Hey there! Welcome to the Independent Money newsletter 👋 We’ll be exploring the latest financial news and discussing how it affects entrepreneurs like you. Plus, we'll share some awesome wealth creation insights from successful entrepreneurs.

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In this week’s Independent Money newsletter, we’re covering:

• The 9 financial goals to achieve before 40

• What’s happening at Carry

The 9 Financial Goals to Achieve before 40

Tae Kim, a believer in getting rich slowly, shares the 9 financial goals you should be working on before the age of 40. You might not know it, but these things can have a huge impact on your future wealth.

1) Define your ideal lifestyle

Your 20s and 30s are for trying new things, making mistakes, and learning. As you near 40, it’s time to identify what’s most important to you and how those priorities define your ideal lifestyle.

Start by writing down your ideal day, and start to identify how you prioritize your finances based on what those activities consist of.

2) Have $0 debt except for your mortgage

The 40s are where you tend to take on more responsibilities with work and families. You may be managing teams, your kids may be taking up expensive activities or preparing for college, and your parents are getting older.

Debt is often necessary but it serves as a function (like loan applications) but be cautious about letting it sit and getting too comfortable with it.

3) A credit score of 800+

This gives you the best deal when you want to take out a loan or mortgage.

4) Have a solid emergency fund

You don’t have as much flexibility as you did when you were younger and may have other people to also prioritize. A solid emergency fund helps you smooth out the bumps that come up when you’re 40.

5) 5x annual expenses in investments

This is known as Coast FIRE. You achieve this when you have enough money invested in the market where even if you stop putting more into it, the compounding alone will allow you to reach your retirement age.

Having 5x your annual expenses in investments by the time you reach 40 is good enough for most people to have enough to retire on if they hold those investments until the age of 65.

$0.5M in investments, over 25 years, at an 8% rate, can become well over $3M.

6) Solid career capital

Career capital is the skills you have that are both rare and valuable that can be used as leverage in defining your career.

20s can be used for exploring careers without really developing expertise in anything, but your 30s should be used to really start investing in your career, so you have career capital to leverage in your 40s.

This leverage can be used for salary or position negotiation.

It’s important for a regular 9-5, highly technical field like health care, or starting a business as an entrepreneur.

7) Solid fitness regimen

Fitness is tightly correlated with finance. Not having a good fitness regimen will hamper your ability to work effectively, to earn more, and cost you more in health care costs in the long run.

8) Estate planning and life insurance

Have your estate plan and life insurance in order. Especially if you have family members reliant on you.

9) Start a money conversation with your parents

The 70 / 40 rule: When a parent hits 70 or a child hits 40, it’s time to talk. Nearly 30% of Americans with a parent over 65 help their parents our financially.

you can watch the full video here:

What’s Happening at Carry?

Here’s what you can expect in the coming weeks

See the full list of events here. ⏰

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If you want more resources on building wealth as a solopreneur/entrepreneur, check these out:

• The Solo 401k handbook 

• Common Solo 401k FAQ

• What is a Solo 401k?

• How to Open a Solo 401k

• Solo 401k Contribution Calculator