I was 40 years old when I first started thinking about retirement. I was married with two children but within a few short years my life changed dramatically. I was divorced and a single parent. My oldest son had graduated from the university and my younger son was in his last year of high school when he received a partial scholarship to college. I felt like I had hit the lottery.

With all that happening I had not lost sight of my desire to retire at 55. My employer offered a non-contributory retirement plan allowing you to retire at 55 years of age, with 30 years of service. If you met that criteria you would receive 50% of your salary for the rest of your life, but I knew I’d only have 25 years and therefore receive only 35% of my yearly salary.

I knew I needed a plan to reach my goal. The obvious answer was to save as much money as possible in the next 10 years. So I changed my lifestyle and put myself on a budget. Looking at where my money was going I realized the majority of it was being spent eating out. So I starting charging everything I bought. I didn’t care how small the purchase. I charged it on my American Express card. This way I could itemize how much I was spending and where it was being spent. With this knowledge, I then started to rein in the unnecessary spending.

Being a fan of Suze Orman, a financial adviser I saw on the Oprah show, I began following her advice regarding delayed gratification, and I joined my company’s 401(k) savings plan that had a 2% company match. In 1994 I increased my savings from 4% to 18% of my yearly wages. No matter how sensible with money you think you are there are times when your budget is at risk of getting hijacked. Putting my money in a less accessible place made it less likely I would use it in an emotional situations.

Saving for the future is difficult but it can be done. You should replace shopping and eating out with other joyful (FREE) activities like walking, doing yoga or listening to music. These activities will help you find your way toward your road to early retirement. I retired in 2004 at the age of 55 and I’ve enjoyed every minute of it!

-Jamie  S., Los Angeles, CA.