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ChooseFI | Financial Independence Podcast
FI Service Corps | Ryan Brennan | Ep 548
00:50:57
In this episode of ChooseFI, Ryan Brennan, founder of the FI Service Core, dives into his journey within the financial independence (FI) community and how he is merging it with the spirit of volunteering. The discussion explores Ryan's background as a...
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- [00:00]
Brad
Hello and welcome to Choose a fi. Today on the show, we have Ryan Brennan. He's the founder of the FI Service Corps, which is a new organization that is part of the FI community. It's by the FI community and is part of the FI community to create something special, to create events that not only are FI get togethers, because that's all well and good, but to do good in the process, to give back, to volunteer to. And I think this is such a neat intersection. I think it'd be really something special that can sweep across, really, America, the FI community in America and across the world. This is something that is very replicable. Ryan's able to create these events, and they started their pilot in December 2024. It went so incredibly well that they now have four events on the books for 2025, and it's onward and upward from here. I think you're really going to enjoy this episode. And with that, welcome to choose fi. Ryan, I have really been looking forward to this. I'm so interested in the FI service core. I'm so interested in what you've built. And I think this is going to be a really important episode for the FI community because people are crying out for this. They're crying out for connection. They're crying out for giving back. They're crying out for being able to do good in the world. So I'm really fascinated by what you built. But before that, I just want to say welcome. Thanks for being here.
- [01:27]
Ryan
Well, thanks so much, Brad. It's awesome to be here talking to you and I appreciate you having me on.
- [01:32]
Brad
Yeah, you bet. You bet. So, yeah, this is going to work out great. So, okay, you, like me, are a recovering CPA as I understand it. Is that right?
- [01:41]
Ryan
That's true, Yeah. I identify as a cpa, although I haven't practiced for over a year and a half. I left my W2 job in September of 2023, and I didn't reach Fi and my plan wasn't to retire, never come back. I wanted to take a year off and then find a accounting job somewhere else. But now it's been over a year. It's been about a year and a half, and I am still not working in the traditional sense. I guess I could say what I've done is created a job for myself in this new Venture 5 service core.
- [02:17]
Brad
That is really cool. It is amazing how our five lives can just surprise us in so many ways. And, yeah, you thought you were going to go back. I mean, even just taking a sabbatical year, even Taking a mini retirement for a year is remarkable. And that's something that really only a select few people in the world can have the opportunity to do. And of course being in the fight community, it certainly makes it easier. But yeah, like you said, you're 18 months in and no CPA job. And yeah, that's got to be pretty wild. So before we get into five service course, certainly, like how are you able to do that financially? Like, what is your financial life look like now that you've left your CPA career?
- [02:57]
Ryan
So I have been drawing from my savings in order to support my lifestyle. I built up, I guess I could say a financial Runway of cash to feel comfortable to step away from paycheck work during my accounting career. Concurrently, I was a real estate investor. I did a few live in flips where I would purchase a house, live there and renovate it over time. And then after two to three years, I would sell the place. And then I also acquired a couple rental properties. So through these side hustle projects, I was able to build up a financial Runway to feel comfortable, to step away from work for a little while.
- [03:39]
Brad
Wow. Oh, that is really cool. Okay, so this really was conceptualized as a kind of like a mini retirement or a sabbatical where, okay, look, this is actually going to cost me money, but this is for the greater good of my life. So that's actually really interesting about the, the drawing down. So many people are curious about this. Like how do you mechanically do that? Is it, do you have the money set aside in like a high yield savings? Do you sell investments every month? Like how do you personally do that?
- [04:05]
Ryan
Yeah, so I have a taxable brokerage account and it has a cash balance that I've been drawing from. I have had to periodically sell some holdings to create more of a cash balance. But yeah, initially it was very difficult to change the mindset from saving to now drawing. My whole life I've been in the accumulation phase and I've had this big audacious goal of achieving FI someday. But yeah, I think like you said, for my mental health and just to kind of recover from burnout, I wanted to take this mini retirement. And yeah, initially drawing from that taxable brokerage was, you know, it was a mindset shift. But now I've gotten pretty used to it. It's been about 18 months of drawing from it. And I think one thing that helps me with that mindset shift is thinking back to a previous mini retirement. I took, I took a three month leave of absence when I was like 27 about it was in 2014, I took three months off of work, and it was also due to burnout. And I just felt the need. I felt like I needed to travel. I felt like my 20s were slipping away, and I just kind of went from college to career and didn't really give myself a chance to get out there and travel and explore. So I took $10,000 and spent three months, like, road tripping around the U.S. i got a national parks pass and explored national parks, camped, mountain biked, and looking back to this day, that $10,000 was the best investment I ever made. You know, it hasn't produced more money, but it's produced memory dividends, as Bill Perkins calls it, in diabolic zero. So just thinking back to how I felt about drawing that 10,000, you know, 11 years ago for my, that small mini retirement helped me with the mindset shift, you know, that I live in right now, where I'm drawing again to kind of support this mini retirement that I'm on right now.
