{"id":21351,"date":"2020-03-10T09:59:49","date_gmt":"2020-03-10T13:59:49","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.moneysmartguides.com\/?p=21351"},"modified":"2020-03-10T09:59:49","modified_gmt":"2020-03-10T13:59:49","slug":"reach-financial-freedom","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.moneysmartguides.com\/reach-financial-freedom","title":{"rendered":"The Best Strategies To Reach Financial Freedom"},"content":{"rendered":"<p><strong><img decoding=\"async\" class=\"aligncenter size-full wp-image-21355\" src=\"https:\/\/www.moneysmartguides.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/03\/financial-freedom.png\" alt=\"financial freedom\" width=\"750\" height=\"420\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.moneysmartguides.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/03\/financial-freedom.png 750w, https:\/\/www.moneysmartguides.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/03\/financial-freedom-300x168.png 300w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 750px) 100vw, 750px\" \/>There are multiple roads to financial freedom but are you driving in the right direction?<\/strong><\/p>\n<p>The most important step to financial freedom is understanding what that freedom looks like to you.<\/p>\n<p>It might seem like an unnecessary question but too many people follow the drumbeat for financial independence only to give up in frustration.<\/p>\n<p>If you set out on a road trip with no destination in mind, you\u2019re going to run out of gas and get stranded!<\/p>\n<p>Besides just defining that goal so you know in which direction to drive, a lot of people have a conception of financial freedom that may not be as good as they think.<\/p>\n<p>For many people, the idea of Financial Independence, Retire Early (FIRE) is having enough money to quit their job and never work again.<\/p>\n<ul>\n<li><strong>Read now:<\/strong> <a href=\"https:\/\/www.moneysmartguides.com\/ultimate-guide-retiring-early\" data-lasso-id=\"2447\">Click here for the ultimate guide to retiring early<\/a><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p>OK, so you ditch the rat race and never work a day again\u2026then what?<\/p>\n<p>At best you become a sun-burnt alcoholic on some far-away beach.<\/p>\n<p>That\u2019s going to get old quick.<\/p>\n<p>You need a purpose, something that gives your days and your life meaning.<\/p>\n<p><strong>For me, financial freedom was enough money that I could devote my time to developing my own business.<\/strong><\/p>\n<p>It was not worrying about money even when my online assets weren\u2019t quite generating enough cash flow to pay all our bills.<\/p>\n<p>Now that the business generates tens of thousands a month, financial freedom is doing what I love and never having to worry about money again.<\/p>\n<p>Whether it\u2019s being able to devote yourself to a charitable cause, running your own business, a hobby or whatever you choose, think about what financial freedom really means to you and about what you\u2019ll do when you don\u2019t HAVE to work for the money.<\/p>\n<p>Knowing where that destination is, you can find it on the map and start planning your course.<\/p>\n<p>I\u2019ve found three roads to get you there.<\/p>\n<div id=\"ez-toc-container\" class=\"ez-toc-v2_0_63 counter-hierarchy ez-toc-counter ez-toc-custom ez-toc-container-direction\">\n<p class=\"ez-toc-title\">Table of Contents<\/p>\n<label for=\"ez-toc-cssicon-toggle-item-662605aca734d\" class=\"ez-toc-cssicon-toggle-label\"><span class=\"ez-toc-cssicon\"><span class=\"eztoc-hide\" style=\"display:none;\">Toggle<\/span><span class=\"ez-toc-icon-toggle-span\"><svg style=\"fill: #000000;color:#000000\" xmlns=\"http:\/\/www.w3.org\/2000\/svg\" class=\"list-377408\" width=\"20px\" height=\"20px\" viewBox=\"0 0 24 24\" fill=\"none\"><path d=\"M6 6H4v2h2V6zm14 0H8v2h12V6zM4 11h2v2H4v-2zm16 0H8v2h12v-2zM4 16h2v2H4v-2zm16 0H8v2h12v-2z\" fill=\"currentColor\"><\/path><\/svg><svg style=\"fill: #000000;color:#000000\" class=\"arrow-unsorted-368013\" xmlns=\"http:\/\/www.w3.org\/2000\/svg\" width=\"10px\" height=\"10px\" viewBox=\"0 0 24 24\" version=\"1.2\" baseProfile=\"tiny\"><path d=\"M18.2 9.3l-6.2-6.3-6.2 6.3c-.2.2-.3.4-.3.7s.1.5.3.7c.2.2.4.3.7.3h11c.3 0 .5-.1.7-.3.2-.2.3-.5.3-.7s-.1-.5-.3-.7zM5.8 14.7l6.2 6.3 6.2-6.3c.2-.2.3-.5.3-.7s-.1-.5-.3-.7c-.2-.2-.4-.3-.7-.3h-11c-.3 0-.5.1-.7.3-.2.2-.3.5-.3.7s.1.5.3.7z\"\/><\/svg><\/span><\/span><\/label><input type=\"checkbox\"  