Ambushed!! Job No More?? How Crisis Opened My Eyes

Humble Beginnings

I grew up in a hard working, service oriented family where I had what I needed but understood that money was tight. In order to go to college, I got a scholarship. I joined the Army. I got married. Rented a house. Got a free car from my grandma and one from my in-laws. As newlyweds, we weren’t extravagant with our money, in comparison to others. We saved religiously and paid off debt. We were exactly where we thought we were supposed to be. We were a newly married, no-debt, two-job, no-kid, two-car & a motorcycle (ok, a CJ-7 Jeep too… bad financial move #1) couple living it up. When I was home, we ate out a lot, went to the beach, and hung out with friends. My wife was a teacher, and I was in the Army. We were rolling in the dough.*

Awesome Career and… One Mushroom Cloud

Then 9/11 hit. Figuring I was headed to Afghanistan in the near future, I bought a badass 4×4 truck (bad financial move #2) thinking I might as well enjoy it (critical thinking fallacy #1, ). Multiple deployments and 3 kids later, we added an additional new 4×4 vehicle (bad financial move #3) to the stable, and then bought a house right before the housing bubble popped (bad financial move #4). We moved (again) and sold the house at a loss, weathering the storm from our savings.

I got promoted again and things were looking OK financially. At the 11 year mark, we decided to stay in the Army (critical thinking fallacy #2), because they dangled graduate school, the job was still fun and meaningful, and we had the security of a not-so-distant pension and health-care. More deployments, great ski vacations, and spending money without much thought, we continued living the American Dream. But then, at year 14, crisis struck. My Career and Retirement were in question.

Wake Up Call

My job was the only income we had. At this point, my bride was a stay-at-home Mom. I had done the toughest jobs, picked some of the toughest units to serve in, and in doing so, volunteered to deploy multiple times (count on two hands) to combat. And now, despite all the sacrifices, I was facing the reality of no job and no retirement. No bueno.

At first, I just worked harder. I ground it out. Mentally, I raced through the first three stages of grief* and joked about it. Mostly, I was just angry and got the vinegar out by crushing myself in the gym and working like a rented mule at my job.

A Better Way

After some serious self reflection, I sized up the situation. I had a (relatively) high paying job, no debt, and could determine my own path towards freedom through my attitude and being deliberate with money.

I became driven and intensely focused (obsessed?) on learning about money. I had a life-changing realization that there is an inverse relationship between savings rate & time to freedom (thanks MMM).

It became clear to me that harnessing the power of compound interest and breaking free from consumerism would ultimately lead to financial freedom. And in the summer of 2016, after reading, studying, saving, and deliberating, I started investing seriously in the market.

This blog is my way of giving back, of helping you before your crisis arises. And if you’re already in that dark spot – don’t give up. There is hope. Hang in there.

Let’s navigate towards freedom. Together.

-HGB

*My 2 week take-home Army pay when I first started out was $636. Make it rain!!!

**7 stages of grief: Shock & Disbelief, Denial, Guilt, Anger & Bargaining, Depression, Loneliness, & Reflection, Reconstruction & Walking Through, Acceptance.

***In 2016, I woke up and started on my path to financial freedom.