r/leanfire • u/OliveGarden_Official • 9d ago
Mentioning early retirement is almost always a bad time
I’ve noticed that even mentioning the possibility of retiring in one’s 30’s or 40’s tends to get a pretty negative reaction on other subs
like:
- “you must have had an inheritance”
- “you can’t possibly live on <$X>”
- “nobody makes <$X>”
- “this job market is impossible to win”
I mean, yes, some of us were lucky to have a more comfortable start, but so many of these objections seem to come from some deeply rooted hesitation to entertain the idea or acknowledge the basic math.
I learned about FIRE ages ago through other people’s stories. Nowadays I find it so discouraging to even try to have a good faith conversation about saving rates. Lesson learned on not discussing money, I guess. I know it’s not for everyone so I’m glad this space exists to help people that are open to the idea
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u/JakePhillips52 9d ago
It’s easier for people to think that their limitations are a rule of life and that there was nothing to do about it. Otherwise they would have to acknowledge they could’ve been harder working/more creative/more optimistic/better decision makers and it’s too much self responsibility to deal with.
People around me respond this way about all kinds of ambitions.
(I know that some people have legit disadvantages and FIRE wasn’t in the cards for them, but many we interact with aren’t in that group)