Since I started the blog, I’ve been lucky to find a community of like-minded people in both Ireland and wider-Europe all on the same journey. As such, I’ve had people reach out and ask for interviews on podcasts or to present on finance related topics at various online events.
Here is a listing of my appearances to date:
My very first podcast interview. I talk about:
- my background and how I was potentially 5 years away from FI.
- how my family was working towards FI with a new baby and how we were reducing expenses with a family.
- the environment and FI. How I try to reduce my carbon footprint while saving money!
- the advantages and disadvantages of being an employee VS being a contractor
My second podcast interview where I talk about:
- Background 2:30
- Why I started the blog 5:02
- What first got me investing 6:50
- What got me working towards financial independence 9:41
- How easy it is to invest in Ireland 13:48
- What ETFs I’m investing in and why 15:40
- Why I’m not investing in bonds 20:50
- What investment incentives are available in Ireland 23:44
- My beef with pensions 26:24
- On being non-conformist and a bit more about our move back to Ireland from Canada 33:08
- Why I like Ireland 36:51
- Tips if you do invest in a pension 42:07
- Why we bought a house instead of renting 47:08
- Why paying down your mortgage instead of investing can be a quicker path to financial independence 48:50
- Thoughts on investing in property in Ireland 53:06
- On the best way to invest a lump sum 57:03
- On what my friends/family/colleagues thinks about personal finance 1:01:12
- My views on consumer debt and should you invest while you have other debts 1:04:52
- On refinancing your mortgage or releasing equity 1:07:57
- Book recommendation: 1:12:12
- Favourite video games: 1:17:16
- Top tips for a 20-something thinking of investing 1:20:05
Financial Independence Dublin Meetup
In September, I presented at the Dublin FI group online about our mini-retirement. You can access the recording if you sign up to the group which currently costs 10€/year.
A written interview where I talk about:
- my backstory
- why I want to reach financial independence
- our monetary goal
- where we are on the path to financial independence
- what we want to do once we reach FI
- our strategy for reaching FIRE
- my biggest financial mistake
- advice I’d give my younger self
The first online Irish FIRE event where 5 presenters spoke for 4 hours on a wide range of topics. All available for 20€.
My presentation shows how a 40-year-old couple with 2 kids starting with no investments, earning a combined income of 100k/year, with a savings rate of 50%, could reach financial independence in 13 years regardless of the approach they took.
The scenarios I looked at were:
- paying off the mortgage and then investing in ETFs
- paying the mortgage slowly, maxing their pension and investing the rest in ETFs, and
- paying off the mortgage, then maxing their pension and investing any remainders in ETFs
I go into detail about how these options weighed up against each other along with the impacts on each portfolio after 30 years of withdrawals.