- [06:12]
Brad
Man, I love that. Yeah, it's amazing how mindset shifts are really important because it's, it's hard even on a path to fi, right? Which is a very, for most of us is a very intense, intentional decision. We're stepping off the normal hedonic treadmill of life or the keeping up with the Joneses, and we're, we're doing something intentional. But I want everybody to know for certain, and I try to hit on this as often as I can, that it's not just like a set it and forget it. It's not a, hey, I'm going to wake up, I'm going to see some numbers on a screen that tell me that I'm five and all of a sudden my life is going to be unicorns and rainbows. Like, it doesn't work that way. It. It is actual work. Right. Like, we have to put in the work to experiment and test and do interesting things. Right. Like in your case now, too many retirements in your 20s and 30s, like, that's a really wonderful thing. And the amount of self knowledge you're going to glean from that is immeasurable. And yeah, like you said, maybe another mindset shift was you had this big audacious goal to hit FI, and obviously, I think by any definition, taking 18 months off from a CPA's job is going to slow that down. Right? Like, it doesn't take a rocket. I am a cpa, but it doesn't take a math whiz to figure that out. But that's not to say that's a failure at all. It's the antithesis of that. Right. Like, but that said, I'm sure that wasn't easy mentally to change your entire, I don't know what you consider your son now. Are you coast by, Are you lean fi? Are you. Is this little bit of real estate income like, but it's a mindset shift. I'd love to hear your thoughts on that.
- [07:46]
Ryan
Yeah. I think one of the beautiful things about the FI community and learning about all the different paths that people take on their FI journey is that you realize that it's not a linear path. It doesn't have to be a linear path. You don't have to work day in and day out and accumulate savings and invest and work towards this number on a screen. Everybody has varying degrees of risk tolerance when it comes to mini retirements or drawing from their savings or from their pot of money. That's their FI number. But I would say I have a pretty high risk tolerance when it comes to that stuff. Maybe from my past experience taking a mini retirement. But the thing that helps me is my accounting background, which is kind of funny. Like people think that accountants are very averse to risk and very organized and structured. But the fact that I have the cpa, the fact that I have this career creates a really comfortable backup plan where I can always fall back on it and restart my savings and accumulation.
- [08:54]
Brad
Yeah. And I mean having a fallback plan, there's nothing wrong with that either. And I think that's again, because you're trying to win the mental game for all of us. We're trying to win the mental game and that's 95% of the hard part. Right. And like there's the saying that burn the boats and this comes with a lot of, with entrepreneurship and hey, I'm going to leave from the shore, we're going to burn the boats and there's no going back. And like, I don't know. That doesn't, I mean maybe it's also my, my conservative risk averse accountant side. But like that is not a tenable situation for me. Like that's not a winning sleep well at night situation and having options and having multiple income streams. Right. Like you said, you have a couple of rentals now, I'm assuming based on the fact that you're drawing down that pretty obviously that doesn't cover your life expenses and that's fine, but it still is bringing in some amount of money and at some point those rentals will be paid off and Even if they're cash flow neutral, they'll be paid off at some point. And that's part of this overall strategy. It's hey, how can I build in options for myself? So yeah, you've taken 18 months off your career, but you're in the process of building something. You have these rentals working for you in the background. And worst case, like you said or alluded to, you could always just go back and your day is the same as it was a couple years ago. And there's nothing wrong with that.
- [10:15]
Ryan
Yeah, the rental properties also help with that peace of mind. Like in addition to having the fallback with going back to work, cash flow positive rental properties help with lowering my out of pocket expenses for life. I have a property in Washington D.C. and that cash flows about $500 a month, the rent over the mortgage. And then same thing with a property I have in the Eastern shore of Maryland, that's about A$500 a month cash flow positive property. And right now my wife and I live in a four unit multifamily. So it's kind of like a house hack where we live in the top unit and I rent the other three. So that helps us with a very low living expense. And that also gives us a lot of peace of mind to pursue time off of work or pursue ventures into entrepreneurship.
