Well, it has been over two months since our first article in this series, and much has happened since then. The main takeaway from these two months is never to stop planning, preparing, and discussing your retirement plans. They are fluid and should dictate much of your actions on a day-to-day basis.
First, let’s review the basics of our Retirement 4-50 strategy. Retirement 4-50 is the idea of creating a cash flow retirement system that can support individuals through retirement and throughout their heirs’ lives.
The plan consists of four retirement ‘blocks” or pillars: retirement income, investment income, rental income, and business income. To be successful in each of these pillars, you will need to have education on them. That is why my content is all divided into five categories. The fifth category is the financial independence mindset, which is vital to long-term success.
How to Create a Never-Ending Stream of Content
As you read through this book, start making little mental (or physical) notes on how you are preparing for each of these pillars. If you try to retire, leaning heavily on one of these blocks, things could shift negatively against you. Diversity is critical to smooth out the dips during your accumulation phase and later during retirement.
Now, let’s take me, for example. I am constantly planning for retirement and making adjustments as I gain new information. I think I have read about 12 books in the last two months and read numerous articles. I want to review some of the updates I have been tracking in my retirement planning.
Retirement Income. I have eight years left in the military before I reach 30 years. As much as I want to get out to be with my family; the longer I stay in, the better life we will live. So I am slowly grinding to the end. In reality, the passive income from the military could be one of the best deals in America.
Investment Income. Kris and I reached a massive milestone in our investment portfolio. We accomplished our entire 2021 goal in the first four months of the year. Our goal was $100,000 by the end of 2021, and right now, in April, we have $150,000.
Have Blog, Will Travel
This portfolio now produces $500/month of passive dividend income. We are heading quickly to our overall goal of $6,000/month, which would be $1.8 million.
Another new development has been my flip/flop on Bitcoin. A book I read changed my mindset, and I am ready to jump into the world of Bitcoin. I am going to invest as I would in gold and silver. Buy and hold for the long term as a cash alternative.
Rental Income. Our three homes are still chugging along, making us sweet rental income. I couldn’t ask for more. My friend (and partner) is searching for new property deals. The going is rough because real estate is getting extremely expensive. We may have found some deals on condos in downtown Houston. We still have much vetting to perform on these investments.
Business Income. It is incredible to watch royalties from book sales appear in my inbox. The pay isn’t much yet, but the idea of making money completely randomly is fantastic. To know that I dreamed up a picture and have slowly put it into motion is game-changing. If I can do it, anyone can.
When is Enough Money….Enough Money?
We believe our next business venture will be a small dog park on our land in Florida. A company runs the website and takes most of the liability issues (for a fee, of course). Think about it as an Airbnb for dog parks. I like the idea and think it can present us a chance to diversify and make passive income. More to follow on this front over the year.
As you can see, we are constantly moving forward with new ideas and plans. If you become complacent, then you could be gambling with your retirement. As much as I want to avoid cryptocurrencies, the world is printing money. How that affects all of us is yet to be seen.
We continue to read, learn, and attempt to predict the best course of action moving forward. That is how we protect our wealth and our livelihoods. My original plan was military retirement, dividends, three houses, and royalties. Now we are adding Bitcoin, condos, and dog parks.
Next year maybe even more things that we add. The concept is to keep improving on your ideas as things progress. Retirement is a moving target, and as long as you are moving forward, it will be a joyous time of family and fun.
Now is a great time to reflect on your “why.” Your why is what drives you to keep pushing forward with reading, education, learning, and taking action. My “why” is the dream of being on the beach with my lovely wife, kids, and grandkids. But not only do I want to be on the beach, but I also want to be RICH.
Family + Income: This is all I Want
Why would I work all my life to be on the beach poor and wondering how to rent a boat? If I want a boat, I will buy one with my dividends. That is why I will never slow down. I like the quote from the Terminator, “It can’t be bargained with. It can’t be reasoned with. It doesn’t feel pity, or remorse, or fear. And it absolutely will not stop, ever, until you are dead.”
That is how I feel about passive income. I will never rest until my entire family is well-taken care of forever. No matter how many books I have to write, houses I need to buy, or dividends stocks I need to purchase, we will have an amazing life of hard work, fun, togetherness, and love.
This future doesn’t just happen, though—you must work for it. I have written 17 Financial Independence Magazines over the last four months. Start with number one and go through them all. If you can finish one per week (or day), you will have a strong base of understanding of mindset, retirement planning, investing, real estate, and business. From there you have even more work to do by reading a large number of books.
After that, you can start taking action on these different pillars. It could be as simple as renting a room (rental income), buying some dividend-paying stocks with the rent money (investment income), and starting a blog about your dividend journey (business income). You have officially diversified your income, future, and mindset.
Hopefully, this has given you some hope for the future. I am serious in that it is easier than it looks. Find your “why,” and everything will fall into place. Trust me. Good luck!
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Disclosure: I am not a financial advisor or money manager, and any knowledge is given as guidance and not direct actionable investment advice. I am an Amazon Affiliate. Please research any investment vehicles that are being considered. I wrote this article myself, and it expresses my own opinions. I am not receiving compensation for it. I have no business relationship with any company whose stock is mentioned in this article.
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