Send us a text In the realm of money psychology, different mindsets can affect the way we spend, save, and invest. Two of the most relevant mindsets for FIRE are scarcity and abundance. To strip them down to their scaffolding: a scarcity mindset can help you save, but make you worry. An abundance mindset leads you to look at the biggest expenses, and not worry so much about the rest. In this episode, Dave ( Strong Money Australia ) and Hayden (co-founder of Pearler ) compare how these two differ...
Jan 05, 2024•57 min
Send us a text The road to FIRE is seldom a straight line. Between job losses, home repairs, medical issues, and other unwelcome surprises, our best laid FIRE plans can easily come derailed. Fortunately, as with most aspects of FIRE, it’s possible to prepare for financial hardship. In doing so, you can mitigate its impact on your FIRE progress. In this session, Dave Gow ( Strong Money Australia ) and Hayden Smith (co-founder of Pearler ) cover how to contend with financial setbacks. To this end,...
Dec 22, 2023•40 min
Send us a text The quest for FIRE (Financial Independence, Retire Early) requires planning, discipline, and structured money management. It’s no surprise, then, that most FIRE-craving people focus on these topics (or aspects of them). Even so, a sound FIRE strategy doesn’t begin and end with saving, budgeting and investing. Our goals once FIRE’d, and our sense of purpose beyond our careers, play just as crucial a role. Without these, we don’t know what we’re working towards – let alone what to d...
Dec 08, 2023•44 min
Send us a text Welcome to Aussie FIRE, the podcast designed to educate and inspire you towards a better future! This podcast evolved from an audiobook of the same name, and explores the path to FIRE – Financial Independence, Retire Early. If you want to level up your FIRE game without being overwhelmed by jargon, this is the show for you. In our introductory episode, you’ll meet the dynamic duo of hosts: Dave Gow, AKA Strong Money Australia ; and Hayden Smith, co-founder and CTO at long-term inv...
Nov 24, 2023•30 min
Send us a text Congratulations! You've made it to the final chapter of our original Aussie FIRE audiobook. In each chapter, we've covered a different step in the journey towards Financial Independence. Now that we've reached the end of the book, we wanted to reflect on everything we've covered. That way, you can extract the key points from Aussie FIRE in one easy, eight-minute resource. Now that we've shared the O.G book, we're already planning our next instalment o...
Nov 03, 2023•8 min
Send us a text From budgeting to ETFs , this audiobook has covered a range of routes to reach FIRE. However, beyond earning, saving, and investing, there are non-monetary tools that can propel you closer to your goal. And in this chapter, we're going to explore what they are, and how they can help you. Join Michelle from Frugality & Freedom as she details the non-monetary forms of capital at your disposal. She'll also discuss how you can reduce your FI number through non-convention...
Oct 27, 2023•20 min
Send us a text For many, reaching FIRE (Financial Independence Retire Early) is a best case scenario. However, it's even more important to prepare for WORST case scenarios. Investments can crash, interest rates can change, disaster can strike – and without a capacity to adapt, your FIRE could be extinguished. Luckily, that's what this chapter is all about. Join Serina Bird from the Joyful Frugalista as she explores how to build financial resilience for a pre- and post-FIRE life. Her th...
Oct 20, 2023•19 min
Send us a text In the last chapter, we covered how to choose your FIREstyle . By "FIREstyle", we mean the type of life you'd like to live once you've retired early. This time, we're forging further into our FIRE futures to assess what life will look like on a day-to-day basis. In this chapter, Dave Gow from Strong Money Australia gives you a glimpse into your life once FIRE'd. To this end, he provides a breakdown of his daily post-FIRE routine, and some pointers for...
Oct 13, 2023•14 min
Send us a text Much of this audiobook has focused on the path to FIRE (Financial Independence, Retire Early). So far, though, there's a crucial question we haven't asked: "What will you do once you reach it?" To many listeners, this might seem like a textbook definition of a champagne problem. But by asking yourself this question now, you'll arm yourself with a plan for your FIRE'd life. Perhaps just as importantly, you'll find a fount of motivation for those d...
Oct 06, 2023•18 min
Send us a text There's an old joke that's been kicking around for the past decade or so: "If you're struggling to make conversation with an adult Aussie, ask them for their thoughts on the housing market." Real estate can be a fraught topic in Australia - not least of all because it's so expensive. In fact, there's been a growing assumption that the only people who can afford to invest are the independently wealthy. Well, them, or people who bought into the mar...
