When I was a kid, my brother had one of these marble labyrinths. I was fascinated by it. How were you supposed to get the marble to go through all of these little twists and turns, avoiding the holes? To my emerging motor controls, it was nearly impossible. Yet, I still remember the balsa wood smell, and the concern in my brother’s voice as my frustration grew.
Right now, the COVID-19 pandemic has me feeling like the marble in the labyrinth. Am I going up or down? Left or right? Too fast or too slow? Is this what early retirement is like? If so, I’ll keep working until I’m 80!
In uncertain times like these, it feels like we’re flying blind. Pilots train for flying blind, in case they caught in weather patterns that they may or may not have expected. What does their training tell them to do? Turn to their instruments. Take readings. Infer from the facts where they are headed.
I’ll admit, I’ve been reluctant to look at our instruments for financial independence. With the market tanking, our rental house still sitting empty and unfinished, and only one of us working, it seems like a scary proposition. At the same time, data can be soothing for me. That means, I’ll soon be updating my MadFientist Tracker, showing the real time progress towards the goal.
BUT, getting closer to our FI date is only half of the battle. We want to have a life that we enjoy, and those instruments are a lot harder to check. Full disclosure, this metaphor on checking your instruments in the darkness isn’t my creation. I “borrowed” it from Wendy Williams, Senior Minister of Jefferson Unitarian Church, in her April 12, 2020, sermon. She recommended that we interpret this as turning to our practices of self-reflection and connection. What information are we gathering there?
I’ll admit, I don’t have a ton of self-reflection practices. For us to figure this out, to really know if we have hit a point of financial independence, means that we have to identify those softer metrics. Stay tuned as we build that part of our FI system.