- [11:08]
Brad
Oh, that is really cool. Okay, so I need to dive into that. So I know you're currently living in New Haven, Connecticut and your wife is pursuing a graduate degree there. Now I know you've only been there for around three years as I understand it. Did you buy that four unit after you moved immediately prior? Like how. Talk me through that, like how intentional of a decision was that? Because that's not like, oh, we just happened upon this, like, talk me through. How did that come to pass in such a short period of time?
- [11:40]
Ryan
We initially moved to New Haven in the summer of 2022 and my wife began three year nurse practitioner program. And when we moved here, we rented an apartment for a year. And In September of 2022, I sold a house that I had flipped in Washington D.C. so at that time I got a windfall of cash and I started to look for opportunities to buy a place here in New Haven because I knew we'd be here for three plus years with her doing this program. So by renting for a year, it gave us a chance to, you know, get a feel for the area, learn about the real estate market and figure out exactly, you know, where we wanted to be and what type of House we wanted to buy and yeah, ultimately found this opportunity in the summer of 2023 to purchase this multifamily here in New Haven.
- [12:38]
Brad
That is awesome. So, Ryan, I'm not sure after your wife finishes the program, if you plan on staying in New Haven and continuing to live there or if you guys plan to move, would you rent this out? Would you sell it? Have you thought about that?
- [12:52]
Ryan
Yeah, I've thought about different scenarios with this place. I think that's where the accounting background helps a lot. I've got spreadsheets for all my properties and I'm, I'm always doing an analysis to figure out, you know, if it makes sense to hold onto properties as rentals for the cash flow or if it makes sense to cash out on the equity and sell the house. So for this particular situation in New Haven, you know, as long as we're living here, I think this is a great opportunity to house hack and have a rental income that pretty much covers our mortgage. If we did move on, I would, I would try renting it and see how that felt. But yeah, I like the idea of like, real estate is great because you have options. You could sell and maybe invest in something more conservative like just index funds or hold onto it, let it ride as a rental. Enjoyed the cash flow. So, yeah, I would experiment and see what felt right. And also I would see what makes sense from a financial standpoint.
- [13:51]
Brad
Sure. And that makes sense, but right, just doing the back of the envelope math. So the other three units pay for your mortgage. So your life, your living expenses are negligible. It's not to assume zero, but they're negligible. And you have about a thousand dollars a month coming in from the 2 other properties, the Eastern Shore and the DC one. So I mean, that's not nothing. It's not the lap of luxury. But in terms of, hey, have we been able to cobble together a life that doesn't cost very much? You live in a city. I'm not sure how many cars you need, if any. So, I mean, I'm conjuring this idea in my mind of, oh, wow, like they can make this work. And now your wife is going to start a, an actual paid career as a nurse practitioner here fairly soon. So that obviously will help and get you back on the point where you're, you're starting to add to your savings as opposed to withdrawing. But yeah, it's interesting how again, options and just being a little creative can really help. Like you, while you were living there, realized, oh, wow, I'M a real estate investor. Maybe I can figure this out. Like, maybe all this house hacking thing that people have been talking about, maybe it could work for me. And it. Obviously it sounds like it has, so that's really, really. Thanks for listening to Choose A five and for all your support of our mission here. The absolute best way to support Choose a Buy is when you sign up for your next rewards credit card to use our cards page at choose a vi.com cards I keep this page constantly updated, so it should always be the top resource for you. Thanks for being part of our community and for your support. So obviously your organization is called the FI Service Corps. So FI is a, is an integral part of your life. But let's go back to the inception of that. So how did you find the FI community? I mean, again, you're a cpa, but I think a lot of people have misconceptions about CPAs, that we're all like financial wizards and we know everything and we're all good at personal finance. Like, believe me, I've met a lot of other CPAs. That's not entirely true. So let's not assume anything. But I mean, Ryan, did you grow up, like, having a strong background of personal finance? Like, was this something learned late in life? Was it when you found fi? Talk me through this.