Sep 29, 2023•24 min
Send us a text First off, we want to make something clear: debt and leverage can be a slippery slope. Many people in our community either avoid debt like the plague, or see it as a demon to slay. In fact, badly managed debt can scuttle even the surest of FIRE plans. However, as we've said before, not all debt is created equal . While debt and leverage can sap our resources, they can, in some cases, propel our long-term investing. With this idea in mind, Victor from the Frugal Samurai uses t...
Sep 22, 2023•21 min
Send us a text We Aussies love to travel abroad. More than half of us have passports, which makes us one of the world's more globe-trotting nations. If you're investing, though, you shouldn't confine that global outlook to the airport. Your portfolio could also benefit from some international love. In this chapter, Ms. FieryIce from Two to FIRE delves into the benefits of international investing. She also details how you can start investing in other markets, and what you need to c...
Sep 15, 2023•17 min
Send us a text Often, the FIRE community focuses on the more eye-catching routes to early retirement - shares, ETFs, real estate, budgeting. However, superannuation can also play a pivotal role in lighting your FIRE. Sure, it may not factor much into the "Early" part of "Financial Independence Retire Early". But as part of nuanced strategy, it can serve as a bulwark against disaster. In this chapter, Alex and Ellie from HisHerMoneyGuide cover the role super can play in your F...
Sep 08, 2023•19 min
Send us a text At Aussie FIRE, we believe that investing regularly in low-cost ETFs will trump endless research. Forget an encyclopaedic market knowledge, or a deep grasp of macroeconomics; the secret ingredient is consistency. Even so, there are some investors who may want to ensure their assets run as a well-oiled machine. This is where portfolio optimisation comes into play. In this chapter, Kurt from Pearler explores a Nobel Prize-winning form of portfolio optimisation called Modern Portfoli...
Sep 01, 2023•24 min
Send us a text Have you read many early retirement success stories lately? Chances are, most of them featured investors who were too young to have used a cassette tape non-ironically. And don't get us wrong – anyone who can retire before their joints start to creak has our undying respect. However, given the tenor of these case studies, you'd be forgiven for thinking that FIRE is a young person's game. Fortunately, Shaun from Project Palm Tree is here to tell us that nothing could...
Aug 25, 2023•25 min
Send us a text If you search online for FIRE resources, you'll likely find a slew of articles targeted at singles or couples. In contrast, the idea of reaching FIRE with children seldom rates a mention. Is it because kids simply cost too much to fit into a FIRE framework? In this chapter, we hear from Ms. FireMum on that very question. If her name hasn't already given it away, she's living proof that FIRE with a family is within your grasp. While it may require some extra planning...
Aug 18, 2023•24 min
Send us a text The Financial Independence Retire Early movement benefits from a long-term mindset. For many investors, this equates to concepts like time in the market, dollar-cost averaging, and militant budgeting. And, yes, there's a time and place for all three of these strategies. However, by only focusing on the numbers, we skip a crucial truth: we're only human. In this chapter, Sarah from Keepin' It Frugal covers how to play the long game on your FIRE journey. Part of this ...
Aug 11, 2023•15 min
Send us a text In our last chapter , we detailed why shares and index-tracking funds have historically been so popular with the FIRE community. However, there's more than one way to start FIRE. By learning about the full spectrum of assets, you can make the right FIRE choices for your goals. That's why Captain FI spends this chapter diving into the variety of wealth-building options available to you. These range from the common, such as bonds and high-interest savings accounts; to the ...
Aug 04, 2023•30 min
Send us a text There are a slew of different ways to reach Financial Independence and Retire Early. However, there's one method that stands tall above the others in terms of FIRE popularity. And that method is shares investing. While other assets classes have always enjoyed FI representation, FIREbugs have historically clustered around shares like moths around a, er, flame. In this chapter, Ms. FieryIce from Two To FIRE explore why shares have historically been so popular amongst the FI com...
Jul 28, 2023•18 min
Send us a text Within the long-term investing community, the phrase "time in the market beats timing the market" is something of a motto. In this chapter, you'll find out why. Join Kate Campbell from Rask as she explores the benefits of getting started early with investing. These include the magic of compound interest, the power of making mistakes (sooner rather than later), and the pitfalls to avoid. If you've been thinking about investing for a while, but aren't sure h...
