Jim @ Route To Retire, Author at Route to Retire

FOMO is the Cancer of FIRE

Scary title, right? Using a word like “cancer” is not something to take lightly and saying that FOMO is the cancer of FIRE is something that should make you raise an eyebrow. But here’s the thing… that’s exactly what it is. And it has the power to destroy your journey to FIRE. Today I’m going to explain why this and how to avoid it. But first, let’s define a couple of words: FOMO (or FoMO) FOMO stands for Fear of Missing Out. The idea is just like it sounds – if there’s some type of event or get-together going on and you don’t attend (by choice or not), you feel some sort of social anxiety. Maybe a few weeks

We Thought We Could Just Pack Up and Go…

When we first sought out our new adventure, we thought we could basically just pack up and go. I mean, you just sell everything and move to Panama, right? Ha! Wishful thinking! There’s a tremendous amount of planning involved to make this a smooth transition. I’ve talked about some of the minutiae we’ve encountered in our planning, but now it’s time for more scoop. And considering we’re about to embark on a huge adventure, I thought it would make sense to try to update everyone a little more frequently on how things are coming along. Sometimes I get caught up in trying to stick solely to money topics that I forget our readers also want to know what’s actually going

Guest Appearance on the What’s Up Next Podcast

The “What’s Up Next?” podcast is a little newer to the scene. In fact, the first episode just came out in November of 2018. However, I’ve known Doc G from DiverseFI for a while and we finally had that opportunity at FinCon in Dallas last year. It’s great to meet other bloggers in real life and Doc is no exception. He’s a great guy and we had some good conversation… and a few beers, of course! Anyway, a few months ago he asked if I wanted to be a part of the podcast he hosts with Paul Thompson. Their podcast, What’s Up Next? is different than most of the other podcasts out there in that it’s panel-based. Doc G and

Estimated Self-Employment Tax Used to Scare Me!

I’m just going to say it – I have three very small businesses that I’ve been running for years and I’ve never paid estimated self-employment tax payments. Ouch, for shame, for shame! That’s right, I’m a complete failure in that avenue. And that could have cost me, too. If you owe $1,000 or more come tax day in April, you might be hit with a penalty by the IRS. In essence, it’s an interest penalty on the difference of what you should have paid and what you actually paid. And guess who gets to decide what that interest rate is? That’s right, the IRS does. For the second quarter of 2019, they’ve decided that the rate for underpayments will be

Guest Appearance on the Marriage, Kids and Money Podcast

I like Andy Hill from the Marriage, Kids and Money site a lot. He’s a genuinely nice guy and I love that he focuses on finances as a family. I would guess that the majority of the folks we hear from in the personal finance community don’t have kids. That doesn’t necessarily represent everyone tuning in, but the voices tend to be less. Enter Andy Hill. Not only does he focus on improving family finances, but he loves to show that it definitely is possible to reach financial independence with kids. That’s an area I agree with wholeheartedly (obviously), but it’s also something I want others to know. It’s not a matter of not being able to chase financial independence

Using Google Voice to Stay in Touch While Living Abroad

Ever heard of Google Voice? If not, know that this could be one of the best ways of staying in touch with family and friends while you’re living abroad. One of the small concerns we had was how to keep communication simple with everyone while we’re living in Panama. When we get there, we’re going to get Panamanian cell service for our phones. The problem is that gives us a Panamanian phone number. So if we call anyone in the U.S. or they call us, it’s an international call. That means some potential extra money for each phone call… and we know I don’t like that! Plus, we have to ensure that everyone has our new number, which can also