Early Retirement Does Not Mean Quitting Your Job

What would you do if you quit your job now? I used to daydream that I could travel for months at a time if I retired early. But, honestly, that would tire me out after a while. I could volunteer, but that wouldn’t take much time at all. What would I do with the rest of the day? Well, I actually think I would be bored out of my mind without a job.

However, just because I would be bored without working, that doesn’t mean I want to work at a job I don’t enjoy. Early retirement means reaching financial independence, and knowing that you could quit working today if you wanted to, but continuing at a job that makes you happy. It means having the ability to choose what kind of work you want to do and when you want to do it.

Imagine what kind of life that would look like.

Leaving a job you hate would mean:
– No more office politics.
– No more performance reviews.
– No more racist supervisors. (Yes, I really had one!)
– No more dreading the day ahead of you when your alarm goes off.

Reaching financial independence would mean:
– Working in a field you love, even if you don’t earn as much as your old job.
– Taking off for a vacation or mini-getaway at a moment’s notice.
– Feeling financially secure enough that you no longer worry about a paycheck.
– Taking back those 8-15+ hours a day that you used to spend working, and using them however you want.

I am a little obsessed with reaching financial independence. Mr. STS works about 70 hours a week. We save a big portion of our income in order to “retire early”. We are very fortunate that Mr. STS loves his job. For us, retiring early would probably mean Mr. STS cutting back his hours at work.

What does early retirement/financial independence mean to you?
What would you do once you reached financial independence?