Archive
Category: Financial Independence
The arithmetic of walking away.
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Why $1M Is Both Too Much and Too Little
A million dollars is the default FIRE number because a million dollars is a round number. For some readers it is too much. For others, dramatically too little. Both errors come from the same mistake.
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Geographic Arbitrage: Four Cities Where $20K/Year Buys a Real Life
In Chiang Mai, a one-bedroom with a pool, a maid, and a 15-minute walk to a world-class hospital costs $420 a month. Four cities, four real budgets, what each one trades.
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How to Quit Your Job in 90 Days Without Losing Your Mind
A concrete 90-day timeline from ‘I want out’ to ‘I am out.’ Week-by-week, no fluff. Most people sit with the desire for years; the actual exit takes three months.
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Healthcare Without a Job: Honest 2026 Numbers for US Early Retirees
Every SuicideFIRE conversation hits the same wall around the third drink: ‘But what about health insurance?’ Here are the actual 2026 numbers most people don’t know.
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The Optionality Trap
Optionality is useful until it becomes a religion. Some people keep working not because they need more money, but because every extra dollar preserves a life they will never choose.
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Your FIRE Number Should Shrink Every Birthday
Most FIRE plans treat your number as static. It should not be. Every birthday reduces the amount of life your portfolio has to fund.
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Sequence of Returns Risk, Explained in 600 Words
The risk that ends FIRE plans is not the average return — it is the order the returns arrive in. A short, sharp explainer.
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The Real FIRE Number: How Much You Actually Need to Retire Early
The familiar “annual spending × 25” formula was designed for a 65-year-old in 1994 — not for you. Here is how to calculate the FIRE number that is actually yours.
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The Math of Walking Away
A 1994 paper about American retirees taught everyone to multiply their spending by 25. Here is why that math may not be yours.