The Key to FIRE Success is Clarifying 'What You Want to Do'

FIRE (Financial Independence, Retire Early) refers to a state where you are not bound by time or place and are free to do what you desire.

I have observed people who have succeeded in their FIRE life and those who have not.

Today, I would like to reflect on that.

Those who hit a dead end

In recent years, the number of people aiming for FIRE has increased, but I have seen cases where things do not go well when the main goal is 'liberation from things you do not want to do'.

For many people, 'things they do not want to do' likely include work and its associated tasks, relationships with business partners, internal office politics, and entanglements with superiors.

While being liberated from these is a major appeal of FIRE, if you achieve FIRE without having a clear idea of 'what you want to do,' you tend to find yourself with too much time on your hands within a few months. This is the so-called 'dead end' state.

Specifically, days are spent endlessly watching Netflix or YouTube, playing games, or just zoning out. If these are truly 'what you want to do,' there is no problem, but if you are doing them out of necessity just to 'kill time,' you may find yourself feeling stuck after a few months.

Ideally, the purpose of FIRE should be a step up in the direction you want to go, but even in cases of escaping from a currently painful situation, it seems that people who have a strong sense of self do well.

From the stories of friends who resigned after being pushed to the point of mental breakdown, I recommend escaping from closed and oppressive spaces when things are painful. Since there is no point if you ruin your health, I think that is a valid reason.

Such friends have a strong sense of self, so they are enjoying their FIRE life vividly even after retirement, so the point might be 'whether or not you have a personal axis'.

Preparation before retirement

Whether it is FAT-FIRE or Side-FIRE (retiring partially while continuing to work), I believe that 'having a personal axis' and 'having things you want to do' are absolutely essential elements when considering a second life.

Taking time to think deeply about your life before retirement and concretely imagining your second life is a very important life strategy. I myself conducted a few practice runs assuming life after retirement.

Target article link→Before retiring, I tried practicing retirement

Experiencing 'pseudo-retirement' while working as a company employee certainly had a positive effect. This pseudo-retirement training is one effective method, but honestly, that alone is insufficient. I think the most important thing is to take enough time to face yourself.

It is just my experience, but I avoided comparing myself to others, whether it was about 'generally,' 'usually,' or 'on average.'I spent time focusing only on myself. The pseudo-retirement training was a means to that end.

Exploring 'what you want to do' to enrich your second life

Following that process, it actually took me eight years from the decision to retire until the day I actually retired. Thanks to the results of taking the time to face myself, my true second life is filled with surprises, where I find one 'thing I want to do' after another, and by realizing them, I can transform into the person I want to be.

Looking back now, I realize that I was able to have this experience because, while I was still employed, I thoroughly faced myself and repeatedly engaged in introspective training, asking questions like 'What can I do on my own?', 'What do I really want to do?', and 'What would I do if I didn't care about what others thought?'. I feel that this discipline is what makes my life of true freedom feel so fulfilling.

I compiled my resignation story and my life after retirement into a book. Since the book's release, thanks to everyone's support, I have received more requests for lectures from organizations and have been asked for life advice by old friends.

Published book → https://amzn.to/4czN51O

I am enjoying the fact that I have gained the title of lecturer, allowing me to speak based on my own experiences and the stories of friends who have resigned after going through similar experiences; this is a new side of myself.

I feel that speaking to organizations and individuals who have read my book and are interested in it is my role as a social investor, and I am enjoying it.

You can send questions directly to me via the link below without them being seen by others. Please feel free to ask anything.

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Published book → https://amzn.to/4czN51O