Journey to Financial Independence with Me

When I first started thinking seriously about financial independence, I did what many people do.

I looked for information.

I searched endlessly online, watched various YouTube channels, and spoke to friends who seemed financially in control. I wanted to know the best strategy, where to invest, what accounts to open, and how others were building wealth.

But after all that searching, I noticed something important. Before choosing any strategy, you need to know where you stand first.

The real first step was not investing. It was looking at my own numbers. That sounds simple, but I know many people avoid doing this because it creates stress. I understand that completely.

When I finally sat down and looked at mine, I felt disheartened. Maybe even borderline depressed as I remember staring at the spreadsheet in silence. I realised that despite working hard and earning what I considered a decent income, I had very little to show for it.

Most of the money was gone almost as soon as it came in.

Rather than looking back at every past mistake, I decided to focus only on the recent few years where I had an “upgrade” in my career. I started a new job around two years ago, so I analysed only that period of income I earned and the spending that followed.

What I found was a shock. I was spending 105% of what I earned. That meant I was not only using my salary, but also relying on future money through credit. The worrying part was that I did not even realise it was happening.

Part of the reason was that some of the spending came from another account that still had money sitting in it. On the surface, everything looked fine. But with closer scrutiny, it was obvious that balance was steadily shrinking.

I always assumed I was doing fine. The income seemed enough and the lifestyle felt manageable. But there was a subtle gap growing quietly in the background.

So I broke it down:

• 38% went to rent
• 62% + 5% was spending

That spending included:

• Utilities (water, electricity, gas)
• Internet and mobile bills
• Groceries
• Holidays
• Outings / eating out
• School and after-school clubs
• Purchases for us and the children
• Household and family essentials
• All form of taxes !!!

The truth is, most of these did not look unreasonable on their own. That is what makes lifestyle creep so dangerous.

I sat down with my wife and we made a plan. It was not a very pleasant discussion. We did not even know where to begin because everything felt important, and every category felt difficult to compromise on. But we knew the first target had to be simple.

Get back to 100% or below.

No advanced strategy.
No investing plan.
No shortcuts.

Just regain control of our finances.

We achieved that first goal mainly by cutting back on:

• Holidays
• Outings
• Eating out

Those were the areas that had the biggest impact on our monthly spending, and the ones we felt were easiest to reduce.

Honestly, I was sad to cut them. But I know, short term pain for long term gain. We still go on holidays, enjoy weekend family trips and eat out. The difference now is that we set limits and plan for them. Just enough to stop moving backwards.

Financial progress does not begin with investments, side hustles or chasing returns. It begins with honesty with yourself. You need to know where you stand before you decide where to go. Sometimes the most important move is simply facing the numbers. Because once you understand them, you can start changing them.

Now, looking back at where I was two years ago, I realise I was actually fortunate. I did not have huge debts or completely unmanageable spending.

More importantly, I am glad I took that first step when I did. It was a wake-up call.

So have you ever checked your real spending honestly? And crunched those numbers down to the decimal point?

You may be closer to change than you think.

Journey to FI with one honest step at a time.
See you in the next step of my journey.