“财务自由、提前退休”是近年来时髦的有钱人常挂嘴边的一句话。
BBC最近就报道了一对来自美国弗吉尼亚州的夫妻 ，他们在30多岁就实现了财务自由。
Laura and Brad Barrett have reached a point where working is optional, because they're financial independent.
对Laura和Brad来说，工作是可有可无的，因为他们已经实现了财务自由。
The couple from Virginia are part of a growing movement called FIRE (financial independence, retire early). They explain what it means and how they got there.
这对来自美国弗吉尼亚州的夫妻是FIRE“财务自由、提早退休”(Financial independence, Retire early)这项运动的成员。他们向BBC解释了实现财务自由意味着什么以及实现财务自由的方法。
'We stopped needing to work in our 30s' （via BBC）
那实现财务自由需要多少钱呢？
Brad告诉BBC，想要实现财务自由，需要拥有你家庭年平均开支25倍的净资产。
作为弗吉尼亚州里士满市一户普通的中产阶级家庭，他们家一年的消费金额大约在4万美元。
那这对夫妇退休前是从事什么职业的呢？
根据BBC的报道，两人此前都是从事会计工作。自从有了孩子，他们开始重新考虑工作和积蓄的问题。
尽管两人退休前都是从事高薪职业，但Brad却否认他们之所以能够实现财务自由是由于他们此前优厚的收入。
Laura告诉BBC，他们家每人每顿饭的成本大约在2美元到3美元左右。
Brad说，这样，他们家一个月几乎能省下3000美元，而一年则是36000美元。
如果这样持续10年到15年，这将会是一笔巨资，将其用于投资的话，会有可观的收入。
根据BBC报道，目前在Reddit的财务自由社区里已经有超过50万的践行者。
他们讨论分享实现财务自由、提早退休的方法。
那如何存够实现财务自由所需的钱呢？此前，纽约时报在一篇报道中介绍过一些践行者的经验。
纽约时报介绍了一位名叫Carl Jensen的生活在美国丹佛市的软件工程师。
Carl Jensen experienced what he calls “the awakening” sometime around 2012.
他在2012年的某天幡然醒悟（想到了让自己提前退休的办法）。
Mr. Jensen was making about $110,000 a year and had benefits, but the stress hardly seemed worth it.
Jensen先生当时年收入在11万美元左右，还有津贴，但他所承受的工作压力让他觉得很不值得。
After one especially brutal workday, Mr. Jensen Googled “How do I retire early?” and his eyes were opened.
在一个特别繁忙紧张的工作日后，Jensen在谷歌里搜索了“我怎样早早退休”的问题，结果让他大开眼界。
He talked to his wife and came up with a plan: They saved a sizable portion of their income over the next five years and drastically reduced expenses, until their net worth was around $1.2 million.
此后，他和妻子商讨并合计出了一个方案：他们计划在此后的五年中节省下他们收入的大部分，大幅削减开支，直到他们的净资产达到大约120万美元。
On Tuesday, March 10, 2017, Mr. Jensen called his boss and gave notice after 15 years at the company. He wasn’t quitting, exactly. He had retired. He was 43.
在2017年3月10日星期二那天，在这家公司已工作了15年的Jensen给老板打了个电话，通知他自己不干了。不过准确地说，当时43岁的他并不是辞职，而是退休。
How to Retire in Your 30s With $1 Million in the Bank （via New York Times）
那退休期间，他们的存款够他们一家四口的生活费吗？
In retirement, Mr. Jensen and his wife and two daughters plan to live on roughly $40,000 a year generated from investments.
退休期间，Jensen和妻子、两个女儿计划每年靠着约4万美元的投资收益生活。
But already, it’s a life rich on time but short on luxuries: Groceries are bought at Costco, car and home repairs are done by him.
退休生活时间充裕，但却不怎么奢侈：日用品购自好市多超市，汽车和家里的维修都是他自己动手。
How to Retire in Your 30s With $1 Million in the Bank （via New York Times）
不过华盛顿邮报的一篇报道指出了“财务自由，提前退休”的精髓不在于真的提倡人们早早退休。
关于提前退休运动的三个误解（via The Washington Post）
But the superstar members of FIRE also don’t quite capture the essence of what the movement is trying to do, which is to encourage people to live on less so that they don’t have to work themselves to death.
FIRE运动的明星成员们并没有抓住这个运动的精髓：旨在鼓励人们减少开支，从而可以不用辛苦工作一辈子。
You may want to work into your 70s, 80s and even 90s, but a lot of folks don’t. They want to have command of their lives. They are looking forward to several decades of doing what they want, when they want.
你可能想要一直工作到70岁、80岁，甚至90岁，但很多人并不想。他们想要掌控自己的生活。他们希望未来的数十年可以做他们想做的事，在他们想要那样做的时候。
3 myths about this early retirement movement （via The Washington Post）
此外，华盛顿邮报还揭示了三个对“财务自由，提前退休”的误解：
Myth: FIRE is all about quitting work and retiring early.
误解：FIRE仅仅是关于辞职和提早退休。
The reality: Seventy-five percent of financially independent respondents said financial security is more important than retiring early. Only 35 percent said they were motivated by the prospect of leaving a 40-hour-a-week job. People said they were just looking for work-life balance.
现实：75%的财务自由人士说财务安全比提早退休更重要。只有35%的人说他们的动机就是逃离那种每周工作40小时的工作。他们就是想要工作和生活平衡。
Myth: FIRE means extreme frugality
误解：FIRE意味着极度节俭
The reality: The majority of financially independent survey respondents (67 percent) said FIRE isn’t worth it if they have to live as though they’re broke. When asked what they were willing to give up, 40 percent said they would limit travel or going on a vacation.
现实：大部分（67%）财务自由的受访人士说，如果不得不过得像个破产的人那样来实现财务自由，那就不值得。当被问到他们愿意放弃什么时，40%的人说他们愿意限制旅行和度假。
Myth: FIRE means living lean in retirement
误解：FIRE意味着退休后过得很清苦
The reality: Sixty-eight percent said they would rather retire at a normal time than retire early and live a low-cost lifestyle in retirement.
现实：68%的人说他们宁愿在正常的时间退休，也不愿提早退休但在退休后过着低成本的生活方式。
3 myths about this early retirement movement （via The Washington Post）
你觉得按照他们的方法可能实现“财务自由，提早退休”吗？欢迎留言告诉我们！
整合：Du Qiongfang
原文：BBC、The New York Times、The Washington Post
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