Our Triple Bottom Line // Balancing Frugality With Our Values

Consider Your Anchors // How We’ve Dodged the Lifestyle Inflation Bullet

Beyond Frugal Gifts // Giving Gifts of Experience

Thinking About Frugality More Broadly // A Call to Action

How to Be an Ethical Reader // The Economics of Books and Libraries

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Those of us who love books want to be able to read without having to do too much thinking about what’s happening behind the scenes in the book world. Unfortunately, the publishing and bookselling landscape is surprisingly complex, and there’s plenty you should know if you wish to be an ethical reader, from how authors make money, to how libraries get exploited by publishers, to what advice on social media you should absolutely not follow.

Western span of the Bay Bridge with the moon above it and a pink sky

Is It Ethical to Invest in Cryptocurrency?

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When we talk about crypto, far too often we talk about whether it’s a good investment monetarily or not, as in: “Will I make or lose money if I buy this?” But we rarely ask whether buying crypto is ethical, and whether its costs to the planet and to our fellow humans can ever be justifiable. So let’s get into that question.

A spread of eggplants, tomatoes, peppers and green veggies from Tanja's garden

We Think About Risk All Wrong // How Riding a Bike Almost Ruined Everything

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Many of us have a bad habit of talking about and thinking about risk in entirely the wrong way. There’s no perfectly safe way to go through life, and that’s true with our money and true with everything else, too. There’s rarely a safe option and a risky option, but instead different options with different risks. This is the story of something terrible that drove that point home for me and Mark this year.

Lake Tahoe from lake level, with mountains in the background

The Value of a Long Break

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I’m back on the blog after a long time away to write my next book, Wallet Activism, and to reflect on what’s actually worth saying after the last year. Though this wasn’t a break I intended, it taught me a lot about the value of stepping away for a while, something we can all relate to right now.

Retire Early Without Harming Others // A Hard Look at FIRE and Racial Inequality

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My last post was about how the discourse of the FIRE community upholds systemic racism, but today’s is much more personal. This is about how our choices as individuals — as investors, as people choosing where to live, as earners, as tax payers and as charitable givers — impact and likely harm others, especially those who are already impacted by racial inequality. Fortunately, there are plenty of steps we can take to do better, and to ensure that we’re not harming others in our quest to achieve work-optional life.

Doing the Thing That Scares You

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One of the biggest things I’ve discovered in the last year is how badly I still want to be challenged despite having left my career behind. In fact, I want it so badly that I’m having to redefine what “challenge” even means to me. A real challenge involves some risk, even if that’s only emotional risk. Let’s talk about why it’s so important — and beneficial — to do the thing that scares you.

New Life Rhythms, A Delayed Reckoning and Being Okay with Blogging Less // Tanja Hester, Our Next Life, Work Optional: Retire Early the Non-Penny-Pinching Way // financial independence, adventure, happiness

New Life Rhythms, A Delayed Reckoning and Being Okay with Blogging Less

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I’m gradually moving toward a less frequent blogging schedule, driven largely by the evolving way I’m viewing and experiencing life in early retirement. This second year of early retirement has been a lot different from the first, and as I learn and evolve more, I’m discovering new ways of approaching life and purpose that sometimes come with uncomfortable realizations. In other words: I’m finally having that reckoning of sorts of “What am I doing with my life?” that so many retirees experience much sooner.

Decide For Yourself What Spending You Value, and Then Spend Without Guilt // OurNextLife.com, Tanja Hester, author of Work Optional: Retire Early the Non-Penny-Pinching Way

Decide For Yourself What Spending You Value, and Then Spend Without Guilt

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If you’re on the journey to a work optional life, or you’re already retired, you have probably spent some time pondering what you truly value most, and what doesn’t add value to your life. But do you spend accordingly, and — importantly — without guilt? If not, this post is for you, talking all about giving yourself permission to spend on what you value most, whatever it is, and regardless of whether others in the FIRE movement think it’s a worthy expense.