"Choices"

Just read a great article which was featured on aol news. In it, a couple, Billy and Akashia Kaderli talk about how they spend their retirement travelling the world and living in exotic places such as Thailand and South America. Just another story about a retired couple? Hardly. These folks have been retired for 16 years-and they're both only 54.
How does one retire at an age where most people are just getting their third promotion? Easy. Choices. The wife said that every time she looked at a latte or a new pair of shoes, she remembered that she'd just be one step further from their goal of retirement. Through proper investing, they're able to live the lifestyle they want, but more than that, their expenses are low because they choose to live a simple lifestyle.
I am a HUGE fan of this way of thinking. Think about the money a normal Joe spends every day on "stuff"; a $3 cup of Starbuck's, a $10 lunch, a $4 pack of cigs or several bottles of water at a buck or two each. For the price of a cup of Starbucks, one can buy a pound of coffee and a reuseable travel mug. For a $10 lunch at Applebee's, you can get enough items at a grocery store to keep you in lunches for a week. Cigs are useless and, if you smoke, you deserve to watch your dollars being sucked down the toilet.
Even if you're not a consumer of all these things, chances are, several of your bucks per day are still being wasted on sheer crap(hey, that makes you an American). Those dollars accumulate and if they can be saved and invested properly, you may live in South America or Hawaii, too. This concept isn't rocket science-it's all about choices. Choose wisely.