2016

Year End Review

Year-End Review

Well, this is it – the last post of the year.  I hope all of you had a great holiday and are looking forward to the new year!  I thought this would be a good time to do a year-end review and look back at what I got accomplished throughout the year (and what I didn’t!). Let’s start with the 8 Financial Goals we had set at the beginning of the year for ourselves… 1) Build back up our online savings […]

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The Line Between Frugality and Deprivation

The Line Between Frugality and Deprivation

The Line Between Frugality and Deprivation A lot of people on the quest for financial independence aim to trim their expenses.  This works great… until it doesn’t.  Sometimes the line between frugality and deprivation becomes blurred.  It’s possible to cut your expenses too much where you can make yourself miserable. I was listening to a great podcast that the Mad Fientist put together from a Q&A at Camp Mustache which had Pete aka Mr. Money Mustache, Paula Pant from Afford Anything, Doug Nordman from The Military

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Time Versus Money - Which is More Valuable?

Time Versus Money – Which is More Valuable?

It’s funny how priorities seem to change as you age and as your income changes.  Years ago, I never would have thought about paying for something I could do myself… nowadays though, that line isn’t always so clear.  Time versus money is a topic that I think we’re all familiar with. When you’re young and scrappy, you likely have a little more time on your hands and little less money.  Eventually though, life catches up to you and things like a

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Year End Review - Year End Bonus

What’s Your Post-Retirement Multiplier?

You’re reading this article, so you obviously care about your finances.  Hopefully, you’re on track with your money or working toward that goal.  Getting out of debt, saving and investing have been beaten into you by every financial outlet in the world. Maybe you’re even on the path to financial independence or early retirement.  But have you taken the time to figure out what you need by looking at your post-retirement multiplier? What is a Post-Retirement Multiplier? When I talk about your post-retirement multiplier,

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It's All About the Expenses...

It’s All About the Expenses…

You’re doing your best to get yourself on the right track with your finances.  You’re working your way out of debt and have turned your eye toward reaching financial independence.  But the media wants you to focus on the money you have coming in.  I want you to focus on your expenses instead. First of all, know that your income is important – no doubt about it.  In my article The Steps to Wealth, the first thing I talk about is getting a

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Company Match

Why Your Company Match is So Important

For many employees, a 401(k) plan or similar defined contribution plan is the biggest retirement asset they have.  The goal is obviously to grow that investment as much as possible and a company match can help accelerate that process. I’m in a fairly lucky situation at work.  My company has a pretty unusual match.  In a nutshell, they throw in a company match of 35 cents on the dollar. Did you notice I didn’t say “… up to 6%” or anything like

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Wringing Out the DRIPs in My Dividend Stocks

Wringing Out the DRIPs in My Dividend Stocks

When I started to get a little more serious about reaching financial independence a few years ago, I started dipping my toes into different ideas as I learned more about them. One of those ideas was to start investing in dividend stocks. Dividend stocks are great because you don’t usually focus as much on appreciation as you do on the regular payoffs you get from the stock.  That means passive income, which is something we all know and I love.  I

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Blogging for Money

Blogging for Money and Fun

The Route to Retire blog was born in the spring of 2015.  I had a pretty good idea of the game plan for the site, but it’s definitely continued to morph into something more as I continue on the path for financial independence.  There are a number of reasons I first started this site: Sharing my own financial knowledge Accountability Documenting my journey Learning from others Blogging for money   Sharing my own financial knowledge The biggest reason I started

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With Multiple Income Streams Comes Great Power!!

With Multiple Income Streams Comes Great Power!!

I thought today we’d talk about little bit about how having multiple income streams can help to fortify your wealth as you continue your path toward financial independence. From the time I was six years old, my mom raised my brother and I as a single mom and did a pretty good job if I do say so myself! 🙂 One of the things I remember as a kid was that we each had our own savings account at an old savings and

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Bringing the Fun Back to the Workplace

This post is a lot different from the regular ones you’re used to with me.  I recently had a moment of reflection and wanted to share it with you… I continue to read everything I can get my hands on to help expand my knowledge and better both my life and that of my family.  I’m currently reading Dale Carnegie’s How to Win Friends & Influence People.  Yes, it’s a classic and I should have read it years ago, but I’m only

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