If you’re like most people, then you probably don’t dream of
working yourself to the bone until the day you die. That doesn’t sound so
appealing, does it? No, the American Dream involves retiring at some point, and
for most people, the earlier, the better. If you’d like to be someone who
retires relatively early- while you still have time to enjoy your health and
your life, then you’ll be happy to know that there are some things you can do
to increase the chances of an early retirement.
Live Modestly
Even if you’re doing quite well for yourself, that’s no
excuse to spend money like it’s going out of style! People who retire early are
people who are smart with their money. Live within your means, and you won’t
accumulate a lot of debts. Also, don’t indulge on unnecessary purchases, and
always, always put money aside. For every check or other money you get, take at
least a little bit of it and deposit it into a “don’t touch” savings account.
Plan Ahead
If you have somewhere you want to get, it just makes sense
that you should have a plan as to how to get there. While you can never predict
everything that will happen in life, you can predict quite a bit of it. Unless
you happen to be a financial whiz yourself, it’s smart to hire a financial
advisor or consultant. These professionals can plan your savings, investments,
and other decisions based on what your goals are for your life. If you have a
certain age you’d like to retire at, they can even build you a road-map for how
to get there.
Have Continual Income
Obviously, if you want to retire, you have to work first.
However, you should have a steady source of income outside of just what you
earn from your job. Ideally, you should have some kind of passive income,
meaning an investment that continues to make you money. This could be a savings
account or investment that earns a large amount of interest, a rental property,
stocks and bonds, or even a small business that you run on the side or hire
others to run. The bottom line is that you need to have some kind of “lifeline”
that is regularly working to build money for you.
Increase Your Education
Those who retire early are typically well-educated. That
makes sense when you think about it because the more education you have, the
more opportunities you’ll have. It’s never too late to go back to school and
learn a new skill. It could even earn you higher pay and ranking at your
current job. Even if you don’t want to earn a new degree, certifications and
accreditation courses exist across many industries and can provide that extra
“boost” you need to earn more and retire sooner.
If you can follow these tips and just be smart with your
money in general, there’s no reason you can’t retire sooner rather than later.