Summary
Today my guest is Carl Jensen who is better known in the FIRE community as Mr. 1500.
He’s a family guy living in Colorado with his wife and two young children and managed to retire at the ripe old age of 43.
Some of the topics we cover in today’s episode are:
- The story behind the name “Mr. 1500” (00:02:06)
- Investment philosophy and strategies (00:07:25)
- Carl’s interest in Tesla and EVs in general (00:18:44)
- Balancing frugality and fulfilment on the path to FI (00:23:49)
- The biggest benefits of achieving FI (00:26:31)
- How Carl handled the cultural challenges of pursuing early retirement (00:39:04)
- What Carl wishes he knew when he started his journey to FI (01:09:58)
Links
- Website – 1500 Days to Freedom
Thanks so much Aussie Firebug. I really enjoyed this episode. Some really great wisdom in there.
Thanks AFB, enjoyed listening to Mr 1500, very informative and open. From memory, when he started his 1500 day journey, he already had over $500k saved, so the $1m seemed to come around quicker thus us mere mortals can manage! Do you know how much he was stacking away per month to reach the $1m a year earlier than expected and also I noticed you asked him about portfolio composition and having superannuation or a 401(k) but he didn’t mention it?
Thanks for this.
The Aus FIRE version of the chilly pad is a couple of $15 cooling pads from KMart
Loved this episode. You both came across open and genuine. Good stuff.
2 points:
-It sounded like you thought anyone can achieve FIRE in today’s society. I disagree, I think you’re forgetting the real ‘average’ wage in this country and people with kids, etc. Check in with your local Council whipper snipper with 2 kids and a mortgage.
-For your hydrogen episode if you haven’t already recorded it: Check in to the Whistler (Canada) Hydrogen fleet of buses. They ran from 2009/10 to 2014 or so. I used them extensively and seemed fine from rider perspective but have since sold off after I came back home.
I’d wager 95% can do it if it’s a high enough priority for them. But a lot of people don’t want to live on $20K a year and I don’t blame them.
Thanks for the tip for the hydorgen ep. I haven’t recorded it but I’m really keen to.
Cheers