2015 = The Year of Win

Jan 8, 2015

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This year I’ve avoided setting too many ‘boring’ New Year resolutions. I’m already tracking metrics such as net wealth, passive income, exercise levels, weight etc so I always know when I’m performing well and when I need to kick myself. Instead this year I’m taking more of a holistic approach to my New Year resolutions.

For many reasons I won’t bore you with, 2014 was quite a stressful year from a personal perspective. I’ve decided 2015 will be the year of win in the UTMT household. What does this mean I hear you ask?

Well I simply intend to get more out of every aspect of life. I intend to enjoy life more, spend less, earn more, eat less, exercise more, drink less, socialise more, work less, relax more, worry less, smile more. I want more good things in my life and less cr$p. Lots really. Too many to list.

Instead below is a list of random things I’ve jotted down on my phone over the last few weeks, all of which will be accomplished in 2015….

The Great £1,000 De-Clutter

2015 will see a great de-cluttering of the UTMT household. Over the last few years or so we’ve both cut back our spending dramatically and made a conscious effort not to bring more ‘stuff’ into the house. On the whole we’re successful, however having a shopaholic mother in law staying for a few weeks and the usual haul of unwanted Christmas presents has recently set us back in this respect.

This year we intend to declutter the house, garage and shed massively. We have too much stuff that simply never gets used. It must go.

The plan is to sell as much as possible (ebay) with a view to raising £1,000 as quickly as possible. As I type this I’ve just finished a marathon ebay listing session resulting in us having over 82 items listed. I”ll report back once we’ve hit the £1k mark.

In parallel a large portion of our clutter will be donated to the local charity shop where hopefully someone else will want it and some money will be raised for a good cause. Double win.

Poached Eggs

I’ve recently re-discovered the delights of poached eggs. Living next door to a farm we have access to all the free eggs we want (thanks to the lovely farmer as opposed to any thieving tendencies). Living with a vegetarian means protein tends to be in short supply so eggs are the perfect answer.

We’re always long eggs. However until very recently I’ve been a big scrambler.

There’s no doubt that poaching gets the best out of an egg. You get to enjoy that gooey yolk in all it’s glory and the light bright white shines, all with zero added fat. My current serving method of choice involves nothing more than a slice of wholemeal toast, some freshly cracked pepper and a dash or two of tabasco sauce.

2015 will be the year I poach more eggs than ever before.

The Decisive Moment

Before the rat race robbed me of my creativity I was quite the artist, at least in my own eyes.

The main outlet for my creativity over the last few years has been photography. As well as being a great hobby it’s also earned me a few shillings along the way. For example the following photograph (snapped on the way to work one morning) has earned me well in excess of £2,000 over the last 3 years…

Last year was a busy year with lots going on and as a result my photography took the back seat. This year I intend to carry my camera with me more (daily), take more photographs, challenge myself to see more interesting things and take the time to find moments worth recording. Hell, I may even earn some more money from it if I’m lucky.

Extra Curricular Cheddar

Ermine recently eluded to the uneasiness of not having an income in retirement. Despite the reassurances of TEA (who went positive cashflow in week 1 of FI) it’s one of the biggest fears that FI holds for me. My day job is risk management so it’s no great surprise that the prospect of giving up my [currently generous] salary at some point in the reasonably near future scares the life out of me sometimes.

My way to conquer this fear (to date) has been to build as much extra curricular income as possible. Currently my income streams outside of the monthly pay cheque are:

Rental income from buy to let properties (net of mortgage interest)
Dividends
Cash Interest
Internet marketing income
Photography jobs/sales

This year I’m determined to focus more effort on increasing these streams of income. The key to doing this with my time short lifestyle will be to focus most on the activities that provide the biggest uplift for my time. The buy to let, dividends and interest obviously require capital to increase returns meaningfully so my focus will be on the other two and any other opportunities that present themselves throughout the year.

Don’t Be So Self Centred

If you’re not careful this whole FI game can turn you into a greedy, tight fisted money grabber. I feel it creeping in sometimes. The usual cause is absolute certainty in what I’m doing and strong desire to reach FI as soon as possible. Sometimes I feel this turning me into someone I don’t want to be.

I’m pretty good at giving to and raising for charities (forgive my own trumpet blowing) but I think I definitely can do more to help others I know. I can be more generous with my time (not just money) when it comes to family, neighbours, the community and friends.

I’m determined to spend more time with family and friends in 2015. When working long hours it can be too easy to do nothing during the week but work, commute and sleep. As a good friend of mine told me the other day while persuading me to go cycling with him at 5am “you’ll get plenty of sleep when you’re dead lad”.

Be More Like Ferris

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=52UxIgsC_0g

Happy New Year everyone. I hope you all have a great 2015.