id=\"ez-toc-cssicon-toggle-item-662605aca734d\" checked aria-label=\"Toggle\" \/><nav><ul class='ez-toc-list ez-toc-list-level-1 ' ><li class='ez-toc-page-1 ez-toc-heading-level-2'><a class=\"ez-toc-link ez-toc-heading-1\" href=\"https:\/\/www.moneysmartguides.com\/reach-financial-freedom\/#3_Smart_Ways_To_Financial_Freedom\" title=\"3 Smart Ways To Financial Freedom\">3 Smart Ways To Financial Freedom<\/a><ul class='ez-toc-list-level-3' ><li class='ez-toc-heading-level-3'><a class=\"ez-toc-link ez-toc-heading-2\" href=\"https:\/\/www.moneysmartguides.com\/reach-financial-freedom\/#Investing_Your_Way_To_FIRE\" title=\"Investing Your Way To FIRE\">Investing Your Way To FIRE<\/a><\/li><li class='ez-toc-page-1 ez-toc-heading-level-3'><a class=\"ez-toc-link ez-toc-heading-3\" href=\"https:\/\/www.moneysmartguides.com\/reach-financial-freedom\/#Find_Financial_Freedom_In_A_Side_Hustle\" title=\"Find Financial Freedom In A Side Hustle\">Find Financial Freedom In A Side Hustle<\/a><\/li><li class='ez-toc-page-1 ez-toc-heading-level-3'><a class=\"ez-toc-link ez-toc-heading-4\" href=\"https:\/\/www.moneysmartguides.com\/reach-financial-freedom\/#Creating_Passive_Income_For_Freedom_From_Work\" title=\"Creating Passive Income For Freedom From Work\">Creating Passive Income For Freedom From Work<\/a><\/li><li class='ez-toc-page-1 ez-toc-heading-level-3'><a class=\"ez-toc-link ez-toc-heading-5\" href=\"https:\/\/www.moneysmartguides.com\/reach-financial-freedom\/#Final_Thoughts\" title=\"Final Thoughts\">Final Thoughts<\/a><\/li><\/ul><\/li><\/ul><\/nav><\/div>\n<h2><span class=\"ez-toc-section\" id=\"3_Smart_Ways_To_Financial_Freedom\"><\/span>3 Smart Ways To Financial Freedom<span class=\"ez-toc-section-end\"><\/span><\/h2>\n<h3><span class=\"ez-toc-section\" id=\"Investing_Your_Way_To_FIRE\"><\/span>Investing Your Way To FIRE<span class=\"ez-toc-section-end\"><\/span><\/h3>\n<p>Once you\u2019ve figured out where you want to go, it\u2019s time to get in the car and drive. And there\u2019s no way to FIRE that\u2019s more popular than investing.<\/p>\n<p>Investing is also the easiest road to your financial independence. The boom in <a href=\"https:\/\/mystockmarketbasics.com\/robinhood-alternatives\/\" data-lasso-id=\"2448\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">investment apps<\/a> has made it easy to open an account and put your money to work.<\/p>\n<p>Note that I said the easiest road, not the shortest.<\/p>\n<p><strong>Investing $6,000 a year and earning the long-term market return of 8% annually, it will take you 35 years to reach that seven-figure payday.<\/strong><\/p>\n<p>Even if financial freedom means a slightly smaller bank account, investing is like driving to your financial independence in a \u201992 Camry.<\/p>\n<p><img decoding=\"async\" class=\"aligncenter size-full wp-image-21352\" src=\"https:\/\/www.moneysmartguides.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/03\/ways-to-create-financial-freedom.jpg\" alt=\"ways to create financial freedom\" width=\"743\" height=\"423\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.moneysmartguides.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/03\/ways-to-create-financial-freedom.jpg 743w, https:\/\/www.moneysmartguides.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/03\/ways-to-create-financial-freedom-300x171.jpg 300w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 743px) 100vw, 743px\" \/><\/p>\n<p>That doesn\u2019t mean you should give up on stocks and dump all your money in the other two ideas we\u2019ll talk about next.<\/p>\n<p>Part of the beauty of the other ways to financial freedom is they don\u2019t cost a lot (or anything) to get started. That means you can still put your savings in stocks to watch that slow-ride to financial success.<\/p>\n<ul>\n<li><strong>Read now:<\/strong> <a href=\"https:\/\/www.moneysmartguides.com\/category-investing\" data-lasso-id=\"2449\">Click here to learn how to become a successful investor<\/a><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p>If you decide to invest that hard-earned cash, remember these ideas:<\/p>\n<div class=\"content-box-blue\">\n<ul>\n<li>Dividend stocks are a great way to get paid while you invest and eventually just the dividends from your portfolio might be enough to pay the bills. Make sure to pick dividend stocks from different sectors instead of just the classic dividend plays like utilities and consumer staples.