I’ve finally updated my ABOUT page to include more information about how I got started.
My Mission
I’m in my early 30’s and want to be able to retire or semi-retire at 40 by using dividends as a great portion of my income.
There’s an urban myth that Einstein said the most powerful force in the universe is compounding [interest]. A college class on theory of interest and an actuarial science concentration set the stage for my investment interests. I started dividend growth investing in 2012.
The main purpose of this blog will be to track my progress on the way to financial independence (FI). I will be keeping track of one of my dividend growth portfolios as well as all real estate transactions and options trades. My portfolio’s main goal will be to grow dividends over time allowing me to live off dividend income and not having to sell any shares.
My Strategy – Dividend Growth Investing & Real Estate
Dividend Growth Investing is an income strategy of investing in companies that have a barrier to entry (large moat) and consistent history of increasing dividends by a rate higher than inflation.
Link to my business plan – My Business Plan – All About Interest
I currently own two rental properties with hopes of adding more soon. You can find out more about this either on my Real Estate page or from my posts with a Real Estate label.
BIO
I grew up in a rural area in a town with a population smaller than my first college dormitory! I was in a middle-class family with hard-working parents. My parents pushed me to excel in whatever I did. It typically didn’t take a big push as I always had a high drive to succeed at anything I attempted. Whether it was beating a friend at a video game (Street Fighter 2 on SNES comes to mind), playing sports (my favorite sport was basketball although I was always better at running track) or academic competitions (yes, I was a bit of a math nerd).
I ended up 4th in a class of over 120 in high school (several towns combined for one school). I received two scholarships to attend Texas A&M University and was accepted into the Electrical Engineering program. I attended there my first year and transferred due to a personal relationship at the time. I ended up at UT, The University of Texas, where I finished college. I decided engineering wasn’t for me after about two years so I switched majors. I received both an economics and mathematics degree with a concentration in actuarial science.
After college, I decided I didn’t want to stare at actuarial formulas and work on complex mathematical algorithms for the rest of my life. I decided to take a different route, into SALES (think Boiler Room pounding the phones in a loud room). Man, was this a change!
I realized I was actually really good at phone sales and you could make a lot of money. Basically, I was in charge of my own destiny since it was primarily commission based. I finally peaked out my earnings where it was hard to make much more plus my bosses at the time decided to drastically lower our commission structure to finance their expensive houses. Needless to say I left and started my own consulting firm.
The year was 2008. What came next was the largest hurdle I have ever had to face, the Great Recession. I was hit with a ton of bricks. Every manager and company I called had fear in their voice about closing down or losing their jobs. Here I was trying to staff additional employees to companies who were busy laying people off left and right.
The next couple of years would define my career path and get me to where I am today. These were very tough times. Instead of giving up I decided to trim the fat and get my livings costs down as low as possible.
I was living in my current rental house now and decided it was cheaper for me to downsize and buy a condo and lease out my house. My total mortgage costs at the time was $1800/month. I leased the house for $1600/month ($200 loss) and bought a condo (my other current rental) which had a monthly cost of $1000/month ($800 cheaper). The net gain was $600/month and my utility bills were also much lower in a smaller space now.
I also dropped DirecTV and bought an HD antennae to get free HD local channels. I negotiated a lower price for cable internet. I started eating at home more often. I basically cut out all of my unneeded expenses in order to save more money and focus on my business.
Fast forward a few years and my business is growing well. We came out of the Great Recession and I came out as a new person. I had grown more as a person in those few years than I probably have my entire life. I realized my financial destiny was in my own hands. This is when I found dividend growth investing.
Today I manage and am still trying to grow my business. I am spending as much of my extra income as possible to plow back into my DG portfolio and into real estate. My ultimate goal is to be able to retire or semi-retire and do what I want by age 40. I have about 6 more years to go.
Wish me luck!
Hi AAI. Thanks for the backstory. Some of your story had shone through your articles, but the write up above is much more comprehensive. I like the Boiler Room reference too :o) You’re making great progress. On your goals, and if you’re anything like me……getting to know others in this community is half the fun. Thanks again for the glimpse into your past.
-Bryan
I agree that this is a very nice story and that AAI is making a very very good progress here.
It is very interesting that so many people were hit hard by the great recession, but they managed to survive and thrive nonetheless. That is pretty inspiring, because now you have learned not to be wasteful, which incidentally will result in lower spending and higher savings. The lessons you learned will pay you dividends for decades to come!
Keep up the good work!
DGI
Fast Weekly,
I’m glad you enjoyed it. I figured I’d put a little more out there since I really hadn’t updated that page since I started the blog. I agree it’s interesting to get to know other fellow bloggers.
DGI,
I’m glad you enjoyed it as well. It’s true that I learned some valuable lessons that will pay “dividends” for years to come.
Cheers
It is always very interesting to read about other people’s private.
Then you can understand the blog even better.
I myself have no About-page on my blog.
I think I or the Germans are in this respect a little more reserved.
regards
D-S
Hi D-S,
I respect your decision to keep things private. It’s partly due to how I was raised. We never even locked our doors when I grew up.
Take care!
Its true what they say. “If it doesn’t kill you, it will only make you stronger.”
Enjoyed reading your story. Keep it up you will be FI in no time.
Hi FFdividend,
That’s right! I agree with you and I’m happy you enjoyed the back story.
Thanks for stopping by!
I didnt imagine that a person with a math degree would end up in sales. But I guess you found a niche and found out what you were good at.
Great to read about your personal story, AAI.
cheers
Hi R2R,
It’s a strange combination for sure. It’s almost from one extreme to the next. Who knew I’d be good at sales? I sure didn’t. I’m glad you enjoyed a small glimpse into my past.
Take care!
Amazing story! I find it fascinating to hear or read about people that grew up in a small town or on a farm, and break out into a new and completely different context. My dad did, and ended up doing a sabbatical half-way around the world. That’s what got me to America first time around. And now I’m back permanently…
Thanks for sharing, and good luck with your progress towards FI.
FerdiS,
Thanks! I’m happy you liked it. It’s certainly not the norm as most of the people I grew up with stayed in the same small town area. That’s awesome about your dad. He paved the way for you to be here.
Thanks and I appreciate the support!
sometimes I wish we would have considered buying a condo instead of a house. some much cheaper to heat and cool and everything else.
Hi Liz,
I agree. There’s several benefits to having a condo including much smaller utility bills. It was a great decision for me that helped me save money in bad times.
Thanks for stopping by!
I’m waiting for an idea for a business. Or perhaps to develop a saleable skill.
Hi Wallet,
I always watch Shark Tank and think, “why didn’t I think of that?”. The main thing is to not give up on your dreams.
Take care
I always like getting to learn the background of my fellow bloggers. That’s awesome how well you’re doing now with your business considering you started it at probably the worst time possible. Many people would have given up during those times but you’re reaping the rewards now. I’m sure you’ll reach the point where you could semi-retire much earlier than 40 and probably full on retire before then as well. I can’t wait to see where all of us are another 3-5 years down the line.
Hey PIP,
I’m fortunate to be where I am at today. Starting a business in a bad economy taught me many useful things that I’ll never forget. I hope you’re right and I can stay on track to early retirement. You are on a great pace yourself. I look forward to watching your journey as well.
Take care!
I just want to say that I enjoy reading your blog and your mission. I too am on a mission to financial independence. I am at the begining of my journey just working to pay off the debts I have amassed thus far, but I will be keeping track of your blog and educating myself about dividen earnings as I intend to turn to divedens once I have freed up $$ from high interest loans. Thank you for publishing your journey as it inspires me to pursue mine in reading about others like me who are looking for their own way to independence.
NoFussLiving,
Congrats on starting your journey to FI. You’ve made a big first step that’s essential! Eliminating high interest debt is the absolute first thing you need to do. Once this is done you’ll have extra cash to invest or pay down more debt. I’m glad you are following along on my journey and wish you luck reaching your own financial independence.
Thanks for stopping by!
If you are Passionate about something or someone then you’ll try to make time for that thing or that person no matter how busy you are.