- [15:56]
Ryan
Yeah. So thinking back, my introduction to FI and my FI journey has kind of existed concurrently or kind of next to my journey in volunteer work and giving back. You know, both of those things have been parts of my life for a long time. And I never really thought about how they could be joined together until recently with Phi Service Corps. But I guess to go back, FI has been a part of my life for a long time, probably since before I even knew it was a thing. I've always been kind of a saver, an accumulator. My first real exposure to the concepts was reading the book Rich Dad, Poor dad pretty shortly after I graduated college. And just understanding the concept of passive income and making your money work for you really resonated with me. And shortly after reading that book, I bought my first property when I was 25. And I. I spent all my money to get it. I had saved a little bit of money from beginning my job and, you know, used it all for the down payment and closing costs. And really it was because I wanted to have a place to fix up and to own. And I was obsessed with the shows like on HGTV and Flip this House. So that was kind of like as far as my thinking went with it. But that house really was the catalyst towards all the future properties I ended up purchasing. Like, I've used home equity lines of credit on that property and once I rented it, you know, I got my first taste of passive income where you're bringing in rent that's higher than your mortgage. And I do remember reading a lot of Mr. Money mustache articles and Mad Scientist articles and discovering the choose five podcast, like while I was in my cubicle at work in my accounting job, like in the like 2017, 2018, and really got hooked on learning the ins and outs of things like the 4% rule and 25x and index fund investing. But I never actually participated in FI events besides maybe like a local Choose FI happy hour here and there. But I never actually went to a multi day event until September of 2023 when I left my W2 job. I quit my job on a Friday and three days later I flew to Bali and I went to the five Freedom Retreat. And it was probably the best thing I could have done at that time because that was a big decision to walk away from this company I had been working with for the last eight years and walk where I worked my way up to director of finance. So meeting these people in Bali and other members of the FI community who all had their own really interesting stories and unconventional paths, like, it really helped to feel reassured in this decision to take some time for myself. So Bali was my first exposure to like multi day FI events. And since then I've gone to campfi and yeah, I've made some really good friends in the FI community. And then I guess to rewind back to your other part of your question about volunteering. I never really thought about it at the time, but it's always been a part of my life. Like since graduating college, I've done various volunteer projects or service trips. And one in particular that I've done on a recurring basis is build trips where I would go to areas impacted by natural disasters and just work with an organization as an individual volunteer and help with rebuilding. So through that I made a lot of friends in the volunteer space and also I learned a lot of really important construction skills that I was able to apply towards my real estate projects like in my own life. So I've done a handful of trips as an individual volunteer. And yeah, it wasn't until last year where this idea to kind of marry the FI community and service and giving back kind of came together for me. So I had a interview with Megan Combs from the Everyday FI podcast and we talked for a while. And one of the things that she asked me was what my post FI life would look like. And I rambled for a while, but one of the things I said was in fi, I would want to dedicate more time to volunteering. And she kind of dug into that a little bit and asked me what I would do and what I have done. And, yeah, I ended up talking about various volunteer work that I've done in the past and how I'd like to do more of that in fi. And when the episode came out, Megan wrote a little description of the podcast. And one of the things that she said was learn how Ryan navigates challenges and aligns his financial goals with his passion for serving others. And the fact that that's what she took away was, like, you know, really eye opening for me. Like, I. I wouldn't think to describe myself like that, but the fact that somebody who I had just met would describe me that way really filled me with a lot of pride. And that sentence kind of read like my personal mission statement that I didn't know I had. So I kind of sat back and the idea to organize a volunteer trip with members of the FI community just kind of hit me all at once after reading that.
- [21:27]
Brad
Okay, Ryan, so we're right at the precipice of the first trip, but I got to slow down just because there's a couple of just really important things that we need to. We need to double back to. So first, what a cool thing, hearing that reflected back to you from Megan. Right? And it's like, it sounds like that literally changed your life. And to hear somebody talk of you in these. These terms that, like, you aspire to be, that's just a really cool thing. And isn't it fascinating sometimes? And I know I can speak for someone who is. Or as someone who is a lifelong serial self deprecator who maybe doesn't allow himself to really reflect on. On all the. The amazing things sometimes. And I am getting better at that, let's be clear. But it's gotta be pretty cool to hear that and to know that, like, somebody else saw this and they believe in me.
- [22:19]
Ryan
Yeah, it really was. Yeah, it was very unexpected, and it really kind of turned on a light bulb for me when I saw that. And I made sure to tell Megan about this to give her some credit. But, yeah, it caused me to reflect a lot about serving others and also how this could be applied to the FI community. You know, I think there's. There's so many socially conscious members of The FI community that want to dedicate their time and their resources to serving others, and they might not have a focused way to do that. So, yeah, like, in that moment, the wheels really got turning on how this statement that Megan made could be developed into a real mission and something that could really harness the community to do good.