<\/li>\n<li>Real estate investment trusts (REITs) are companies that own rental real estate and pass the cash flow through to investors. You\u2019ll get higher yields than in traditional dividend stocks and exposure to another asset class to spread your risk a little.<\/li>\n<li>Bonds may not provide as high a return as stocks but having some of your money in the asset class is critical to smoothing out those stock market ups-and-downs. You can invest in bonds through exchange traded funds (ETFs) that trade just like stocks.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<\/div>\n<h3><span class=\"ez-toc-section\" id=\"Find_Financial_Freedom_In_A_Side_Hustle\"><\/span>Find Financial Freedom In A Side Hustle<span class=\"ez-toc-section-end\"><\/span><\/h3>\n<p>I truly believe that real financial freedom is getting paid to do something you enjoy.<\/p>\n<p>I love growing my online business, talking about financial success and goals, and making that personal connection through the YouTube channel.<\/p>\n<p>Now that doesn\u2019t mean it\u2019s all rainbows and unicorns.<\/p>\n<p>I don\u2019t always jump out of bed in the morning and there are some parts of the business that still feel like a \u2018job\u2019.<\/p>\n<p>But it\u2019s a whole lot better than the feeling of being stuck in a job I didn\u2019t like, feeling like I had no control over my financial future and that my work didn\u2019t matter.<\/p>\n<p>In fact, I enjoy running my online business so much, I don\u2019t really even think about retirement anymore. I can\u2019t imagine not doing this at least for a few hours every day.<\/p>\n<p>And it all started as a side hustle.<\/p>\n<p>Trying to find your side hustle idea? Try these steps:<\/p>\n<div class=\"content-box-blue\">\n<ul>\n<li>Make a list of your hobbies, interests and what you always wanted to be growing up<\/li>\n<li>Browse through a college course catalog to see what subjects look interesting<\/li>\n<li>Take these ideas and do a search on Amazon and Udemy to see how people are making money on them.<\/li>\n<li>Consider <a href=\"https:\/\/myworkfromhomemoney.com\/make-money-youtube\/\" data-lasso-id=\"2450\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">starting a YouTube channel<\/a> to build a community around your idea and use as a platform to sell products or coaching.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<\/div>\n<p>From consulting or freelancing to writing books, you can make money on any idea.<\/p>\n<p>Don\u2019t believe me?<\/p>\n<p>There are 479 video courses on Udemy about solving a Rubik\u2019s Cube.<\/p>\n<p><strong>That\u2019s 479 people that are making money from talking about that infuriating puzzle-box of the \u201880s.<\/strong><\/p>\n<p>If investing is like driving to your financial destination in an old beater, creating a side hustle is like a Corvette.<\/p>\n<p>You\u2019ll still have to work on it and keep it running but it will get you there fast!<\/p>\n<h3><span class=\"ez-toc-section\" id=\"Creating_Passive_Income_For_Freedom_From_Work\"><\/span>Creating Passive Income For Freedom From Work<span class=\"ez-toc-section-end\"><\/span><\/h3>\n<p>Our third strategy to financial freedom, and the favorite for most, is creating streams of passive income.<\/p>\n<p>If you need to get to your financial destination as fast as possible, passive income is like putting the pedal down on a Maserati!<\/p>\n<p><strong>Passive income is money you make without having to do anything after setting it up.<\/strong><\/p>\n<p>That doesn\u2019t mean you never work again. It just means you have an income source producing cash flow while you devote your time to your side hustle or other tasks.<\/p>\n<p>Be careful going after just any idea proposed as passive income though.<\/p>\n<p>As much as I love blogging and creating videos for YouTube, these are pretty far from a passive income source.<\/p>\n<p>The best passive sources are ones that take minimal upkeep or effort after launched.<\/p>\n<p>A few of my favorite passive income ideas include:<\/p>\n<div class=\"content-box-blue\">\n<ul>\n<li>Self-publishing on Amazon \u2013 let the world\u2019s largest ecommerce site do your work for you and drive people to your books.<\/li>\n<li>Online courses \u2013 Create a video lesson once and make money on it forever.<\/li>\n<li>Commercial real estate with a NNN-lease \u2013 OK, this one will take a while longer to build up the down payment but using what\u2019s called a triple-net lease means your tenants manage the property themselves so you just sit back and collect the checks.