Holy sh*t! The words I could not WAIT to say for almost 5 years: I AM DEBT FREE!!! It still feels surreal. I’ve checked a few times to see if my final student loan payment cleared (it has!), but I still don’t think it’s completely sunk in. The moment I’ve dream of for years: No line of credit. No student loans. No car payment. COMPLETELY debt free (except for a modest mortgage). That $103,000 in debt that used keep me up at night? All gone!! I was worried that after working so hard for it, the moment would feel anticlimactic and disappointing. It did not. In fact, I recorded myself paying it ..read more

Have you ever been in a situation that feels really hard, but you KNOW it’s the right choice? That’s us right now. We made some difficult choices that are putting us on a path I’m proud of. Intentionally deciding what you want the most isn’t easy, but it is worth it! I’ll preface this by saying I am not typically a Dave Ramsay fan. I find his advice too unnuanced at best, and sometimes outright problematic. However, I often watch finance videos on youtube with my morning coffee (nerd, I know) and this one from Dave Ramsay was suggested to me. For whatever reason I watched and actually enjoyed ..read more

A couple years ago I went on my first multi-day hiking trip. I felt surprisingly nervous for someone who has done many wild, strenuous day hikes. This was different though. I wasn’t going to be back at my vehicle for a fresh jacket or extra water at the end of the day. I had to carry everything I needed to sustain myself, and I needed to get that list correct. I asked an friend who had done multiple month+ hikes for advice. What should I bring?! He gave me an amazing starter list, then gave me an incredible bonus piece of advice: “Pack for your biggest fear” The key though: you only get one! H ..read more

What is Coast Fi & why are we pursuing it? Feeling financially secure changes your life. A few years ago when I graduated with no savings, 100k in student loans, and a casual healthcare career with no guaranteed shifts things were ROUGH. I felt like I was on the edge of something terrible, and I cried often. I knew the smallest financial hiccup could ruin me. For a few years I kept my expenses very low and focused on paying down my debts. I slowly started to feel like I could financially breathe. In that time I also stumbled across the incredibly popular Mr. Money Mustache blog. It truly c ..read more

Welcome to 2022! We’re midway into the month yet I’m still having a hard time believing a new year has started. The ongoing pandemic feels like it has blurred the years together for me. Perhaps this is the year life returns to some normalcy?! Let’s hope! Anyways, I wrote an article last January detailing our financial position and promised to write one yearly, so it’s time for a net worth update! Note: If you want to learn how to calculate your own net worth, read this. I felt incredibly nervous writing & sharing our numbers last year, but I’m grateful that I did. It was actually really fu ..read more

This article was difficult to sit down and write. I struggle to explain why this challenge scares me; I’m not so sure I even understand why myself. Have you experienced something that you feel compelled to do, yet also feel incredibly hesitant to start? My own “Year of Less” is that for me. Stating it publicly also increases the level of commitment I feel to seeing it through. About two years ago I read the amazing book “The Year Of Less“. It should be on everyone’s must read list. I remember fantasizing about doing one myself. I even took a picture of her decision tree of whether an item shou ..read more

It’s official: Our investments have crossed into 6 figure territory! Yessss! The say the first 100k is the hardest?! This article isn’t intended to be bragging in any way. 4 years ago I graduated with no money to my name & $100,000 in debt. I cried about money quite often, then decided to do something about it. The road here was not easy… or smooth…. it was basically a pothole filled wild ride. But we arrived! Did I have to say no to myself more often than I wanted? Yes. Did we make unconventional choices? Yes. Was it worth it? Yes I intend for this article to be motivational. If I can c ..read more

It’s been a wild last few months since I resigned from my career to pursue self employment. Numerous friends & family have commented that I seem much happier, and I would definitely agree with that. That does NOT mean it’s been a walk in the park though! Most tasks seem to take me about 3x as long as I anticipated (I may have set some unrealistic goals initially). I’ve never been known for my patience, so that’s been a struggle. However, the most difficult part so far has been contending with three big fears that crept in soon after resigning. I’ll admit I anticipated that losing my income ..read more

What is enough? Autumn is one of my absolute favourite times to go outside. The temperatures are above freezing, the trees are a gorgeous rainbow of colours, and there are no mosquitoes! It’s hard to beat. I knew I needed to write my article a bit earlier than normal since we’re heading camping on Thursday. Yet as I sat down to write this article I kept struggling with some intense writers block. I decided to do some productive procrastination instead! I needed to pack for the trip anyways…. so I started on that. As I was packing for my trip I had the same thought I usually do: “Hmm, what am ..read more

Managing your money is so important, but it can definitely feel overwhelming sometimes. It’s inevitable that over your lifetime you will make some mistakes. That’s fine; you’re human! Learn from those mistakes to avoid them in the future. Below are 6 money mistakes to avoid. 1. Not knowing your financial truth If you haven’t been paying attention to your finances there’s a good chance they’re in a less than ideal state. I remember the day I added up all my debts… wow did I cry. Seeing the sum in it’s entirety was shocking (>$100,000). I had no assets at the time, so my net worth was just a ..read more