“Knowing that money is simply your life energy puts you in the driver’s seat of your money life. How much of my life am I willing to sell to have money in my pocket? Looking around at your accumulation of stuff you can ask, ‘How many hours of my life did I invest to have this . . . chair . . . car . . . matched set of cookware . . . diploma on the

The myths of “growth is good” and “full employment” established themselves as key values. These dovetailed nicely with the gospel of “full consumption,” which preached that leisure is a commodity to be consumed rather than free time to be enjoyed. For the past half century, full employment has meant more consumers with more “disposable income.”

Legendary investor Warren Buffett said, “A low-cost fund is the most sensible equity investment for the great majority of investors.” He explains, “By periodically investing in an index fund, for example, the know-nothing investor can actually outperform most investment professionals.”

CHECKLIST Statement of earnings from Social Security Income tax returns Checkbook records Old and current statements Gifts Winnings Loans Capital gains Illegal sources Contract labor not reported to the IRS (tips, babysitting, errands)

SUMMARY OF STEP 2 1. Establish (accurately and honestly) how much money you are trading your life energy for, and discover your real hourly wage. 2. Learn about your money behavior by keeping track of every cent that comes into and goes out of your life.

Reaching your Crossover Point is a mighty accomplishment. You haven’t been turned out to pasture by someone else. You’ve restructured your life around what is most fulfilling and valuable to you. You have dedicated yourself to replacing financial fiction with financial facts, challenging many old beliefs about yourself, your money, and your life.

transform your relationship with your future.

Waste lies not in the number of possessions but in the failure to enjoy them. Your success at being frugal is measured not by your penny-pinching but by your degree of enjoyment of the material world.

Financial Independence has nothing to do with rich. It is the experience of having enough—and then some.