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<\/div>\n<h3><span class=\"ez-toc-section\" id=\"Final_Thoughts\"><\/span>Final Thoughts<span class=\"ez-toc-section-end\"><\/span><\/h3>\n<p>Financial freedom isn\u2019t a destination you get to overnight.<\/p>\n<p>If it were as easy as a leisurely Sunday drive, we all would have gone there years ago.<\/p>\n<ul>\n<li><strong>Read now:<\/strong> <a href=\"https:\/\/www.moneysmartguides.com\/financial-planning-tips\" data-lasso-id=\"2451\">Click here for 10 financial planning tips you need to follow<\/a><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p>Figure out what that freedom really means to you, draw out your map and you\u2019ll get there sooner than you think.<\/p>\n<p>For many, simply knowing they\u2019re on the right road to financial independence is all the motivation they need to keep driving.<\/p>\n<p><strong>Author Bio:<\/strong> Born and raised in Iowa, Joseph Hogue worked in corporate finance and real estate before starting a career in investment analysis. He has appeared on Bloomberg and CNBC and led a team of equity analysts for a venture capital research firm. He holds a master\u2019s degree in business and the Chartered Financial Analyst (CFA) designation. Joseph left the corporate world in 2014 to build his online businesses, first through creating websites and later through YouTube. Booking just $792.41 in 2015 income, he\u2019s grown his online assets to an income of $122,400 for the twelve-months to July 2019. He\u2019s published 10 books and has grown the YouTube channel, <a href=\"https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/channel\/UCbKdotYtcY9SxoU8CYAXdvg\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\" data-saferedirecturl=\"https:\/\/www.google.com\/url?q=https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/channel\/UCbKdotYtcY9SxoU8CYAXdvg&amp;source=gmail&amp;ust=1583860833094000&amp;usg=AFQjCNF1KOfDivE5idR4_MVkr4jo52WHDw\" data-lasso-id=\"2452\">Let\u2019s Talk Money<\/a>, to over 161,000 subscribers in less than two years.<\/p>","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>There are multiple roads to financial freedom but are you driving in the right direction? The most important step to financial freedom is understanding what that freedom looks like to you. It might seem like an unnecessary question but too many people follow the drumbeat for financial independence only to give up in frustration. If you set out on a road trip with no destination in mind, you\u2019re going to run out of gas and [&hellip;]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":21355,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_uag_custom_page_level_css":"","site-sidebar-layout":"default","site-content-layout":"","ast-site-content-layout":"","site-content-style":"default","site-sidebar-style":"default","ast-global-header-display":"","ast-banner-title-visibility":"","ast-main-header-display":"","ast-hfb-above-header-display":"","ast-hfb-below-header-display":"","ast-hfb-mobile-header-display":"","site-post-title":"","ast-breadcrumbs-content":"","ast-featured-img":"","footer-sml-layout":"","theme-transparent-header-meta":"","adv-header-id-meta":"","stick-header-meta":"","header-above-stick-meta":"","header-main-stick-meta":"","header-below-stick-meta":"","astra-migrate-meta-layouts":"default","ast-page-background-enabled":"default","ast-page-background-meta":{"desktop":{"background-color":"","background-image":"","background-repeat":"repeat","background-position":"center center","background-size":"auto","background-attachment":"scroll","background-type":"","background-media":"","overlay-type":"","overlay-color":"","overlay-gradient":""},"tablet":{"background-color":"","background-image":"","background-repeat":"repeat","background-position":"center center","background-size":"auto","background-attachment":"scroll","background-type":"","background-media":"","overlay-type":"","overlay-color":"","overlay-gradient":""},"mobile":{"background-color":"","background-image":"","background-repeat":"repeat","background-position":"center center","background-size":"auto","background-attachment":"scroll","background-type":"","background-media":"","overlay-type":"","overlay-color":"","overlay-gradient":""}},"ast-content-background-meta":{"desktop":{"background-color":"var(--ast-global-color-5)","background-image":"","background-repeat":"repeat","background-position":"center