[elago]

You ever hear of "early retirement extreme" (don't be scared by the cheesy misleading name, it's probably the lowest quality part of the blog/book). I discovered it in my mid 20's and wish I did earlier.

I could go on and on about it, and I won't even drop numbers because you won't believe them. The author is a physics PhD and discusses topics very logically and steps back critically analyzes many common cultural behaviors and preconceived notions (what IS retirement, for example) that can help you think about what you really want and the best way to get there.

Judge for yourself but I think his life is a lot more interesting than rich tech kids buying exclusive turnkey vacation packages w/guaranteed great instagram backdrops. Example, walking the docks and joining a sailboat racing team, training for 100 mile bike races, etc.

There's really too much to write here to describe the full philosophy lifestyle, but I encourage you to at least check it out with an open mind. I guarantee you it's not "frugal living", the guy probably has nicer stuff than most people when it comes to clothes, bikes, tools, etc.

Honestly reading your posts in this thread I can tell we're so wildly different when it comes to values that I don't really know if this will resonate with you or not, but again I at least encourage you to check it out, just to see other options for whats out there.

I will go ahead and spoil the "end" of the guy's personal journey, since I think you might be especially interested: Despite having investments that generate over 100% of living expenses, and not having to do anything for anyone, getting to do whatever you want all day, the ends up taking a job as "quant trader/researcher" for the opportunity to solve challenging problems.

http://earlyretirementextreme.com/so-long-and-thanks-for-all...

[sadamznintern]

I mean, his endgame still got him to being a quant. Like I'd be able to do that.

[elago]

Yea, you probably can if you want and don't give up.

It's not apparent to me if you want to be a quant, or you want a job that earns a lot of money and is considered prestigious by a certain group of people.

If you had the passion for being a quant regardless of the money, you could be learning and programming in your free time.

If you want the job title more than you enjoy the activity, then I'm sure you could keep studying and practicing and get the job, but I don't think you'll find it satisfying.

If you merely want money for quality of life, stability, security, having F-U money, or anything along those lines, then I'd really want to stress that there are two areas you can work on to achieve that goal. One is earning more money and you seem very focused on that. The other is becoming more efficient with your life. At any point you can make the realization that you've hit a point of diminishing returns in either area, and focus on something else.

I'm not in your shoes, but w/ a salary of 145k at 22 years old, I think you can make the pieces fit to retire in about ~10 years, while spending plenty of money on recreation along the way. Alternatively, I'm sure you can rent/buy/subscribe enough that you spend the next 10 years living paycheck to paycheck. Lifestyle is yours to choose.