- [23:08]
Brad
Yeah. And the community is crying out for it. And, yeah, that's why I'm excited to talk more about it. But just as an aside to everybody, Megan will be on the podcast in the next couple weeks. Actually, from when you hear this, she recorded an episode with Ginger. So it's getting personal with personal finance with Megan. Her podcast, Everyday Fi is really quite good. So it's one of the newer FI podcasts that I really enjoy, so definitely download that. And I think just kind of final word on the Megan aspect, Ryan, is you just never know the ripple effects of just anything in life. And I think that's why, like, Megan didn't go out of her way to do anything special. She just called it, like, she saw it and she reflected something back. And, like, the ripple effect of that one comment is you created the FI service core. And, like, that's a really cool thing when you reflect on that. And, like, then that's maybe a call to action for all of us is like, when you see somebody doing something interesting or you just want to say something nice to somebody, like, just say it. Like, you never know what the ripple effects are from that. I think so many of us hold back compliments and, like, think about how few nice things you hear about yourself or about anything. Like, in the course of a normal day, week, month, year, like, just tell somebody else. You know, it's like a pay it forward kind of thing. You just never know. You never know the ripple effect. So that's my public service announcement for the day. So couple other things. Like I said before we get back to that. The precipice of December 2024. So you left your job, and then three days later you were on a plane to Bali. How did that come about? Because I think a lot of people want to go to these events. A lot of people want to be spontaneous event or not. Like, how did that happen? So you have a real estate, you know, five rentals. It sounds like you have a wife in New Haven. Like, how do you just jump off and fly 10,000 miles to Bali?
- [24:56]
Ryan
Well, I think I was looking for a benchmark or a timeline to kind of stick to where I could pull the plug on my W2 job. And I had learned about this 5 Freedom Retreat that Amy Minkley was putting on. And I decided that, you know what? September is probably a perfect timeline for me to step away from my home office and do something totally different and. Yeah, meet people, have an experience and, yeah, just get away from screens for a while. Like, leading up to. Leading up to that. Yeah, I was experiencing a lot of burnout with work. You know, I. We moved to New Haven and my job went remote and where I was used to going into the office every once in a while and interacting with people. I was stuck in my house all day, every day in front of screens and. And I was a new person in a new community. And I couldn't really, like, get out and experience this new environment the way I wanted to. So, yeah, I felt like I needed to do something drastic and make a change. And the timing of the Five Freedom Retreat in Bali was just the perfect target to kind of place on myself for when to get away.
- [26:12]
Brad
That's very cool. Yeah. Nothing like a little kick in the butt to, hey, let's. Let's do this. This is perfect timing. And. And let's go and it. Yeah. I think kind of the punchline is a lot of the people who went on the first event for the five Service Corps are where people you met in Bali, which is yet another just kind of interesting, serendipitous part of. Of the whole story. And I guess finally, as my little sidebars here. So you talked about you volunteering in areas that are impacted by natural disasters previously. Now, of course, that actually is a large part of what you're doing with the 5 Service Corps. So clearly we're hoping that people get involved with the FI Service Corps. But like you said, this is a very generous community. This community looking to be involved. The need and the desire is far gonna surpass what the FI Service Corps is available for. Or frankly, like someone might be in California and you have evented in Asheville, North Carolina. Hey, how do I get involved? Is the short question. Like you, I think you said build field trips, but I might have. I might have misheard that. How does someone who is in their local community, how can they get involved more locally aside from the FI Service Corps?
- [27:25]
Ryan
Yeah, well, there's lots of things that people could do in their local community to get involved. One thing that I would love to pitch that hopefully could become popularized in the FI community is this idea of having FI meetups with an element of giving back and service. So Phi Service Corps has done to what I'm calling local Days of service where I've just found opportunities to volunteer with a local nonprofit just for a couple hours. And I've invited the Choose Phi Facebook group in my area to come out and volunteer. So in January, I invited the ChooseFi Connecticut group to come out for a beach cleanup. There's this foundation called Surfrider foundation, and they do periodic beach cleanups, and they take volunteers, and you can spend two hours cleaning the beach and then organizing recycling, and then you can all hang out together afterwards. And it's a really great way to come together and give back and have fun. I did something similar last month in Salt Lake City. I spent the month of March in Salt Lake City, and I joined the local ChooseFi Salt Lake City Facebook group. And I wanted to organize a local day of service for that group. And I found a donation center that they do two hour shifts where volunteers can come and organize donations and get them set up in the donation center to be given to families in need. And yeah, so I invited the Choose Phi Salt Lake City group to come out. A few people showed up, and we spent two hours sorting donations and then went to a brewery afterwards. So as far as what people could do in their local community, just like FI is better with friends, volunteering is better with friends. Make an event out of it. Find a cause area that you're interested in. It could be an animal shelter. It could be a community cleanup. There's so many things you could do, and there's so many organizations that rely on volunteers to execute their missions. So, yeah, I would just say take the lead. Organize an event. Invite your 5 friends. Invite any friends. Like, make a family event out of it. And if it's not through five service corps, I will not be offended. Like, I. I want this idea just to kind of, you know, spread.