center","background-size":"auto","background-attachment":"scroll","background-type":"","background-media":"","overlay-type":"","overlay-color":"","overlay-gradient":""},"tablet":{"background-color":"var(--ast-global-color-5)","background-image":"","background-repeat":"repeat","background-position":"center center","background-size":"auto","background-attachment":"scroll","background-type":"","background-media":"","overlay-type":"","overlay-color":"","overlay-gradient":""},"mobile":{"background-color":"var(--ast-global-color-5)","background-image":"","background-repeat":"repeat","background-position":"center center","background-size":"auto","background-attachment":"scroll","background-type":"","background-media":"","overlay-type":"","overlay-color":"","overlay-gradient":""}}},"categories":[66],"tags":[],"disclaimer":[],"uagb_featured_image_src":{"full":["https:\/\/www.moneysmartguides.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/03\/financial-freedom.png",750,420,false],"thumbnail":["https:\/\/www.moneysmartguides.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/03\/financial-freedom-150x150.png",150,150,true],"medium":["https:\/\/www.moneysmartguides.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/03\/financial-freedom-300x168.png",300,168,true],"medium_large":["https:\/\/www.moneysmartguides.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/03\/financial-freedom.png",750,420,false],"large":["https:\/\/www.moneysmartguides.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/03\/financial-freedom.png",750,420,false],"1536x1536":["https:\/\/www.moneysmartguides.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/03\/financial-freedom.png",750,420,false],"2048x2048":["https:\/\/www.moneysmartguides.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/03\/financial-freedom.png",750,420,false],"wp_review_large":["https:\/\/www.moneysmartguides.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/03\/financial-freedom-320x200.png",320,200,true],"wp_review_small":["https:\/\/www.moneysmartguides.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/03\/financial-freedom-65x65.png",65,65,true],"web-stories-poster-portrait":["https:\/\/www.moneysmartguides.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/03\/financial-freedom.png",640,358,false],"web-stories-publisher-logo":["https:\/\/www.moneysmartguides.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/03\/financial-freedom.png",96,54,false],"web-stories-thumbnail":["https:\/\/www.moneysmartguides.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/03\/financial-freedom.png",150,84,false]},"uagb_author_info":{"display_name":"Jon Dulin","author_link":"https:\/\/www.moneysmartguides.com\/author\/jon-dulin"},"uagb_comment_info":0,"uagb_excerpt":"There are multiple roads to financial freedom but are you driving in the right direction? The most important step to financial freedom is understanding what that freedom looks like to you. It might seem like an unnecessary question but too many people follow the drumbeat for financial independence only to give up in frustration. If&hellip;","_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.moneysmartguides.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/21351"}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.moneysmartguides.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.moneysmartguides.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.moneysmartguides.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.moneysmartguides.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=21351"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.moneysmartguides.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/21351\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.moneysmartguides.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/21355"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.moneysmartguides.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=21351"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.moneysmartguides.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=21351"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.moneysmartguides.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=21351"},{"taxonomy":"disclaimer","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.moneysmartguides.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/disclaimer?post=21351"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}