Last week, I spent hours workshopping a retirement calculator.

I felt stuck as someone who was completely new to finance and hated working with numbers and spreadsheets (I only do it for the cute colours and graphs).

But yesterday, I met a complete stranger at a cafe in Thailand.

He retired at 42 years old and told me all his secrets.

“I don’t ever want to hear you say that again.”

He told me this after I shared my finance beginner struggles.

“I’m not a finance person, I can’t figure out these formulas and don’t know how I’m supposed to hit my goals…”

After I said this, he looked at me sternly.

“Don’t ever say you can’t do something. If you don’t know, find a way to learn. Find a mentor. Search online. But don’t ever say you can’t.”

His tips:

1. Start with desired retirement age

2. Figure out how much you want to live on per month in retirement

3. Figure out how much to invest, assuming 5% returns, in order to live on those returns per month (I’m figuring out how to incorporate this in my spreadsheet)

4. Ask for an amortization table when purchasing property

5. Set scary big goals - if you fall short, you’ll learn from your failures. If you meet them, you’ll be further ahead than if you set small goals

6. Pay your “future self” (investments) first

“If they say no, you say next.”

He told me about how he took a $200k job in retirement because he was bored.

He walked in the office of a multi-billion dollar company and asked to see their head of operations.

“Do you have an appointment? I can’t let you in without one,” the receptionist told him.

“I understand, but I need to see him.”

He eventually got the head of operations to chat.

“I understand you’re busy, so let me make this quick. Your company has [problem he noticed], here’s how you can fix it based on my experience.” He handed over a document full of actionable solutions.

If it didn’t work out, he would’ve gone to pitch the next company.

But this company was so impressed they hired him on the spot.

“Know your power.”

This stranger had a friend who loaned $6,000 to her friend.

She never got that money back…

But she needed it to pay her bills.

“What do I do?” She came to him crying. “My payments are due tomorrow, can you loan me some money?”

Here’s what he told her:

“I keep my money and my emotions separate. I’d rather teach you how to avoid these mistakes, than enable you to make more.”

So he told her to call everyone she owed and explain the situation.

She called them: “Can you give me a few extra days?”

She had to explain if they seized her assets, they’d have to go into the trouble of selling them for cash.

But if they just gave her a few more days, she would have enough to pay them.

When she put it that way, it became a no-brainer to give her an extension.

And that’s why communication is one of the most powerful soft skills you can learn.

If you enjoyed this, you’ll love the bonus content in my life tracking course

Some students last cohort loved this type of content.

These modules are when I take time (30-40 minutes) to share some insights that have changed the way I live my life.

Jennifer

P.S. reply with “discount” if you can’t afford the course and want a discount code :)