Jul 21, 2023•25 min
Send us a text Sometimes, despite our best efforts, life can get in the way of our FIRE plans. Unwelcome surprises can place demands on our finances, and if we aren't prepared, our investments can take a hit. That's why, in any Financial Independence journey, it pays to be ready for emergencies. In this chapter, Latestarterfire helps you determine the amount you'll need for an emergency fund - and how to build it. She also explores whether (and which type of) insurance is right fo...
Jul 14, 2023•28 min
Send us a text "Work smart, not hard" is a philosophy that's applicable to countless areas of life. Perhaps nowhere is this truer than in the quest for FIRE. Don't believe us? Ask Aussie Firebug - a man so FIRE-y he has "fire" in his name. And you'd better believe he brings the FIRE to this chapter...because he does. In this next instalment of Aussie FIRE, the man who shares three-quarters of his name with the title of this book drops some truth bombs. Some tru...
Jul 07, 2023•27 min
Send us a text In the last chapter, we covered the easy wins to be found on the journey towards FIRE. However, to really progress towards our goals, we need to assess our spending behaviour, budgeting habits, and relationship with money. The good news is: it's not as painful as it sounds. In this chapter, Kara from The Flawed Consumer explores how you can make meaningful headway towards your FIRE target by forming the right long-term plan. She also discusses the power of investing according...
Jun 30, 2023•19 min
Send us a text There's no hack, secret formula, or "one weird trick" that can propel any of us to financial freedom. Even so, many well-meaning resources out there have a habit of overcomplicating FIRE. While achieving FIRE does require structure and discipline, there are also easy wins to be had along the way. That's why Miss Balance from All About Balance has set out to explore them. In this chapter, she helps you find some of yours - from optimising your super, to negotiat...
Jun 23, 2023•16 min
Send us a text There are an array of factors that contribute to a solid FIRE strategy. Arguably, though, none are more important than saving. Sure, increasing your salary can give you more money to work with. However, if you don't form savings habits, your earnings may not bring you closer to your FIRE goal. In this chapter, Aussie Firebug explores some of the most popular and proven methods to increase your savings rate. He also discusses how an increased income can bolster your savings ra...
Jun 16, 2023•16 min
Send us a text What happens when you spend an extra $27.50 a day? You lose $10,000 a year in savings . That's what Mrs Hack from Sustainable Living has set out to explore in this chapter. Join us as we follow the lives of two people - one who spends, and one who saves. On the surface, their circumstances and daily routines don't look all that different. But thanks to a few differences in spending decisions, one is leaps and bounds closer to reaching FIRE. Listen to their stories and se...
Jun 09, 2023•17 min
Send us a text When left unchecked, debt can pose a real problem to Financial Independence. Poor credit scores, insecurity, and even debt collectors can become a reality before you know it. Even so, debt emergencies don't need to spell the end of your FIRE dreams. With a structured approach and some budgeting know-how, you can extinguish your debt fire and focus on your fun FIRE. In this chapter, Kylie Travers from The Thrifty Issue details how to deal with debt collectors. She also shares ...
Jun 02, 2023•16 min
Send us a text In a perfect world, you’d have enough money to pay off your debt and invest at the same time. However, the world is rarely perfect - especially where our finances are concerned. Sometimes, we need to make tough decisions about what to prioritise in our personal budgets. In this chapter, Ms FireMum from A Family on FIRE breaks down the different types of debt you might accrue. She also runs through cost-benefit analyses, so you can decide which debt you might want to prioritise. Fi...
May 26, 2023•19 min
Send us a text If left unchecked, debt can pose one of the greatest obstacles to Financial Independence. However, not all debt is created equal. Some debt will erode your finances, whilst others can (when used correctly) be a tool in your quest towards FIRE. In this chapter, Aussie Doc Freedom helps you distinguish between different debt types. She also details the impact that each type can have on your FIRE plans, and how to handle them. Rather read while you’re listening? You can check out the...
May 19, 2023•21 min
Send us a text Learning how to attain FIRE is one thing. But it's just as important to recognise why you want to reach it in the first place. Finding your "why" isn't just a powerful motivator - it will also help you choose the type of FIRE you want to reach. In this chapter, Kurt from Pearler covers why it's so important to find your "why". He also highlights the vast range of different FIREtypes - from FatFIRE, to BaristaFIRE, to GeoFIRE. Which FIREtype are y...
May 12, 2023•19 min
