Life Update

Howdy Folks!

It’s been a rather busy month throughout August for our small family and not a huge amount to really report on!

A beautiful caravan holiday to Downham Market in Norfolk allowed us to escape the computer screen for a few days, whilst being able to take the dogs for a walk at sunny hunny (Hunstanton) was a real joyous experience (even though their coats felt dreadful after being in that sea water, they absolutely loved it!).

We’ve had a few housey bits done from replacing our dining room windows with new and updated PVC in an off white colour (to work on matching the house a little better).

And finally a tax bill to pay (which seems to be ever more a regular thing now-a-days!)

The Business (Selling)

It is official now. We have decided to go ahead and push ahead with the sale of the business. We have been working really hard to fill in all of the necessary paperwork and documentation that the business broker has requested. 

Of course, if we can’t find a buyer or the price isn’t right we won’t sell and continue to work and optimise the way we’re working to make it work better for the future. However as I come to realise, particularly the combination of digital and account management, the expectations, quickness and demands of clients and people in general are continuing to exceed what individuals can achieve which has lead to this increased pressure within what we know of work today. This isn’t just from a Google Rankings point of view, but also the custom development of systems, the required uptime and much more that is in-tune with our day to day and runnings of our life. 

It is this, which I would argue, has been one of the main catalysts of us signing on the dotted line. The money is great, the demand to be at the computer screen is not so much. Why don’t you try to optimise your work schedule you may ask? Well I’m a real bugger for getting involved in projects – quite literally, even if I’m under pressure I’ll always drop my work to help out others. Perhaps a personality trait that is my downfall, putting additional pressure on my shoulders is something that I should work on. 

Whatever the case may be, over the years I’ve personally found more enjoyment in things / life that don’t revolve around technology. Gardening for one I really enjoy – a slow pace of life, with little to no stress. Walking, exploring, learning a new language (which I am so desperate to do) – all these things that will be on the top of my list when I reach my FIRE number. 

The Garden! Harvest Time

All that hard work and fruits of my labour. August is one of those months where most vegetables are ready to be harvested. I’ve had some absolute cracking onions this year (in fact, far too many!), along with Cucumbers and Courgettes. I remember at the start of 2021, my inability to keep a cucumber plant alive was pretty astonishing (I quite literally, somehow, managed to kill about 6 plants). Only 3 of them survived going forward, but now each cucumber plant has quite literally sprouted about 6-10 cucumbers on each! As you can imagine, we have a bit of a glut now.

The tomatoes were a bit of a disaster this year – most of them had caught blight annoyingly. A harsh world gardening eh! All that work and effort to then be ruined at the very last step in the process just before harvesting!

Financial Update | August 2021

So how have those financials been looking for the month of July?

Income | £7,951

Income has continued to relatively stable and averaging around £8,000 per month.

Expenses | £2,848

Expenses were a little higher this month with some tax bill payments and new double glazing installed in our dining room! Plus a few expenses around the holiday that we had.

Savings | £5,775

Equalling a savings rate of 73% – Huzzah! A definite improvement compared to previous months, which was around the 60% mark.

Investment Growth | £19,190

Wow wee! What a sharp rise in Investment growth. Considering I saved £5,775 this month, my investments growth by almost an additional £15,000! Making that money work baby!

Investment Graph

Ending

As we’re now into September we’ve got a few things to look forward to. The potential sale of the business and accelerating my plan to reach FIRE by about 9 years (if we sell at the right price).

I have a Cruise holiday booked later on this year which, I hope will still be available giving the rise in cases of COVID-19.

We are finally catching up with a few house bits and work and managed to tick off all of our plans for the house this year! (Only to find that we have a list as long as our arm for next year :p)

Thanks all for reading!