Comments

25 responses to “2015 = The Year of Win”

Jon

January 8, 2015

@UTMT, I completely understand your concerns. Sometimes it can feel like a struggle to reach FI. I only have 2 income streams (dividends, fixed income). I plan to try and live off these for 2 years to see what it “feels” like before handing in my notice. I work from home and can build my life around my job, so I’m not that desperate to give it up yet. I’ve learnt a considerable amount about personal finance over the years and what surprises me most is how little people know or care about this stuff in my circle of family/friends. Maybe a financial advisor could be a third income stream if I find away of monetizing it.

Reply
1. Under The Money Tree
  
  January 8, 2015
  
  Jon,
  I fully agree how odd/concerning it is that others around don’t take this FI stuff seriously. It’s just not in the British “culture” to save, invest, be frugal anymore. You’re ‘parallel run’ sounds like a good way to transition…hopefully you’re not too far off?
  
  Reply
weenie

January 8, 2015

Some nice goals there – good luck and hope you have lots of wins in 2015!

Reply
1. Under The Money Tree
  
  January 8, 2015
  
  Thanks Weenie. I’ve got good feelings about 2015….have a great year too!
  
  Reply
Mr Zombie

January 8, 2015

Hello.

That is an absolutely stunning photo. Makes me want to dust of the old camera..

Agree about the quest for FI potentially making you someone you’re not. Reaching it a couple of years later without turning into Darth Vader is a good thing. 🙂

A 5am cycle mid week is truly something special. Spinning through a quiet city as the sun rises is awesome.

Have a cracking 2015

Mr Z

Reply
1. Under The Money Tree
  
  January 8, 2015
  
  Mr Z,
  
  Thanks. I find photography great in the way it makes you look at the world in a different way. It makes you appreciate the beauty (even in ugly) in things much more.
  
  Have a great year!
  
  Reply
Huw

January 9, 2015

Hi UTMT,

Great post, and well said. I could relate to a lot of what your saying.

Good luck with the de-clutter. I don’t know about you about I loath listing Ebay items, but I get a great sense of satisfaction once I’ve had a marathon listing session. The relist button comes in handy too after that.

I love a poached too. Your description was genuinely making me feel hungry. Come to think of it, I just love eggs. You have a nice deal there. Free eggs, who needs FI!

To echo Mr Z, that’s a beautiful picture. Very inspiring! I for one would be really interested to know how you’ve made money from photography. I have an DSLR camera, I’ve attended a basic knowledge course, and I enjoy taking photos. I’ve never considered myself good enough to make money from it, but it could be a possibility. Could you share how you’ve done it? Or where to start?

I’ve found myself falling into the trap of being self centred, and I don’t like it either. I’ve made a goal specifically to donate more money, but it’s more than that. I want to have more time to give to others. Well said once again.

Thank you for sharing your thoughts and goals for the year ahead. I wish you the best of luck with them!

Huw

Reply
1. Under The Money Tree
  
  January 9, 2015
  
  Huw,
  
  The pain of listing things on eBay is offset by the satisfaction of dropping off vast amounts of clutter at the post office and exchanging a paypal balance for an equity holding every now and then.
  
  The photography has three main sources of income for me:
  
  1. Selling stock images on sites like iStockphoto (low end) and Getty (high end)
  2. Weddings, newborns, corporate mug shot jobs all got through word of mouth
  3. Corporate jobs. For example a local estate agency contacted me after seeing the above shot and bought it to use on a billboard campaign, along with some other shots they commissioned me to take.
  
  At the minute it is purely a hobby that provides me with some surprise income every now and then. Hopefully once I quit work it will give me the option to jeep earning in ‘retirement’.
  
  Hope this helps…have a great year!
  
  Reply
  1. The Escape Artist
    
    January 9, 2015
    
    UTMT – £2,000 passive income from one photo is amazing! All the best for 2015
    
    Reply
    1. Under The Money Tree
      
      January 10, 2015
      
      The Escape Artist,
      
      Thanks. Of course I failed to mention the thousands if not tens of thousands) of other photographs I’ve taken that earn me zero dinero and do nothing more than clog up my various hard drives and slow my computer down to a snails pace. That said the pleasure taking photographs gives me is worth more than the money it has provided. I’d still be snapping away even if it earned me nothing.
      
      Reply
Cerridwen

January 9, 2015

Hi UTMT.
Good luck with your plans for a productive and happy 2015.
(btw I’m with you on poached eggs – when they’re good they’re very good – but I’ve yet to find a fool proof way of cooking them. Any tips?)

Reply
1. Under The Money Tree
  
  January 9, 2015
  
  Cerridwen,
  
  Good to hear from a fellow poacher 😉
  
  I simply bring a deep saucepan to the boil. Then turn down the heat very low so the water sits just below a simmer. With a spoon i swirl the water round before adding the eggs (this wraps the whites around the yolks keeping them compact). After 3 minutes and 15 seconds I remove them with a slotted spoon and serve. For me this method has proven fool proof. Of course the fresher the egg the better the results.
  
