveled overseas for a while. I let fear and lack of direction stop me. 10 years later, I can say that I’m finally focused and I know what I want. I just have to continue to knock this debt out and make it happen.
At least you’re finally focused + you know what you want NOW! Many people don’t reach that stage until much later in life, so you’re still ahead of the game. Good luck on reaching debt freedom!
First of all, Happy Anniversary! And what an awesome adventure!
second of all…. I found myself wishing I could have read more of your story lol, I didn’t want it to end. If you ended up traveling for 2 years didn’t you have to use the money you saved to live for those 2 years? Or was there enough to do all the traveling AND buy the rental? $25000 is a lot of money but it doesn’t seem like enough to do both.
Hey Lauren! Nope, the $25k was only for traveling, with just a couple thousand to re-settle in the U.S. after we returned. Then Will and I spent almost a year working and saving up in the U.S. before we bought the first rental. There was no way that the $25k could have covered both!
I also worked a little bit while I was traveling — not much, maybe 5 hours a week — but enough that it also kept my connections and work history fresh, and brought in a little extra income while I was in Southeast Asia.
Congrats Paula all the way from sunny New Zealand. I have been listening to your podcasts since I started my journey a few months ago. All going well I could join the joblesz club in a few months. Great to hear your stories and thanks for the inspiration and energetic attitude!
This was good to see today! I’ve turned in my resignation and I’m out of my job in less than 4 weeks now. Unfortunately, not jobless as I will still be working (for myself, in private practice), but I am more than thrilled to be BOSSLESS.
Also, this is Rachel from the Ozarks. You answered my call-in on the podcast a few months back. I ended up managing my own rentals and they’re doing pretty fabulous 🙂
Very timely post! I was just contemplating this very thing. How much is enough and living without worry. I love what I do (Real Estate), but I love travel and flexibility. I think I have enough and really want to decide what I want to do next with this one short, crazy, beautiful life!
That’s just awesome, Paula! I’m so happy for you! You are truly an inspiration for all the people that work hard as freelancers and aren’t quite at your level. You’ll get there, people; just look at Paula!