- [29:49]
Brad
Yeah, No, I love it, man. Like, so many lessons in there. First, just from, like, a very micro choose if I local group perspective, like, for everyone out there, you don't have to sit and wait for the one or two local admins to set up an event. This is a community. You can do it. You can decide on any type of event and create it. Like you said, we have the Facebook groups. We now have our member site, our free member site on the choose a buy.com website that Jonathan has been absolutely spending thousands of hours on. And we're really trying to build something amazing, both from a technology standpoint, but more importantly from a community standpoint. And Ryan is the perfect example. Ryan doesn't live in Salt Lake City, but he Joined the group and he created an event, he took the action and he made it happen. Right? Like, why can't we all have a five day of service? A choose a five day of service if you will, and make it happen in your local group. It doesn't all have to be some contrived thing that on May 27th we all do it. Like let's make June, June 2025. Try to do some type of service event in your local group in June or July of 2025. Make it happen. Talk to your admin or just find something yourself and create the event. How cool would that be? Like, Ryan, you said FI is better with friends, which is the the Economy logo, but volunteering is better with friends. I love that. I love how you pivoted that. So yeah, just really, really cool. So, okay, I think we've given people a background, but now you actually created something and it sounds like so you are the founder of this. And the first event was December 2024. But when. So I'm thinking of this as a 15 month timeline. Right. So September 2023 was when you left your job and then 15 months later you have your first event. At what point along that journey did the the organization really come to pass? I know you said it kind of tied in with the Megan podcast, but just let's place that and then like how you thought about forming it, what that means to you and then this first event.
- [31:56]
Ryan
Yeah, I guess to think about on that timeline by stepping away from W2 work and kind of creating this time freedom for myself. I did a lot of traveling, a lot of self reflection and I didn't necessarily have this idea early on, but I think I created an opportunity for an idea like this to happen. I created the space for it. And when this Everyday Fi podcast came out in June of 2024, that's what really planted the seed for this idea to organize a volunteer trip for members of the FI community. And yeah, I just kind of stewed on this idea for a while. I was busy with a couple other things. During the summer of 2024, I got married and I got married in July and then my wife and I went on a six week honeymoon during July and August of 2024, which was great. You know, having this time off from work has been amazing for the two of us just to be able to take advantage of her schedule as a student, you know, she. As a student, she has her, you know, a long winter break, a long spring break, and she has her summers free. So we've Been able to take advantage of that and do a lot of extended travel. So we went on a six week honeymoon after our wedding this past summer. And I found myself, you know, kind of developing this idea more and more while we were on our honeymoon. This idea to organize a volunteer trip and like, you know, who could I invite, where could we go, what could we do? And when we got back from our honeymoon, it was around September of 2024, you know, that's when I started to put those ideas into action and I decided to do something I was familiar with. So I chose to go to New Orleans, which is a city I've been to many times, where I've done a lot of different volunteer projects and was familiar with local organizations that accept volunteers. So I sent out a text to seven, five friends, most of whom I met in Bali the previous year, and kind of pitched this idea to them. And these thoughts that have been stewing inside of me for like the last handful of months just totally got validated by them all just saying yes right away. They were so enthusiastic about the concept, and from the moment I pitched the idea, they were on board. So I found a, you know, a really nice vacation rental near the French Quarter in New Orleans that we could all stay at together. A place that had lots of amenities, had a nice outdoor pool, hot tub, communal tables, so that outside of volunteering, we could have a really comfortable space to be together as a group. And then as far as the volunteering, I chose to work with this local nonprofit in New Orleans that builds what they call opportunity homes. And these are homes that are built using volunteer labor and they try to keep the cost as low as possible during construction so that they can sell the homes at a steep discount to families in need. So it's a great opportunity for low to mid income families who are first time homebuyers who cannot necessarily purchase a home at market price. It enables them to become homeowners and have a chance to build equity. So it was a great cause and we were all super excited to participate on it. And the type of work that we ended up doing was exterior paint. So we went to New Orleans knowing that we would be doing some type of construction. But the stage of construction for the house was exterior painting. So we spent three days painting the outside of these opportunity homes. And, and outside of volunteering, we shared every dinner together. We walked the French Quarter. I organized a ghost and voodoo walking tour of the French Quarter. We did a cemetery tour. So there were so many aspects of this trip where we had Opportunities to connect with one another, to deepen our friendships, and to support the local economy where we were staying.
