Scott 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
- 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:
- 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.
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Beth
Wow. I’ve listened to a lot of financial life lessons as of late but this really hit home on a lot of fronts. Still working on my husband to stay on the page with me but Scotts thinking really helped guide with my own thoughts.
Travis Gibson
I got a lot out of this episode. I like how Scott thought about his approach to getting Taylor on board with his ideas and came up with some good ideas to convince her that his vision was worth going for. I also like that he discovered a new way of thinking about life, learned about FI, and then applied what he learned very quickly. I personally struggle to take the things I learn and and translate them to actionable practices. So I found this quite motivating to try and make that connection. And, I liked that there were some other resources discussed that I can check out. Great episode, thanks!
kristin
This was just the episode I needed to hear today! We are trying to get out of the state of CA and move somewhere cheaper and more rural. So many people think we’re delusional to leave the “CA dream”- we have a nice house, secure job, etc. But it’s not OUR dream. So nice to hear from others who get it! We’re about to put our offer on an off-grid hobbit house in another state. I’ve been getting cold feet, but I know this is a move we need to make. Thanks Paula and Scott!
Danielle
I loved this episode! I really resonated with having a personal mission statement – I did something similar years before discovering FI as how I derive purpose and happiness from life.
I also enjoy when people reference getting weird responses from people in your life when discussing FI. Perhaps I haven’t got the right approach, but my friends and family seem so confused when I talk about investing enough for FI, instead of doing things like buying a family home.
Great episode, loved it.