Top Things We Learned in 2024
Each year that passes is full of numerous experiences that we can learn from and 2024 is no exception. Sometimes these lessons are obvious, but many times these lessons are completely surprising.
The Squire
2024 was an interesting year. I learned a lot about myself and others, and actually shared some of my thoughts here, on a blog! Here are a few things I felt were more noteworthy.
- It’s okay to share my thoughts with others. Like Scout, I’m an introvert. I’m also not a great speaker or writer. But when I’m being genuine, caring, and respectful to others, I feel okay sharing my thoughts. When people hear topics I’m interested in discussing in an open way, they feel more comfortable sharing their thoughts and concerns too. This can and has led to deeper conversations and insight.
- The kids enjoy traveling. We took a couple trips in 2024 to places the kids hadn’t been before, and they went surprisingly well! Although neither trip was more than a week, it was really fun to see the kids explore new environments and create memories that will likely last many years.
- Participation can enhance a community experience. I attended a large work conference and I attended the EconoMe Conference this year. In both, I tried to spend more time talking with people than just taking notes as an observer. I felt listening to other people brought more depth in my understanding of others. But I also felt that my perspective might have been helpful to others, whether a speaker, a vendor, or another attendee. I felt more of a community feeling from this approach as compared with feeling like an outsider from just observing in previous conferences.
Scout
The majority of what I learned this year is closely tied to my still fresh experience with early retirement. I’ve previously documented these observations in my Musings Part 1 and Part 2. Nonetheless, there are a few lessons that stand out above the rest:
- Life is about more than money. Of course money is important to all of us in the FI community. It would be dishonest for me to say that money wasn’t at the forefront of my mind & my life for so many years. Now residing on the other side of FI, I am able to acknowledge that while money is a very important tool, it’s just that, a tool. I’ve been fortunate to use the tool of money to enable myself freedom to focus my time & energy on what really matters – spending quality time with my wife & kids while also pursuing different interests such as podcast production/editing & working on this blog. While money still has a role in my life, it’s no longer the dominant force that it once was.
- We ALL have money fears & money worries. Most people fret about money because they don’t have enough of it, they can’t responsibly handle it, and/or they lack basic financial education. I’ve been one of the lucky ones that has always been comfortable around money – there was no financial stress in my house growing up, I was a natural saver, and I was able to save & invest regularly throughout my working career. Ironically, I never worried about money until I retired and was faced with the need to sell investments for the first time – this was truly a scary event! I realized that no matter who we are, what sort of background we have with money, or where we are on our financial journeys, any one of us can have money fears & worries. It’s perfectly normal and it’s perfectly fine. The big differentiator is how we deal with this anxiety – do we let our emotions have free reign or do we stand up and take control of the situation; do we let money have authority over us or do we have authority over our money?
- I guess people are okay. As you probably already know by now (since I’ve mentioned it a thousand times), I am an introvert. My social circle has always been relatively small and I’m perfectly fine with that. However, this year I’ve made a conscious effort to be a little more social in all aspects of life. Attending the EconoMe Conference really changed my perception of community and being around others – I never imagined I could have or would have been so comfortable talking to strangers all weekend (a shared bond of FI definitely made it much easier). This positive experience allowed me to be receptive to experimenting with other social interactions throughout the year. I volunteered at my kids’ schools and even coached a few of my son’s sports teams, both activities I traditionally shunned because of forced interactions with kids & adults. Although it took a while, I gradually opened up and got semi-comfortable talking to parents. Then most surprisingly, my wife & I went on a cruise recently and because I had practiced social interactions all year, I actually talked to others on the ship and ended up meeting some really cool people! Totally crazy, but I realized that perhaps people aren’t so bad after all.
Links/Resources
Reader Questions
- What lessons did you learn this past year?
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