FI Wisdom – Berkshire Hathaway Edition

I came across quotes from two of my heroes, Warren Buffett and Charlie Munger from Berkshire Hathaway, that I think do an incredible job of encapsulating the two aspects of the journey to FI: 

Warren Buffett: “Do not save what is left after spending; instead spend what is left after saving.” 

Charlie Munger: “There were a lot of questions today — people trying to figure out what the secret to life is, to a long and happy life…The secret is easy, because it’s so simple: 

• You don’t have a lot of envy. 
• You don’t have a lot of resentment. 
• You don’t overspend your income. 
• You stay cheerful in spite of your troubles. 
• You deal with reliable people. 
• And you do what you’re supposed to do. 

And all these simple rules work so well to make your life better. And they’re so trite.” 

New Podcast I’m Enjoying

ChooseFI community member Heidi Dusek recently started a podcast called ‘Ordinary Sherpa’ and it’s genuinely fantastic! The theme of the podcast is to “help families connect through simple and authentic adventure experiences” and our very own Edmund Tee was featured in Episode 8. 

Give it a listen: 

And if you ever had an interest in starting a podcast, Jonathan created the ‘Talent Stacker Podcast Pro course’ that he’s set to open up soon. 

You can find out more here: 

A Deeper Understanding

I would have bet significant money that Bitcoin would never appear here in the FI Weekly, but after a recent mention on the podcast about how I was trying to understand the fundamentals of the technology (and decidedly NOT the speculative nonsense that we associate with Bitcoin), community member Don sent me this informative video that I think is worth your time (I sped it up to 1.75x speed on YouTube so it only took ~15 minutes to watch): 

But how does Bitcoin actually work? 

ChooseFI Community Taking Action This Week

• Corey said, “After Listening to JL Collins (in Episode 284), I was inspired to pull the trigger on opening a Vanguard account and transfer my assets out of Edward Jones. My advisor is a great guy and I have been putting this off for months, but I need to do what is best for me and my family. I don’t have a lot in there, but what is there needs to grow without paying someone else to do it in order to achieve the best results possible.” 
• Jim & Tess said, “This week our (at least) 1% better is our reassessment of our life insurance. Our evaluation is that now that we have no mortgage, we are over insured. We are dropping one of my whole life annuities and saving $240/month. That goes right toward our investments that will offer a better rate of return than our insurance annuity. We are now hovering at 50% savings rate! Thanks so much for all the great podcasts and inspiration you both provide!!” 
• Emily said, “A big hello from the UK. I really enjoy listening to your podcasts and reading your weekly emails. This week we finally completed the sale on our house. We have moved to a small bungalow in a rural village. Our new smaller mortgage means that my partner and I can now work part time and we have the outside space to focus on our hobbies. Although FI is our aim, we are taking a more gentle approach. Good times ahead!” 
• Jackie said, “I wanted to increase my 401k by 1% but decided to double it to 20% to get much closer to filling that bucket!” 
• Mary-Beth said, “My 1% better this week is twofold. I finally got my niece to contribute to her Roth IRA and I am finally starting a new job after being out of work during COVID. Thanks to you and all of you at ChooseFI, my life is so much better than it was 2 years ago. I’ve streamlined everything I can and have been making and selling masks and surgical caps as a side hustle.”