- [36:09]
Brad
That is really cool. So now, during the day. So let's say there were. Yeah, seven or eight of you working for X number of hours, probably five to eight hours minimum. Is that. This is going to sound like a silly question, but. But I also assume that's time to bond as well, right? Like, you're not sitting there mute or listening to podcasts or music. It's, hey, yeah, we're. We're sitting here painting all day for three straight days, but we're also chatting. We're getting to know each other better like that. I think that shared service, that shared sacrifice has got to deepen friendships as well.
- [36:43]
Ryan
Yeah, you're absolutely right. I think, like, working together for this shared common goal, you know, painting a house side by side, knowing that it's in service of a good cause, like, it really brings us together. And it did deepen friendships. And, you know, we were working hard, but we were also having fun during the trip and during the volunteering. We were laughing, we were making jokes. There were other volunteers on site who worked with this nonprofit. And one really cool byproduct of being there on site volunteering was the opportunity to spread the message of FI to people that might not have been familiar with the FI community. Like, there were other staff members with this nonprofit who, you know, they asked, what does the FI and FI Service Corps mean? So we got to kind of explain that, and some of them were interested in learning more. So we got to kind of spread the knowledge of that we have as far as saving and investing in various strategies. So it was really fun to be able to spread the message of FI and then do something good in service of others.
- [37:48]
Brad
That is great. Okay, so we're placing ourselves in time. This episode's coming out in May of 2025. Sounds like this beta trip was just a handful of months ago. So it was December 2024. What takeaways? So it sounds like it was really very, very positive trip, obviously, but were there lessons learned as far as. So it's a beta, right? Like, hey, we're testing this out. I have an idea that we should get a really nice Airbnb because X, Y, and Z reason or we should do this. Like, were there any surprising takeaways from how you thought the trip was going to go to how it actually went that might inform future trips?
- [38:30]
Ryan
Yeah, definitely. So, I mean, all the takeaways from that pilot trip or that beta trip were really Positive. And I went into that trip with the focus kind of solely being on the volunteer work. And I even told the group, I said, you know, going in, like, we don't have to do everything together. We can have a couple meals together. And. But then once we all got there and got settled in and hung out, like, we wanted to be together and, like, hang out the entire time. So that was a very interesting takeaway that I had from the group and that I think I want to keep applying to future trips. Like, I want to create as many opportunities as possible for the group to be together and to connect and to share meals, play games, and have all these interactions together outside of volunteering. It's not something I really thought about in detail prior to that trip, but. But after the trip, we all met and we talked about what we liked and what we didn't like, and every single person really enjoyed the opportunities to hang out and be together and the impromptu talks and playing games at night. And then one other thing that we did was a meetup with the local ChooseFi group in New Orleans.
- [39:46]
C
Oh, nice.
- [39:47]
Ryan
Yeah. So I invited the ChooseFi New Orleans Facebook group to come hang out with us one night. We just went to a little pub near our vacation rental and, you know, had drinks and whoever was interested in meeting us and learning about what we were doing and just hanging out, like, it was just a great way to meet other members of the FI community in that area and then just kind of spread the word of what we were doing. So that's something I want to continue applying to future trips. Like, I want to include element of meeting up with the local choose FI group in whatever area where we're working.
- [40:21]
Brad
That's great. Yeah. This sounds really replicable, which is so much fun about it. Like, so it really does just sound like a FI event, but at the heart of it, it's not, hey, we're going to go listen to speakers or have some formal itinerary. Though there it does sound like in a very wonderful way, you did some of that in that, like, okay, we're going to have dinner now. Maybe this is board game time, but. But it's not formal. Right. Let's be clear. But like, hey, we're going to spend those other hours that we would have been listening to speakers or whatever, and we're going to be doing this project together. So to me, it's like the best of all worlds in that regard. There's something about this very much appeals to me is the long and short of it. But you're volunteering with an organization. So, right. You're, as the founder of this organization, you are now trying to find service organizations to partner with that, hey, we're going to show up with X number of volunteers. And I imagine you give them the rough guideline, and this is just conjecture. Right. So just fill in whether I'm right or not. And then you say, okay, look, we're going to go to Asheville, North Carolina, which I know is one that you, you did earlier in May. We're recording this in April, but you're doing that early May 2025. And you have some number of people, let's just say 12. And you find an Airbnb that fits the 12. You find the organization that we're going to work with for days or four days or whatever, X number of days. And it just kind of all slots together like that. Is it, is that the rough framework that somebody could expect, which is, hey, I sign up for this, obviously there's a cost. Right. Because they have to. You need lodging. You're not paying to volunteer, but you're paying for the lodging. You're paying for those kind of things. I guess. Talk me through, like, what someone could expect from that.