  Good luck!
  
  Reply
  1. Cerridwen
    
    January 11, 2015
    
    Aha, so the secret’s in the swirl. Thanks 🙂
    
    Reply
    1. BeatTheSeasons
      
      January 11, 2015
      
      A couple of drops of vinegar also seems to do the trick in preventing the white from dissolving in the water. We’ve recently started keeping our own chickens and there’s a big difference with a truly fresh egg as you need neither vinegar nor swirling to keep them in shape in the water. Other than that we’ve found Coop and Sainsbury’s eggs to be a bit fresher than Asda and Tesco, which are truly terrible.
      
      Reply
      1. Under The Money Tree
        
        January 13, 2015
        
        BeatTheSeasons,
        You’re right a truly fresh egg cannot be beaten (excuse the pun) 😉 Since moving out of the city I’ve definitely become an egg snob. I’d have to be pretty desperate to head to the supermarket for an egg after tasting the difference.
Emily

January 9, 2015

One of my New Year’s resolutions is to comment more on PF blogs I read regularly. I guess now is as good a time to start as any!

I was just looking at your archives the other day and thinking that your photographs were unusually good for a PF blog. I’m glad it wasn’t just my imagination! Good luck with the challenge!

Reply
1. Under The Money Tree
  
  January 9, 2015
  
  Emily,
  Thanks very much! Feel free to keep your resolution by coming back an commenting some more 😉
  
  Reply
Jon

January 9, 2015

@UTMT, I could probably quit now. I’ve got cash sitting on the sidelines which I need to invest into stocks on my watch list when trading at fair valuations. This will push my income where it will be greater than my expenses with margin. I’m in a great place and I’m very thankful. I work from home in an interesting stress free job which has the right amount of company travel and if circumstances changes like management changes, company has lay offs etc well I have the safety net of FI. That’s the beauty of FI, knowing your in control.
I’m definitely going to try your poached egg recipe. You know I’ve been eating your porridge recipe each day ever since you listed it. Sometimes I have 2-3 times a day and I make it religiously each night and place it in fridge for following morning. I can see another income stream for you – recipe book for the FI. Have a great weekend.

Reply
1. Under The Money Tree
  
  January 9, 2015
  
  Jon,
  
  It sounds like you’re in a great place, congrats.
  
  Good luck with the eggs and I’m seriously impressed by your dedication to the porridge/oats recipe. But 2-3 times per day?!?
  
  Reply
Monevator

January 10, 2015

Happy new year!

I’d love to read a post about how you make money out of your photography. (I think I know the gist, but I’d got the impression it had all been arbitraged down to pennies in recent years?)

Good work on the eBay target. I set exactly the same motivating target a few years ago, and got rid of loads of stuff.

Your points about FI, friends, and the wider world are well made. A constant struggle, whether when is haplessly consuming or trying to bunker down and sit out much of that rat race.

Reply
1. Under The Money Tree
  
  January 10, 2015
  
  Monevator,
  
  I’ve had a couple of emails requesting ‘further info’ on how to become a photographic millionaire so I’ve decided to put a post together on the subject.
  
  The eBaying is as much about de-cluttering and simplifying the extent of our possessions as it is about the money. When you start looking it’s scary how much stuff you own that no longer gives you any meaningful value.
  
  Reply
BeatTheSeasons

January 11, 2015

We also set a £1,000 target for ebaying when we got our loft insulated a couple of years ago and needed to shift some serious stuff. It’s scary when you think how much you (or the mother in law, lol) paid for it in the first place, and how much closer to financial independence you’d be if the money had been allocated more usefully. Seeing you’ve mentioned the post office, my top tip would be to investigate the pricing with myhermes as it’s much cheaper for smaller packages.

Reply
1. Under The Money Tree
  
  January 13, 2015
  
  Doing these big clear outs certainly makes you think twice about future purchases. Since starting this process we’ve both vowed to make more of an effort to curtail future spending on and/or hoarding of ‘dead’ assets.
  
  I’ve recently started using myhermes. They aren’t the quickest to deliver but they are definitely cheaper for packages.
  
  Reply
Frugal Freelancer

February 4, 2015

Poached eggs are the best! It took me a little while to figure out how to poach them well, but now they are literally one of my favourite foods. Healthy and tasty.

Good luck with the other goals, particularly the £1000 declutter – looking forward to seeing how it goes!

Reply
1. Under The Money Tree
  
  February 5, 2015
  
  Frugal Freelancer,
  
  Glad to hear from a fellow poacher! Progress on the great £1,000 de-clutter started off really well but has slowed of late. Hopefully I can kick start it again and report back with the results in a separate post…watch this space.
  
  Reply