These women are on FIRE – not literally, of course, but seeking financial independence and planning to either retire early, or making retirement elective. I’ve had the wonderful opportunity to interview many women who are pursuing financial freedom, and I love interviewing them and sharing their stories with the world.
I got the idea for this series after publishing my manifesto on Moms on FIRE – which collected my thoughts on seeking financial freedom as a woman, and a mom of three. Although us money-minded women may feel alone, there are more of us than you might think.
There’s not one mold. These women are married, single, gay and straight. Some are moms, and some not. They’re from all over the country and all over the world. And they’re all pursuing financial freedom – for different reasons.
These are their stories.
Check back often – this page will be updated as more interviews come in! And be sure to share with any financial-freedom minded women you may know.
Want to participate in this series? E-mail me at liz@chiefmomofficer.org.
Laurie is a 38-year old writer, mom, wife, and ESOL (English to Speakers of Other Languages) Teacher. She’s on a mission to double her family’s net worth in three years, with the goal of reaching financial independence.To her, that means the ability to reduce, but not eliminate, their dependence on paid work. Check out her story! UPDATE – Laurie and her family recently decided to go for location independence early, and are moving to North Carolina! Check out more about her big news here.
Solitary Diner, the Frugalish Physician’s story is a fascinating one of living a normal life with some normal debt, albeit already good with money, and eventually realizing there was a way you could reach financial independence before the more traditional age of 65. She’s a Canadian physician who has been working in an internal medicine sub-specialty for almost three years; prior to that she spent 16 years in training in order to become a licensed physician.  Read more here.
Bucket Babe is a a 53 yo GenXer in Atlanta and is pursuing financial independence now after a rough start in her 20’s. She shows that it’s never too late to get your financial act together and seek financial freedom! How rough? The kind of rough where you bounce checks and file bankruptcy. Learn more about her turnaround – and her current story.
Melissa is a 31 year old Phoenix native and digital nomad who loves to travel. She and her husband are working toward financial independence and early retirement, so they can travel the world. I love how she’s gotten money smart at such a young age. Find out more!
Financial Orchid is a millennial in the pacific northwest and daughter of first-generation immigrants. Like many children of immigrants, the values of hard work, thrift, and achievement were engraved on her from a young age. Now she’s seeking financial freedom. Check her out!
Peti from Leveraged Mama is amom from New Zealand who came to her interest in financial independence after years of care-free living with her husband. It was a layoff (redundancy in her part of the world) while pregnant that was their wake-up call. And now, after becoming a mom at 39, she’s on a mission. You can learn more about her story here.
Beth is a 39 year old mom from Texas, working with a financial services firm doing client communications. Not only is she seeking financial independence, she’s also an avid reader of all things personal finance (just like me!).  Read more here!
Mrs. Kiwi and her husband live with their two dogs in Michigan. Her husband suffers from a medical condition, and it was their pursuit of financial freedom that helped them to deal with it. She’s reached what she calls “barista FI” – find out more here!
Mrs. Smelling Freedom is a successful international businesswoman from southern Europe working toward achieving financial freedom in the next 600 days. She’s married to a cardiologist and has three kids aged 15, 12 and 9 – two girls and a boy, a dog, a cat, a bunny (recent addition to the family), a turtle and around a hundred Koi and goldfish. Be sure to check out her story!
Jillian from Montana Money Adventuresis the mother of six, financially free, and the queen of mini-retirements. She lives in Montana and has been married for 15 years. Her and her family are free to travel the country over the summer – and they are! Read more about her story, and how she achieved financial freedom, here.
Frogdancer is a single mom from Australia who started working on financial independence after her 20’s and 30’s had passed – and reached it while raising four boys and not making six figures. I love reading stories like hers (and hope you will too!) because I feel like the “traditional” financial media is overly focused on people who are ultra-young, wealthy, and achieving things that many ordinary folks may think are unachievable. Check out more here!
Angela from Tread Lightly, Retire Earlyand I have a lot in common. She and I were both married young (21 for both of us), and she’s also a mom – although we do live on opposite coasts of the US. She’s seeking financial independence for its own sake, and having a great time along the way. Come check out her fabulous frugal adventures!
Ms. ZiYou isfrom England, my age (37) and works in tech (like me!). She’s got big plans and big dreams, and is well on the way to making it happen. She’s currently single and saving pennies to live her dream life. Her awesome story is here.
Jenny from Good Life Better is a single woman living in Atlanta, working toward financial freedom in her 50’s after getting a later start. I love getting to feature so many different stories here on the site, and as you read, you’ll see that Jenny hasn’t had the easiest time in life. But she hasn’t let life circumstances get her down – she keeps pursuing financial freedom in the way that she wants to. Check her out!
Want to be financially free? You can see all my financial freedom strategy and articles here.
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