Great article and a big fan of Khe myself. If I recall correctly he walked away with $5m+ and for most people that’s full FIRE status. Still the point stands. To walk away from a career that is so lucrative is not easy to do in your 30s.
Yes, Khe has been 100% transparent about his financial situation. He has a podcast episode where he lays it out.
But to your point, it’s way harder to walk away than people think from afar. In some ways, making more money may make a transition harder (compared to a career that’s not doing much for you, all else equal).
So it’s Khe’s ability to resist traditional norms that makes him so compelling. If people think, “must be nice coming from Wall Street,” I think they miss the bigger point.
Khe was one of the first people I encountered years ago who publicly "went off the career grid" so to speak. It's kind of amazing that he did it in his 30s, when most people at that age are too attached to the money, status building, or fear, etc to press the eject button. From what I've seen, more people seem to eject in their 50s after they've built up enough wealth to feel more secure in saying they've had enough. I kind of wish I had the guts to look at things like coast FIRE earlier in my career, but the golden handcuffs + being afraid of not having/being enough are powerful deterrents. Better late than never I suppose!
Yes, you still have a lot of guts Dave doing what you’re doing!
Everyone’s situation is different, but I do think Khe is remarkable for taking a bold risk when he did (also consider this was before the creator economy, so there were less proven paths).
But I agree that it’s good just getting stories like Khe’s out there, to show people there’s other ways to approach life.
Thanks Rick. Yeah 10 years ago we didn't have anywhere near the creator infrastructure/options there are now to build and monetize an audience, so what he's done is pretty cool. My first recollection of him was just his email newsletter and I think he had a blog or simple website. I think of him as a forerunner of sorts for the corporate escapees that are happening now.
My husband and I were tempted to keep working “just one more year” to stockpile cash. It’s a sort of hoarding mentality, maybe evolutionarily derived in case of an emergency. But we had enough to do what we want to do next: buy a small sailboat, become “budget cruisers,” and have a reasonable enough runway to do it NOW. So we did.
This is an amazing article and public service. Thanks for sharing this story.
I know people from Harvard who do a similar-yet-different thing where they’ll take a high-paying job “just for 5 years.” They’ll work on Wall Street or in management consulting to “gain some skills,” and THEN do what they really want. But, as far as I know, they never do — except for the unicorns like that Wall Street person you recently wrote about!
I think a lot of these people stay in these jobs by convincing themselves, “It’s not that bad.” Their colleagues are smart! They’re saving lives! And, while driving their $100k car to and from the job they don’t really love, they’re not doing the thing they want.
What a story! I think psychological freedom is soooo key. It's taking me a while to get there even though I have "enough" money - old stories really have such a hold on me.
100% it requires a lot of bravery to go against norms, but I think it’s a pivotal period, as your 40s-50s can fly by and then you’ve wasted decades. It’s hard but so important to get right.
Very true about the e two types of financial independence! Haven’t quite thought of it that way but fully agree when I read it. This might be my favorite interview in the series so far!
The top 3 realizations since leaving my corporate job 30 months ago:
The hardest loss was not the paycheck but identity.
"Enough" is not defined by numbers but state of mind.
I still can't (and shouldn't) do everything I want.
Great observations. I agree with you on each.
That's why I agree with Khe that it's less about financial handcuffs as it is the mental handcuffs.
Great article and a big fan of Khe myself. If I recall correctly he walked away with $5m+ and for most people that’s full FIRE status. Still the point stands. To walk away from a career that is so lucrative is not easy to do in your 30s.
Yes, Khe has been 100% transparent about his financial situation. He has a podcast episode where he lays it out.
But to your point, it’s way harder to walk away than people think from afar. In some ways, making more money may make a transition harder (compared to a career that’s not doing much for you, all else equal).
So it’s Khe’s ability to resist traditional norms that makes him so compelling. If people think, “must be nice coming from Wall Street,” I think they miss the bigger point.
Khe was one of the first people I encountered years ago who publicly "went off the career grid" so to speak. It's kind of amazing that he did it in his 30s, when most people at that age are too attached to the money, status building, or fear, etc to press the eject button. From what I've seen, more people seem to eject in their 50s after they've built up enough wealth to feel more secure in saying they've had enough. I kind of wish I had the guts to look at things like coast FIRE earlier in my career, but the golden handcuffs + being afraid of not having/being enough are powerful deterrents. Better late than never I suppose!
Yes, you still have a lot of guts Dave doing what you’re doing!
Everyone’s situation is different, but I do think Khe is remarkable for taking a bold risk when he did (also consider this was before the creator economy, so there were less proven paths).
But I agree that it’s good just getting stories like Khe’s out there, to show people there’s other ways to approach life.
Thanks Rick. Yeah 10 years ago we didn't have anywhere near the creator infrastructure/options there are now to build and monetize an audience, so what he's done is pretty cool. My first recollection of him was just his email newsletter and I think he had a blog or simple website. I think of him as a forerunner of sorts for the corporate escapees that are happening now.
I once called him Morpheus 😎
My husband and I were tempted to keep working “just one more year” to stockpile cash. It’s a sort of hoarding mentality, maybe evolutionarily derived in case of an emergency. But we had enough to do what we want to do next: buy a small sailboat, become “budget cruisers,” and have a reasonable enough runway to do it NOW. So we did.
This is an amazing article and public service. Thanks for sharing this story.
Ah yes, the "one more year" syndrome, which is quite common for people who justify well-paying/but-miserable jobs.
Sounds like you made the right move.
It’s always tempting to stay a bit longer.
I know people from Harvard who do a similar-yet-different thing where they’ll take a high-paying job “just for 5 years.” They’ll work on Wall Street or in management consulting to “gain some skills,” and THEN do what they really want. But, as far as I know, they never do — except for the unicorns like that Wall Street person you recently wrote about!
I think a lot of these people stay in these jobs by convincing themselves, “It’s not that bad.” Their colleagues are smart! They’re saving lives! And, while driving their $100k car to and from the job they don’t really love, they’re not doing the thing they want.
Thanks for the comment, Rick!
It's easy.
What are the things you will continue doing, tomorrow, if the doctor tells you, you have stage 4 brain tumors.
You are going to die soon.
50 years top.
Why do you need cancer to wake you up ?
It's a good framing - I especially like the concept of focusing on our death to bring clarity to our limited time.
But interestingly... I've found it's NOT EASY for nearly everyone!
What a story! I think psychological freedom is soooo key. It's taking me a while to get there even though I have "enough" money - old stories really have such a hold on me.
Agreed... this is why I think Khe is so interesting.
Great piece. Determining "what's next" is a collosal challenge in/at middle age. Pulling trigger early has huge benefits and trade-offs.
100% it requires a lot of bravery to go against norms, but I think it’s a pivotal period, as your 40s-50s can fly by and then you’ve wasted decades. It’s hard but so important to get right.
Very true about the e two types of financial independence! Haven’t quite thought of it that way but fully agree when I read it. This might be my favorite interview in the series so far!
Glad you like it, I always enjoy learning from Khe.