
The Changing Realities of an Ideal Retirement
I can describe my ideal retirement in three words. Long and healthy. If my retirement is long and healthy, I’ll have very little to complain about. Beyond that, everything else is icing on top of the cupcake. But like my sugar-crazed daughter, I spend a lot of time thinking about the icing. A Healthy Exercise…

Managing Family Healthcare While Self-Employed
November is National Diabetes Awareness Month. The most significant mental hurdle before leaving my full-time career was health insurance. My former employer offered excellent healthcare benefits at an affordable cost. Leaving meant giving up the low-cost benefit but keeping the insurance through COBRA. Our 2023 health insurance plan is the same as when I was…

Fundrise Review After Six Years of Investing
This Fundrise review was completely updated on 11/06/2023. Fundrise is a Washington, D.C.-based real estate and alternative assets platform enabling non-accredited investors to invest in high-quality real estate and pre-IPO startups. The company is one of the most innovative in the real estate space, leveraging technology and systems to streamline regulatory filings and make the…

Investing Outside of the Stock Market: 10 Ways to Profit
The stock market has its stomach-churning moments. Dedicating a portion of your portfolio to investing outside of the stock market can help put your mind at ease when the market gets inevitably uncomfortable. In the new interest rate and lower inflation environment, safe investments that were unattractive for years now provide solid returns and diversify…

Defining Your Post-Career Purpose
Retirement is a fuzzy line these days. It seems increasingly rare for older people to cross the threshold from career worker to retiree on a single day and remain retired indefinitely. My Dad did that. So did a few of my extended family members and former coworkers. But when I ask retirement-aged people about their…

EquityMultiple Review 2023: Real Estate Investing Made Simple
This EquityMultiple review was last updated on 10/16/2023. EquityMultiple is a real estate crowdfunding platform that connects accredited investors to high-quality, pre-vetted commercial real estate investment opportunities. The company partners with experienced lenders and real estate companies around the United States to source deals for its platform investors. It thoroughly vets each sponsor and proposed…

Long-Term Investing in an Impatient World
My best-performing investment ever is a managed mutual fund called the Fidelity OTC Portfolio (FOCPX). It’s up more than 1,100% since I’ve owned it. I wish I could say I’m brilliant at evaluating mutual fund managers and picking funds. But I only own this fund because my first employer, back in 1998, offered it as…

Venture Capital Investing for Retail Investors
Redwood Materials is a sustainable materials company laying the groundwork for electric vehicle (EV) battery recycling in the U.S. As EVs increase in numbers over the next few decades, many electric cars will reach their end-of-life. When they do, the raw materials contained within the batteries will retain much of their value. High-demand metals (e.g.,…

10 Years of RBD — What’s Next?
Yep, I’ve been writing this blog for 10 years. But instead of rewriting what’s already been written, I want to focus on today and the future. Today’s post is a personal update about my current situation and how my life and business are moving toward closer alignment with “the why” of the early retirement goal…

Hidden Cash Value in Your Stock Portfolio: Shareholder Voting Rights
Today’s article is a guest post from a young entrepreneur named Preston Yadegar. Preston has built an online platform called the Shareholder Vote Exchange (SVE) to empower individual investors to generate additional income from their existing stock holdings by selling their shareholder voting rights. When you own a stock, each share represents a vote during…