A person suggested on the last post of 2009 that I dedicated some time to telling people how they could become financially independent and achieve what most people "look for" when going into the world of forex trading. For this reason I decided to write a series of posts called "The road to financial freedom series (RFFS)" which aims to give you my point of view and experience in what refers to reaching this "thing" most people look for but so few of us seem to be able to find. I have found through my interaction with new traders that in general the problem is that the vision of what is exactly "financial freedom" is often opaque and mistaken for a life which is simply not quiet possible. In this first post of the series I will go through what I think "financial freedom" is and what I think people have as the "wrong picture" when going into the world of trading, specially, automated trading.
So what after all is financial freedom ? Many of you may just define it as having some means to live without having a 9 to 5 job, others may define it as having no boss while others may just see it as "not having to worry" about your finances, being "free" of the burden of money. For me it was a matter of independence. Definitely it was a matter of not wanting to have to work a 9 to 5 job and a matter of being my own boss and having only my talent and willingness to work as the limitant factors to my success.
I will tell you what financial freedom is not. It is not being a lazy arse. The idea that people try to sell sometimes that there is a way in which you can just watch money flow and sit in a chair while your income goes into your bank accounts without you doing anything is just not possible, it simply won't happen. Sure, there are people out there having money going into their bank accounts and they are not doing anything right now but certainly they did work extremely hard to get where they are right now. Do you think Warren Buffet, Bill Gates or Steve Jobs got their lives by just sitting under a palm tree ? Certainly they did not.
The reason why most people do not have that kind of life when they are 40 or 50 is mainly because the path that takes you there is much harsher than the path you have to follow in your 9 to 5 job. There is no boss to tell you what to do, there is no pressure and no motivation besides the pressure and motivation you give yourself. Being financially independent is perhaps one of the hardest things that I have done in my life. It required years of my constant work and patience and it required a lot of discipline. Much much more than getting my major or working a regular job. I needed to push myself to do things for the long haul, no immediate reward. I was doing things for the rewards I would take in 5 or 10 years.
What are the benefits ? Well, I certainly don't have to play by anyones rules or follow any schedule. I work when I feel like it and I don't when I don't feel like it. That is obviously a double edged sword because it requires a lot of discipline to get yourself to do things everyday you simply don't really have to. I find that the road at the end leads to nothing but satisfaction and personal growth. It is really good to push yourself and see how much you can really raise the bar. Things depend on you, not anyone else. However this does not mean that you should dedicate yourself 24/7 to doing this, do it slowly and smell the roses. That is what I did and I am glad it happened that way. I always have time for the people I love and never ever put my work before any of them, just remember the words of John Lennon, "life is what happens while we are making plans".
I can say today that I live from the market and this was not something easy to achieve. It was not plugging in a 97 USD robot or finding a holy grail. It took years of analysis, learning, programming, experience, patience and practice. If you think you can live from a simple forex system you will buy online without any further effort, just introduce me to ONE SINGLE PERSON who makes a living from one of those. I would be totally thrilled to get an interview :o).
If you want to learn more about my work with automated trading system and what profit/risk targets can be realistically achieved please consider buying my ebook on automated trading or subscribing to my weekly newsletter to receive updates and check the live and demo accounts I am running with several expert advisors. I hope you enjoyed the article !
So what after all is financial freedom ? Many of you may just define it as having some means to live without having a 9 to 5 job, others may define it as having no boss while others may just see it as "not having to worry" about your finances, being "free" of the burden of money. For me it was a matter of independence. Definitely it was a matter of not wanting to have to work a 9 to 5 job and a matter of being my own boss and having only my talent and willingness to work as the limitant factors to my success.
I will tell you what financial freedom is not. It is not being a lazy arse. The idea that people try to sell sometimes that there is a way in which you can just watch money flow and sit in a chair while your income goes into your bank accounts without you doing anything is just not possible, it simply won't happen. Sure, there are people out there having money going into their bank accounts and they are not doing anything right now but certainly they did work extremely hard to get where they are right now. Do you think Warren Buffet, Bill Gates or Steve Jobs got their lives by just sitting under a palm tree ? Certainly they did not.
The reason why most people do not have that kind of life when they are 40 or 50 is mainly because the path that takes you there is much harsher than the path you have to follow in your 9 to 5 job. There is no boss to tell you what to do, there is no pressure and no motivation besides the pressure and motivation you give yourself. Being financially independent is perhaps one of the hardest things that I have done in my life. It required years of my constant work and patience and it required a lot of discipline. Much much more than getting my major or working a regular job. I needed to push myself to do things for the long haul, no immediate reward. I was doing things for the rewards I would take in 5 or 10 years.
What are the benefits ? Well, I certainly don't have to play by anyones rules or follow any schedule. I work when I feel like it and I don't when I don't feel like it. That is obviously a double edged sword because it requires a lot of discipline to get yourself to do things everyday you simply don't really have to. I find that the road at the end leads to nothing but satisfaction and personal growth. It is really good to push yourself and see how much you can really raise the bar. Things depend on you, not anyone else. However this does not mean that you should dedicate yourself 24/7 to doing this, do it slowly and smell the roses. That is what I did and I am glad it happened that way. I always have time for the people I love and never ever put my work before any of them, just remember the words of John Lennon, "life is what happens while we are making plans".
I can say today that I live from the market and this was not something easy to achieve. It was not plugging in a 97 USD robot or finding a holy grail. It took years of analysis, learning, programming, experience, patience and practice. If you think you can live from a simple forex system you will buy online without any further effort, just introduce me to ONE SINGLE PERSON who makes a living from one of those. I would be totally thrilled to get an interview :o).
If you want to learn more about my work with automated trading system and what profit/risk targets can be realistically achieved please consider buying my ebook on automated trading or subscribing to my weekly newsletter to receive updates and check the live and demo accounts I am running with several expert advisors. I hope you enjoyed the article !
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2 comments:
Daniel-
Great post. I define financial freedom as the ability to make a living with nothing more than your wits, a pc and an internet connection. The fact that you can do the job from almost anywhere makes it that much more practical as a career choice.
How right you are that creating an on-line business or trading for a living is many times harder than a 9-5 job. It takes a serious worth ethic, and its clear from your site and your book that you believe in hard work. So congratulations on all you have achieved.
Its tough to survive from trading alone, because even if I made 30% a year on my account, it still wouldn't be enough to cover my expenses.
In your case, you're generating your own content which is a great supplement to trading. Plus you get to do what you love doing anyway which makes you wealthy in a different way. What good is money if you're miserable?
Congratulations on being financially independent, hope to join you there someday myself!
Chris
http://fx-mon.blogspot.com
Good post.
I suppose the only thing that seems to worry me about being financially independent at times is, am I disciplined enough to not sit on my arse all day after achieving that independence? :)
The good news is that the hard work to get to the point of financial independence likely sticks with you, and you continue to work hard thereafter.
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