How to Build (and Enjoy) Your “Dream” Life in Early Retirement | Life After FIRE

What if you reached financial independence …before knowing what it was? That’s what happened to Chris Rusin . After discovering the FIRE movement and stumbling across Mindy and Carl’s blog, he realized he was already at his goal. Then, early retirement unlocked a new life full of wild adventures, creative rebirth, and deeper purpose! Welcome back to the BiggerPockets Money podcast ! Chris had been hustling, saving money , and chasing financial freedom for years before experiencing a big wake-up call. He encountered a half-billionaire who, despite “having it all,” was deeply unhappy and filled with regret . That moment sparked a shift—not toward more money, but toward more meaning . Since then, Chris has dived for treasure with Navy SEALs, unearthed dinosaur fossils, and much more— all before turning 50 ! But he’s also faced his fair share of fear and uncertainty . After receiving a cancer diagnosis and losing his voice to chemotherapy , he made a promise: if his voice came back, he’d finally record the album he’d dreamed of making. And he did. Stick around till the very end to hear the “world premiere” of Chris’ brand-new song ! In This Episode We Cover What really happens after you achieve financial independence Designing your “dream” life once you reach early retirement How to maintain a sense of purpose after retiring from your nine-to-five The secret to weathering major portfolio swings in retirement A BiggerPockets-exclusive live rendition of Chris’ brand-new song And So Much More! Check out more resources from this show on ⁠⁠BiggerPockets.com⁠⁠ and ⁠⁠ https://www.biggerpockets.com/blog/money-636 Interested in learning more about today’s sponsors or becoming a BiggerPockets partner yourself? Email ⁠⁠ advertise@biggerpockets.com Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices