Retire Early Lifestyle
Retirement; like your parents, but way cooler

In 1991 Billy and Akaisha Kaderli retired at the age of 38. Now, into their 4th decade of this financially independent lifestyle, they invite you to take advantage of their wisdom and experience.

Investing 1.0: The Fruit Tree

Billy Kaderli

Nothing Yet

As I get to know my Thai friend, language is certainly a challenge. I find myself speaking very basic English. Slowly. I recently learned that Thai does not even have verb tenses.

Many of you know K.I.S.S.: Keep It Simple, Stupid.

That is the approach I took in the brokerage business. I could hear other advisors talking over their clients’ heads. I did not try to impress anyone with how much I knew. I spoke to people at their investing level. That worked out well for me.

I realized then, and it is still true, that financial terms can sound like a foreign language.

This piece is directed mainly at younger investors, forty and under. Please feel free to share it with your kids and grandkids. Or better yet, come up with your own analogy.

Here we go.

I like to use a fruit tree.

You plant a seed in the soil. That is the investment. You watch, and nothing happens. It can be frustrating. Still, you water—you add to the investment. You repeat this for what feels like forever.

After a while you look, and a sprout is poking through the ground. Now you are excited. You keep watering and feeding the investment, adding more money. Months pass. The tree grows.

This takes years of nurturing. It can be frustrating. You will doubt it. Keep watering anyway.

The tree gets stronger and taller and begins to branch. More water. Then blooms. Again, time is the key—with the tree and with investing.

More time passes, and the tree starts producing fruit. Dividends. As you keep adding money and care, more fruit comes.

At some point the tree produces more than you can eat. The same thing happens with investments. You begin to make more money than your job pays you.

Now you can keep working, or you can do something else. You have options. You are financially independent.

I know this is a simple view. That is why it works. People can see it. I have used this example for decades, and they understand the concept.

I hope it works for you.

Billy

Retire Early Lifestyle appeals to a different kind of person – the person who prizes their independence, values their time, and who doesn’t want to mindlessly follow the crowd.

HOME   Book Store

Retire Early Lifestyle Blog      About Billy & Akaisha Kaderli      Press     Contact     20 Questions     Preferred Links    

Retirement     Country Info     Retiree Interviews      Commentary     REL Videos