Hack in the Box

As I’ve mentioned before in these here pages, I consumes lotsa FIRE content (with my favorite media being blogs). Tho I am trying to cut down on this a bit, It’s hard habit to break. In some cases because I feel like I’m reading or watching a story unfold and want to keep reading on. But in other cases because, although I’ve got all the 101, 201, and probably 301 FIRE-related stuff locked down, a new and valuable story, strategy, or hack theretofore unbeknownst to me occasionally is revealed. 

There’s no knowing when one of these precious mushrooms will pop its lil’ head out of the ground. So, I read and listen. And read and listen some more. And read and listen to yet more.

Mike, check

I recently was informed (major hat tip to Just Some Dude, of Escaping Avalon, for uncovering an almost-impossible-to-find link) of a long-since dormant blog I couldn’t remember ever visiting: Lacking Ambition. I ambled over to the blog (or, more precisely, to the Wayback Machine version of it), made a beeline for the archives, and started reading. 

I binge read the whole shebang in a few days.

Lacking Ambition is great. Plenty of others agree. No less a FIRE community luminary than JL Collins not only left comments on the blog, but did so regularly. I’ve never seen any comment left by JL on any blog. Much less comments left regularly. And on just the fifth episode of his podcast, the Mad Fientist interviewed Mike, Lacking Ambition’s author. If JL is leaving comments on your blog, the Mad Fientist thinks so highly of your content that you’re one of his earliest interviewees, and, as I’ve discovered, some people consider yours their favorite FIRE blog . . . well, you’ve created something pretty special. 

Lacking Ambition isn’t my all-time favorite blog. But I’ll be thinking about it for a long time. Probly longer than I’ve thought about any blog, save Mr. Money Mustache (MMM). In no small part because Mike is as much a master hacker of personal finance (and frankly life in general) as I think I’ve ever found. Having come across many brilliant FIRE community members, I can say that that’s one bigly high bar. 

This got me thinking of the best personal finance and life hackers I’ve come across in the FIRE space. I’mma pay homage to them here. 

Let’s start with Lacking Ambition, shall we, Dear Reader? The tl;dr on Mike is that he lives (or, gulp . . . lived?) very simply, got his college and law school education paid for by his employer, bought a handful of properties for laughably low figures (think five figures each, not even low six figures), DIY fixed them up and rented some out, and in short time FIREd, with the rental income of just a few thousand dollars a month covering his expenses and then some. His bachelor’s and law degrees were pursued not for the purposes of getting a “good” job, but rather for the pleasure of learning. And there’s more. Much more. 

Looking at Mike’s life superficially, one could conclude that his finances are put together with string and duct tape. That couldn’t be further from the truth. No, they’re put together with mortar and welded steel. And he did all that before age 30. Bonkers! And inspirational.

Homage goodness!

Next up is MMM. As much a contrarian thinker and hacker as anyone, I learned more from his blog (including what the heck FIRE even is) than any other. Hands down. Everything from little things like head-slappingly simple and obvious ways to stay cool or warm for free to big things like the math behind FIRE. And hundreds of things in between. All as equally shockingly simple as shockingly hiding plain sight.

Third is another blog I only discovered a year or two ago: Trip of a Lifestyle. The couple behind it, Lauren and Steven, live a life that’s fantastically frugal without (for them at least) depriving themselves of almost anything. I’ve marveled at their accomplishments in visiting all of the United States’ national parks on the cheap (like rrreeeaaalllly cheap), moving to Hawaii and living pretty much fer nothing, to saving and investing at a heroic pace with little sacrifice (for them). I’m decades older than them, but that doesn’t mean that I didn’t learn tons from their blog.

Next is another long-dormant blog: Money Metagame. From the get-go after finding it, I concluded that the author, Noah, and his wife, Becky, were contrarian thinkers of the highest order. Their travel hacking prowess is legendary. But they fired (no pun intended) on all cylinders in almost all respects. Do yourself a favor and read the blog. Great story, great tips. 

Also long dormant is one of my all-time favorite blogs: Bayalis Is the Answer (sadly, most of her posts are not currently accessible, but maybe you can find a link to them hidden deep in the interwebs’ bowels). The blog’s author, Mrs. BITA, not only was one of the funniest writers I’ve ever had the great pleasure to come across in any genre, but also a master-level hacker. Maybe my favorite hack of hers was a DIY carwash masked in the garb of a birthday party for her then toddler. Mind . . . blown. But there was so, so much more. Those hacks, combined with the fact that she and her husband were high-income tech workers, resulted in them hurtling at breakneck speed toward FIRE. Even in such an eye-wateringly high-cost-of-living area as Silicon Valley. Remarkable.

Next up is Justin, he being the author behind Saving Sherpa and a co-host of The Financial Independence Show podcast. Although Justin also was a high-income-earning tech worker, he’s lived a fantastically frugal life involving no real sacrifice for him that’s in no small part a result of his master-level hacking prowess. From driving down his housing expenses to laughably low sums, to eating for free, to more, I often found my mouth agape when reading about his hacks.

Another Justin worth mentioning is the Justin behind the Root of Good blog. Although I didn’t learn as many hacks from him as from others mentioned here, two of his posts absolutely epic: one as to paying for college, and the other saving in retirement accounts and paying little in taxes. For those who take full advantage of just those two hacks alone, the savings will be absolutely massive. 

Another ”really, really old-timer” in the FIRE blogosphere and podcastosphere (It’s a word. Trust me.) along with Root of Good’s Justin is Brandon, the man, the myth, the legend behind The Mad Fientist. Brandon didn’t pen many posts. But several are landmarks. From explaining in simple terms and graphics the beauty and utility of HSAs to Roth conversions, he’s done as much as anyone to make fantastically valuable hacks mainstream and to shape the FIRE movement. 

Last up is Jeremy, the hacker extraordinaire behind Go Curry Cracker. In terms of tax optimization hacks, he’s simply a legend. In this humble blogger’s opinion, not until Sean Mullaney—the “FI Tax Guy”—entered the FIRE scene a few years ago was there as much a FIRE community master of the tax code as Jeremy. His Never Pay Taxes Again and annual recitations of his prior year’s tax filing posts continue to blow my mind. He’s equally brilliant as to travel hacking. And, in recent years, he’s written posts detailing his arbitraging hacks (like this epic one) that have left me utterly speechless. Dear Reader, read and learn. Lots.

And in the end . . . 

And there you have it, Dear Reader. A starter post with links to some of the greats at thinking outside the box to realize wildly outsized gains. That all said, sometimes there’s plenty of opportunities that come from jumping in the box. Use your discretion.