3131: [Part 1] Save Money Where It Matters Most by Corey of The Fioneers on Financial Independence

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Investing, Business, Education, Self-improvement

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🗓️ 4 May 2025

⏱️ 10 minutes

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Summary

Discover all of the podcasts in our network, search for specific episodes, get the Optimal Living Daily workbook, and learn more at: OLDPodcast.com. Episode 3131: Corey of The Fioneers breaks down how focusing on the “big three” expenses, housing, transportation, and food, can dramatically improve your financial flexibility and fast-track your path to financial independence. With real-life examples and a mindset rooted in value over status, this post illustrates how intentional choices can save thousands annually without feeling like sacrifice. Read along with the original article(s) here: https://thefioneers.com/reduce-household-expenses/ Quotes to ponder: "We lack for naught in these three categories. Somehow, we have resisted the urge to keep up with the Joneses." "Reducing your big expense categories will give you the most freedom and flexibility." "Saving money has a triple effect on your finances. It not only gives you more money now, but it also provides more capital to invest and decreases the amount you need in investments to sustain your lifestyle long-term." Episode references: Pew Social Trends - Suburban Statistics: https://www.pewresearch.org/social-trends/2018/05/22/demographic-and-economic-trends-in-urban-suburban-and-rural-communities/ Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Transcript

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0:00.0	Amazon offers employees up to £8,000 for education and training, like Juliet.
0:07.0	She's now a trained technician. And to her, the sound of machinery in need of repair,
0:13.0	reminds her of how far she's come. In two years, she's landed her dream job, providing her with valuable skills. That's up to
0:24.9	£8,000 for education and training at Amazon. Eligibility conditions apply. This is Optimal Finance Daily.
0:33.3	Save money where it matters most, part one by Corey of the Fioners.com.
0:39.5	Jess and I are on pace to save about 60% of our after-tax income this year.
0:45.2	While growing our income has played a large part in increasing our savings rate,
0:49.6	even with intentional decisions to reduce it in recent years,
0:53.3	it's also a result of reducing our spending
0:55.8	in three key areas, housing, transportation, and food. These three expense categories are known as
1:03.4	the big three, suggesting that they are the largest individual expense categories for
1:08.5	U.S. families. Collectively, they make up 62% of the average
1:13.1	U.S. household spending. We've optimized our spending in each of these three categories,
1:19.0	but we haven't gone too far to an extreme. We don't live in a tiny home. Some may consider
1:24.9	our condo a tiny home when compared to the current average household sizes,
1:29.0	but it provides more space than we need. We own one car that more than covers our transportation
1:34.5	needs. We also don't lack for food. Our fridge, cupboards, and chest freezer are seemingly
1:40.5	always fully stocked. We lack for naught in these three categories. Somehow, we have
1:46.3	resisted the urge to keep up with the Joneses. We found a balance that works for us. This saves us
1:52.1	thousands of dollars each year. It has moved us closer to FI, both from a financial standpoint
1:57.1	and lifestyle design and buying more freedom. Here's a look at our spending compared to the
2:03.0	average household spending in these three categories. Housing, average American, 32.8%.
	...

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