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Regular readers of HumbleDollar may recall some of this as it has been mentioned by me in various articles over the years. In essence it is a summery of my adult life.
There were no moments of financial brilliance. It was mostly just plugging along with an absence of misfortune while trying to avoid doing anything exceptionally stupid.
I don’t recommend any similar actions for anyone. In fact, if I had to do it over, I suspect I would not recommend all of it for me either.
The only message here is to illustrate that there are different highways, roads even trails to reach one’s goals. It is possible to be successful if you choose to put great effort into every detail, to utilize the planning tools available to achieve your goals.
But if you are not a detail person, shy away from numbers or just like to keep things simple, success is also possible.
The way I see it, lifelong financial prudence, exercising personal responsibility, avoiding unnecessary risk and patience are key to winning. A bit of good life luck helps as well.
——————
I didn’t go to college after high school in 1961, but finally obtained a degree in 1978.
My first job was a union position at near minimum wage.
I stayed with one employer nearly fifty years while many of my colleagues moved on to bigger and better things throughout the years. I was a clerk for the first 15 years and a low level manager for the next 25 years.
Connie and I married ten months after our first date, eight of which I was in the army in Alabama plus nine more months after we married.
We had four children in five years.
We lived on one income our entire marriage.
I started a very small business from home to help pay college bills. It lasted about six years.
We bought a vacation home with a mortgage (at 9-1/2 %) a year before our oldest child started college. We rented it most of each summer to afford it.
From 1988 on we had 1,2 or 3 children in college for ten years in a row. We paid 95% or more of the cost.
I had a pension, but we didn’t actually start saving and investing for retirement until 1982 when I was 39 and first had access to a 401k. I’m glad we did.
My investing is more like hoping for the best, I never had a real plan or paid much attention to the details of my choices. I am diversified, but my fund selection is more like throwing darts. And I have a too large concentration in employer stock.
My best earning years, including equity compensation, started when I was age 63. I retired the year I was age 67.
Three years after I retired I was informed the non-qualified portion of my pension was calculated incorrectly and as a result my income was cut retroactively by 10%.
We took our Social Security at FRA while still working.
In retirement we still save for emergencies and in 529 plans. We help our children financially from time to time.
That’s it, my (our) road from high school to retirement, but I suspect today that road is not as well paved as it used to be.
Thanks!
the road depends on the driver and how one deals with the obstacles.
True
As someone who’s navigated a similar path (high school grad in the late ’80s, pieced together a degree while working, and stuck with one company for over 20 years), I totally relate to the one-income family hustle and those “throwing darts” investment moments. Your point about the road being bumpier today hits home; my kids are facing way higher hurdles with student loans and housing.
Despite what I said about the road to success these days, I often still have to convince myself that is really true. Is it harder to navigate.
Back then we had higher taxes, we had the draft facing us and serious wars for many years.
There were fewer laws to protect workers and their promised benefits. There was outright discrimination even in my own company back in the 1960s.
Houses were more affordable, but partly because we demanded less in size and amenities. Mortgage rates were higher than today and you needed a larger down payment.
We feared diseases that are no longer an issue. I’ll never forget when my friend got polio and what it did to his life.
And of course the latest technology was rabbit ears with aluminum foil atop the TV with maybe five or six channels that closed down at midnight.
That’s all true Dick. I think one major difference today is that a worker will likely change employers more often. I know how you feel about defined benefit pensions, and I agree, though at the same time the portability of defined contribution plans is a godsend for today’s worker.
I thought that too, but when i researched it i found the average job tenure had been pretty stable over decades at 4-5 years. There are longer exceptions like government workers and a few industries traditionally unionized like utilities.
The fact is for most workers a defined benefit pension would be of little or no value. You don’t find that discussed much.
Dick, we had similar starts. I graduated from HS in 1962 and did not get my 4 year degree until 1977. We got married in 1968 and had 2 children in the first 4 years of our marriage. My wife became a SAHM after our children were born. She reentered the work force after our 2 children were in school but was always home when the children came home from school.
My first professional job was with Eastern Air Lines in their Charlotte computer center. I only had a year of college but IT was still new and most colleges did not have degrees in IT. They used tests to determine the best candidates and I was chosen. Fast forward 20 years and there would have been no way I would have been selected based upon my background. However, most people in our large computer center did not have degrees and we did well.
I knew I would have to get a 4 year degree to advance into management, so I went to school at night while working and got my degree in 6 years. I always felt that I should share my degree with my wife because she did such a wonderful job with our children and managing our household.
My degree and experience helped me get future jobs that I would not have obtained otherwise. My degree was in Accounting. Finances are such an important part of many management jobs and my financial understanding gave me an edge over many others.
I was never a risk taker and have always been conservative in investing and other aspects of my life. I have been very blessed in my life and career and give credit to God for whatever success I had. He answered many prayers for me. Not always what I wanted at the time but it always worked out for my good.
You did better than I did. It took me nine years to get a degree. We were married in 1968 as well.
The American Dream.
I guess you are right. I wonder today why so many people seem to think there is no more such dream. It’s different of course. In some ways easier and others harder, but it’s still there.
Perhaps two things are different. The lack of patience and ability to accept less along the way. There is a lot we never had until we were in our 60s that seem expected at the start of the journey these days.
….I suspect today that road is not as well paved as it used to be.
I think that’s an accurate observation, though I wish we would have had vehicles like 401Ks, target date and Index funds when we started out.
Some folks find a well-paved road, you just have to take it. My oldest son is in the military and used his benefits to obtain a computer science BS. It took him a long time, but he kept at it. He was enlisted for 13 years, but the BS (and other weighty accomplishments) allowed him to apply and be accepted into officer training school. Last month I watched his commissioning ceremony. He’s now an officer. I’m so very proud of all he (and his wife) put up with to make this happen.
Jeff, kudos to your son for seizing the opportunities that his career in the military presented. He must be the product of some good parenting. You should be proud!
Oftentimes we are responsible for the condition of the road we travel. There were certainly some self made potholes in the middle of my road. 😝
You’re a near perfect textbook example of the three “P’s” model of financial management: Prudent, Patient, and Persistent.
Dick,
Thanks for going through the details of your money journey.
I enjoy reading posts and comments about how others have handled their finances.