Meetup fun in Antwerp

Getting in touch with other people that want to be financially independent is always great. You get to see the faces behind the nick names, you can have in depth discussion that are not always possible via comments or email. And let’s not forget great food and a beer… That is – for me- part of the good life. SO, how did the 2nd meetup go?

In one word: GREAT!

Around 11 AM a nice crowd joined us for the pre meetup chat. There was a nice mix of familiar faces – from the first meetup –  and new faces that wanted to see what it was all about.

From the start, there was  a good, positive interaction. Smaller groups got to talk on their personal story and plan, shared success and doubts,asked questions. Exactly what a  meetup should be about.

At lunch, some did a typical Belgian thing : french fries with mayonaise on the go!

For this meetup, we wanted to try a series of presentations/group discussions. The goal was to unite all people around one topic for a moderated discussion. this way, you get to pick up new ideas, get feedback from others, you might be challenged on your own way of working.

Options by ATL: This first presentation wanted to demystify some option trading and give insights in a trading approach (system) that could increase the yield on your returns on stock. I am curious to see who will develop an option trading approach in an additional income source. When you do, feel free to contact me for an interview.

Goals vs system: Thanks to Avi and Christian to lead this group discussion!  In short: rather than going for a goal, try change your habit so that it becomes a system that leads to the goal! In some way, we all do this already: we pay ourselves first and try to automate our savings as much as possible. Hence, it takes after a while almost no effort to move in the right direction.
The group discussion got us on the topic of why do we want to be Financially Free? Is it for the number, is that the ultimate goal?  The ultimate goal would be happiness! In the end, that is what we want. There are many things we can do to be happy: spend more time with people we like, do meaningful and inspiring work, read books, be healthy,… Actually, just this morning, I read a good post by Montana Money Adventures: do check it out.

Part of the discussion was only on being happy now, not only later. It is related to being intentional already now on what we do and where we spend our money.

Index investing to reach fire! MR FOB presented his view on index investing and how to optimize your investing in NL. The key approach that he takes is to invest in the global economy using index funds that cover the total stock market. Bonds are added to smoothen out some volatility. And the Netherlands, like many other countries, has additional systems in place to put aside money in a tax sheltered way.

He plans to use a 3,5 SWR rate. That brought the discussion on what is save. A lot of people seems to be aware of the Early Retire Now blog post series. When not yet read it, go do it now. There is also a toolbox in the series.

After this, it was time for dinner and closing beers in a bar!

Thx for all people that attended and thus made this meetup a success. It was great talking to you. CheesyFinance and I will get back to you with a proposal for a next meetup.