Getting Back on Track in Mid-Life

How false starts became the foundation of my path to financial independence

Ten years ago, I was sitting in a lawyer’s office signing divorce papers. It felt like I was closing one version of my life, without knowing what came next. I was financially unstable, newly single, and convinced I’d never catch up.

But when you’re at rock bottom, the ground is firm. You can push up from there.

Image: Tommy Haugsveen / Pexels

That was the moment I began to get back on track.

I got very clear on my values. For me, that meant building a career in accounting. That was the way forward.

Through accounting, I discovered something that changed everything. It led me to the world of FIRE.

By the time I discovered FIRE, I’d lived enough to know what I valued. Relationships. Art. Culture. Travel. Not luxurious travel, just meaningful travel. And I’d lived enough to know what I could let go of without feeling loss. The trade-off wasn’t hard. It wasn’t even close.

What looked like false starts at the time – rock bottom, accounting, a late start to FIRE – were actually the foundations of a new path.

Each step brought clarity. Each decision moved me forward.

Now, I am in a position where, worst-case scenario, I would be okay financially. A job loss would not be an emergency. And with another five to six years, if I stay on track, I should be in a comfortable position.

Not because I started over.

But because I found a better path – and stayed on it.

False starts can become foundations. Mine did.

And if you’re willing to get clear, take a step forward, and keep going, they can become yours as well.