You can feel the tension building up in my house as we head into Labor Day Weekend. Because for us, school hasn’t started, so the harsh, cold reality of the end of summer hasn’t hit us yet. But it will. Like a ton of bricks. At 6:00 am Thursday. That’s when my daughter begins her senior year of high school, and my son will be a sophomore. I’ve been singing “It’s the Most Wonderful Time of the Year” like the guy happily shopping for school supplies in the Staples commercial. They tell me to “just stop.” It’s hard knowing that at this time next year, my daughter will be off to … [Read more...]

Last week I told you about Babson College's 100th anniversary, and the reception for it Becky and I attended in Newport, RI. Babson's president, Stephen Spinelli, himself a great entrepreneur, spoke about the culture of entrepreneurialism Babson instills in its students. In Babson's Thought & Action online magazine, Jackie Villaci picks up that conversation of the entrepreneurial culture at the college and discusses it with some famous Babson alumni. She writes: The world’s most famous entrepreneurs didn’t just change the game in their respective industry, they disrupted the norm. While … [Read more...]

Last night Becky and I had the pleasure of attending Babson’s Summer Reception in Newport. Hosted by Mary and Thomas Gilbane, Jr., it was an opportunity for the entire Babson community in Rhode Island to get together and speak with Babson’s new President Stephen Spinelli MBA ‘92. Spinelli as President makes this year for Babson—it’s 100th--even more special. As you may know, Babson has played a special role in our family with Becky’s dad Richard Young ’63 (a former trustee), brother Matthew Young ’92, Becky ’94, and me ’94 all graduates of the college. Seeing and hearing Spinelli … [Read more...]

If you choose to do business with a firm, shouldn't you be treated well? Fidelity has chosen to automatically sweep customers' cash into higher-yielding accounts, rather than stick it in low yielding bank accounts like most of the company's competitors. Advantages like this are why I do business with Fidelity. Earlier this month Fidelity explained its decision to offer its customers accounts that earn up to 47 times those of its competitors', writing: Customers Opening Brokerage & Retirement Accounts Automatically Directed to Higher Yielding Cash Options, While Retaining Choice … [Read more...]

In the Orange County Register, veteran California journalist and political analyst Dan Walters, examines the hard choice facing city officials in Sacramento, and state officials in California. The problem both governments have is their pensions. Despite problems with its pensions, Sacramento officials are already thinking up ways to spend money they haven't received from future taxes on things like "infrastructure, affordable housing, cultural amenities and incentives to attract new business," while ignoring the massive hole in the city's retirement funding. Walters writes: As they pore … [Read more...]

Here are some observations from Your Survival Guy’s Fourth of July weekend, when my family and I took our boat—the Tom Sawyer—to Mattapoisett to visit my parents, and on the way home got stuck in the fog (more on that shortly). Family trips are a little different now than they were a few years ago when the four of us (plus our dog Louis) would travel by boat. This year our daughter had “things” she needed to do, and met us by car. This worked out well since Louis is not a huge fan of the boat. He loves it when it’s at the dock or on a mooring. But when it’s underway, he’s less sure of … [Read more...]

“Never forget what I’m telling you here” -Dick Young When it comes to living off a portfolio for a lifetime, the word lifetime can mean different stretches of time for different investors. As you read in parts I, II, III and IV, I’ve been studying the FIRE movement—Financial Independence, Retire Early—to help teach the next generation how to think about money, and to help you think about your retirement. Like I have said, if this group is retiring in their 30s, and living off their retirement savings for the rest of their lives, then we should be able to pick up some intelligence. Which … [Read more...]

In parts, I, II, and III you learned about those who have embraced the FIRE lifestyle—Financial Independence, Retire Early—and the ways it can help you in your own life. One of the things I think you and I will learn from this movement is if it’s truly feasible to live off a portfolio for 60-plus years—a necessity when retiring in one’s early 30s. But this is not your typical set-it-and-forget-it retirement demographic. Self-reliance is a way of life for the FIRE movement. Yes, they are casting off the lines and heading out to the sea of financial independence with a portfolio that … [Read more...]