Afford Anything

  • Start Here
    • About
    • Team Afford Anything
    • Media
    • Questions?
  • Blog
    • Binge
  • Podcast
    • Binge
    • Sponsors
    • Ask a Question
    • Guest Guidelines
  • Community
  • TV
  • Explore
    • Your First Rental Property
    • Travel
    • Start a Blog
    • Earn Extra Income

May 28, 2018By Paula Pant

#131: How We Slashed Our Costs 70 Percent and Gained Happiness — with Scott Rieckens

Afford Anything Podcast 131 - Scott Rieckens 2Scott Rieckens and his wife Taylor enjoyed a classic Southern California lifestyle.

They lived near a gorgeous beach in sunny San Diego. They frequently dined at sushi restaurants. They drove a BMW.

But after the birth of their daughter, everything changed. Taylor, an intelligent, career-driven, independent woman, suddenly didn’t want to spend any time away from her new baby girl.

And Scott had no idea what to do. Their luxury lifestyle depended on dual incomes.

At first, he tried to come up with a million-dollar idea. If he could just create a wildly successful business, he thought, he could fix this problem. He started binge-listening to podcasts, trying to figure out how to pull in seven figures, fast.

Then he discovered the financial independence movement. And suddenly everything made a lot more sense.

Scott realized that if they gave up their consumption habits — if they moved to an area with a lower cost-of-living, drove less expensive vehicles, or maybe even lived in an RV for awhile — they could enjoy the life they wanted. They could trade luxury labels for time-freedom.

He crunched a few numbers and realized that they could reduce their spending by 70 percent. But it would require HUGE changes, including an out-of-state move.

He wondered how to suggest this idea to his wife.


What did Scott say? How did Taylor come on-board?

And (spoiler alert!) … how did they get so enthusiastic about financial independence that they decided to create a documentary about their journey into this lifestyle?

Find out in today’s episode.

Resources Mentioned:

  • Playing With FIRE Documentary
  • Mad FIentist
    • An Unexpected Guest Post
  • Happiness is the Only Logical Pursuit – Mr. Money Mustache
  • The Tim Ferris Show – Mr. Money Mustache – Living Beautifully on $25-27k Per Year
  • A Simple Path to Wealth, by JL Collins
  • My favorite two blog posts about Elon Musk:
    • How and Why SpaceX Will Colonize Mars
    • How Tesla Will Change the World
  • Frugalwoods
  • Millennial Money
  • Math-Shit-Up-Inator (I’m not endorsing this tool, just showing that I believe this quote was Kristy’s)
  • J.D. Roth’s Personal Mission Statement
  • Scott’s Official (Current) Personal Mission Statement: I want to be present for those who love me and rely on me. I want to live a rich, happy and fulfilling life, and empower others to do the same.


listen to afford anything on itunessubscribe on android afford anything

 


Thanks to our sponsors!

Gusto

Gusto makes payroll, benefits, and HR easy for modern small businesses. In fact, 72% of customers spend less than 5 minutes to run payroll! If you sign up at gusto.com/paula, you’ll receive 3 months free once you run your first payroll.


Beachbody On Demand

Have any fitness goals this year? Then check out Beachbody On Demand, an online streaming service that gives you unlimited access to over 600 highly effective, world-class workouts. I’ve been using Beachbody On Demand for a few weeks now – the core workout from the T25 program is my favorite. To get a full-access free trial membership, text Paula to 303030.


Freshbooks

Save time by using Freshbooks, an easy-to-use, cloud-based accounting system that takes the stress and hassle out of bookkeeping and, especially, invoicing. You can create an invoice in a few seconds, and Freshbooks’ automated system will handle the rest. Visit Freshbooks.com/paula for a free 30-day trial. Please mention this show when they ask how you heard about them.


ShipStation

ShipStation is a centralized platform where you can process shipping orders. They have shipping labels for all the top carriers, and they offer deep discounts on shipping! Try ShipStation for free for 30 days and get an additional month free if you use my promo code Paula. Just click this link, then click on “heard our ad?” on the top right of the screen, and type in Paula.

Tweet
Pin
Share7
Tweet
Pin
Share7
#132: Bonus Episode! "I'm Six Years from Financial Independence, But I Want to Quit Now. Should I?"
Next Newer Episode »
#130: Ask Paula - Should I Sell Stocks to Buy a Rental Property?
Next Older Episode »

Posted in: Episodes, FIRE, Personal Finance 101

Most Popular

Inflation, Illustrated
How Much is Enough?
What if We Quit Setting Goals? (Seriously?)
The Incredible Power of 10x Thinking
  • Binge
  • Questions?
  • Contact
Join 70,000+ subscribers who get free email updates.

© 2021 Afford Anything. Designed By Wilnau Design. Built by Zach Swinehart. Disclosure

© Copyright 2011 – 2023 Afford Anything. All Rights Reserved.

Website by Zach Swinehart.

  • Start Here
    • About
    • Team Afford Anything
    • Media
    • Questions?
  • Blog
    • Binge
  • Podcast
    • Binge
    • Sponsors
    • Ask a Question
    • Guest Guidelines
  • Community
  • TV
  • Explore
    • Your First Rental Property
    • Travel
    • Start a Blog
    • Earn Extra Income

Afford Anything

  • Start Here
    • About
    • Team Afford Anything
    • Media
    • Questions?
  • Blog
    • Binge
  • Podcast
    • Binge
    • Sponsors
    • Ask a Question
    • Guest Guidelines
  • Community
  • TV
  • Explore
    • Your First Rental Property
    • Travel
    • Start a Blog
    • Earn Extra Income