Dear Subscriber,
In this week's episode of our podcast, Steve shares his journey toward achieving financial freedom and how he managed to do so. He highlights the factors that determine how much money one needs to attain financial freedom and how the Trinity study suggests spending 4% of your net worth every year to avoid running out of money. Steve and his wife had a specific goal of spending around 35 to 40K annually, calling for a million in net worth. To achieve this, Steve and his wife saved 70% of their combined income over the last two or three years of their working career, pared down expenses, and chose to live with intention rather than extravagance.
Steve encourages everyone to adopt the habit of saving and investing as he believes it will be beneficial in the long run, and how having a financial goal in mind can help one stay motivated to save. By writing down his financial goal and looking at it every day, he was able to stay committed and achieve financial freedom.
Additionally, Steve shares key takeaways on strategies for building a strong online presence, including networking with accounts of similar size and commenting on other tweets from larger accounts to get your ideas in front of others. He emphasizes the importance of having an email list or your own platform that you control, as social media is a rented platform.
We hope that this episode provides valuable insights and inspires you to take control of your financial future.
Best regards,
Andres Sanchez Host
Episode Key Topics
Topic 1: Achieving financial freedom
- Trinity Study suggests spending 4% of net worth annually
- Net worth calculated by subtracting liabilities from assets
- Steve and his wife save 70% of their combined income over the last 2-3 years
- Encourages friends to adopt the same habit
Topic 2: Steve's career journey
- Quit IT job, found financial independence early in life
- Low-budget living in Airstream RV while traveling the country
- Goal to make money doing things he enjoys, be location independent
Topic 3: Saving and Investing
- Having a financial goal is important to stay focused
- Writing down a financial goal and reading it every day helps
- The speaker shares technique to encourage people to stick to their savings and investment plans
Topic 4: Social media presence and networking
- Twitter is the best social network for making money
- Spend the majority of time commenting on other tweets from larger accounts
- Networking with accounts around the same size for growth strategies and support
Topic 5: Renting Vs. Owning Platform
- Social media is a rented platform, so your own platform should be created
- The speaker promotes his email list on Twitter to add email subscribers
- Twitter is used to direct the audience to a money-making platform
Episode Q&A
1. What is the Trinity study, and how does it relate to achieving financial freedom?
Answer: The Trinity study suggests spending 4% of your net worth every year to avoid running out of money. Steve and his wife wanted to spend about 35 to 40K, so they needed to have about a million dollars in net worth.
2. How did Steve achieve his financial independence?
Answer: Steve and his wife saved 70% of their combined $220,000 income over the last two or three years of their working career, rather than living extravagantly.
3. What does Steve recommend to encourage people to stick with their savings and investment plans?
Answer: Steve recommends having a financial goal and writing it down to keep it top of mind.
4. What led Steve to embark on a financial independence journey?
Answer: In 2011 or 2012, Steve realized he was not satisfied or fulfilled despite owning a brand new Cadillac CTS, a 1999 Supercharged Corvette, and a Yamaha R sport bike, among other things.
5. What is Steve's approach to allocating extra money?
Answer: Steve allocates any extra money he earns to a savings account, investment account, and regular checking account in a set percentage.
6. How did Steve learn about financial independence?
Answer: Steve found inspiration in the Mr. Money Mustache blog, which was written by a software developer like Steve.
7. What is Steve's attitude towards lifestyle inflation?
Answer: Steve wants to avoid lifestyle inflation.
8. What tips does Steve have for growing a social media following?
Answer: Steve recommends commenting on other tweets from larger accounts, sending out original tweets, networking, and advocating for smaller accounts.
9. How did Steve and his wife prioritize experiences and fun over money?
Answer: Steve and his wife were encouraged to take the leap when they were young and healthy and didn't want to keep putting off their dreams.
10. How does Steve make money through social media?
Answer: Steve uses social media to direct his audience to a money-making platform such as an email list, podcast, or community.
Speaker Bio: Steve has always pursued a career that combines his passion with financial gain. He doesn't have a set income goal, but instead aims to make as much money as possible doing what he loves. In 2011 or 2012, something within him made him stop opening his garage door, forcing him to realize that despite having achieved success, he wasn't fulfilled. This realization led him to work towards obtaining financial freedom, and now Steve is able to shape his own life in any way he chooses.
