As someone who is right in the thick of things when it comes to the FIRE movement, I cannot believe I haven’t written about it until now. But hey, better late than never, right? FIRE is an acronym, short for “Financial Independence, Retire Early.” It refers to a movement, especially popular among Millennials, where you save significantly more than the average savings rate (often upward of 50% of your income) in order to retire much earlier than the standard age of 65 (think 30s or 40s). You can think of it as “Freedom 55” on steroids.

Fire is an interesting element. I’ve been fascinated by it ever since I was a young boy (there are pictures to prove it), and I continue to be fascinated by it today. It has the ability to provide warmth and light, to fuel any number of machines and actions… and it can destroy, if used in the wrong way.

When I talk about fire here and now, I’m talking about the fire within you and I. You know what I’m talking about – the flame that burns deep in the pit of your stomach, that either tells you that you’re doing what you were born to do, or that you’re getting further and further off-track.

The question is, which fire are you feeding? (more…)