- [42:04]
Ryan
Yeah. So there is a registration fee to participate in these service trips, and the bulk of that fee is meant to cover the lodging costs. So one thing that I've learned and that I want to replicate with future trips is having very comfortable lodging where we can all stay together in the same house, usually a vacation rental like an Airbnb or a VRBO kind of thing that has lots of amenities, lots of common areas, lots of spaces where the group can easily come together and enjoy being together and connect with one another. That's the main expense involved with participating on these trips. And then you're exactly right about the organizations that we partner with that kind of dictates the size of the group. Like, for example, in July, we're going to be going to Colorado Springs. And in my research leading up to that, I was reaching out to various local organizations that accept volunteer groups, reaching out to them. And I landed on an organization called Keep Colorado Springs Beautiful and spoke to their executive director. And we have three days blocked out for our group where we're going to be working on cleaning up trails and maintaining a community garden. And I asked her, what's a good number of volunteers for this type of work? She said, about 15 is a good number. Any more than that, we're kind of tripping over each other. So, you know, that kind of informs like the size of our group. And once I have the volunteer partner secured and the work all set up and the dates locked in, that's when I'll start to look for lodging that I think is appropriate for our group. And we are learning as we go. Like, I've never been to Colorado Springs. I'd never worked with this organization before. So, you know, we're going to see how it turns out. If it's anything like New Orleans in December 2024, this could very well be like a replicable trip that we do on an annual basis because New Orleans turned out to be more of a success than I could have ever dreamed. And now we're going to be returning there in November of this year and probably going to stay in the same Airbnb and probably going to work with the same organization, because everything about that trip ended up exceeding my expectations.
- [44:26]
Brad
Wow. I mean, that's not a bad start to an organization that's so darn sure. So right. If someone's looking to get involved. And we'll have this in the show notes, but it's fiservice core and I always like to spell things, so that's C O R P S. Okay, so fiservice C o r p s.org and it looks like there are a couple ways to get involved. Now, clearly volunteering, we've talked about you can also donate, which is important. But I imagine Ryan at, especially at the beginning here is like, hey, let's fill up these events, right? So I know we're recording this in April. I cannot promise anyone that there will still be slots left, but it looks like there's one in Tampa, Florida, which is a really easy place to get to airline wise. I mean, we have plenty of people listening in Florida June 10 to June 15, and it looks like there's still some opening. So if you hear this, you're hearing this in mid to late May, there might still be an option for, hey, Ryan took action, right? Ryan literally left his job and 72 hours later was in Bali and created this incredible thing for our community. Like, let's support his mission here. Let's support, like getting this off the ground and making it something that there's no reason there can't be dozens of these. If we're talking seven to 15 people at each of these events, like, why can't we make this something massive? Like, there is a real need. There's a real need, of course, but there's a real desire for this. Right? I mean, I know I've seen This even we had an episode, episode 483. This is obviously somewhat different, but nevertheless, episode 43 was effective giving for the FI community. And that was one of the best received episodes I've ever put together out of 700 plus episodes. And I have no doubt that this will be similar.
- [46:11]
Ryan
Yeah, I think I listened to that episode recently. That was Rebecca Herbst.
- [46:15]
Brad
Yep, exactly.
- [46:16]
Ryan
From Salt Lake City. She founded an organization called Yield and Spread. And I was actually introduced to her when I was out in Salt Lake City and the two of us went on a hike together. But yeah, I feel like both of our missions are the same but different. Like we're both, you know, advocating for the FI community to give back and my focus is with time and volunteering and her focus is with, you know, effective giving. So yeah, that episode is definitely on brand with what we're trying to promote.
- [46:45]
Brad
Yeah, I love it. I love it. Okay, so right, we've given the address. I think this is something people are going to love. I really do. I think it's the perfect way if you, you've been looking to get involved in a FI event that's a multi day event and you want to do something good in the world. Like man, you'd be hard pressed to find something better than this. So, I mean, Ryan, I just love what you put together. I absolutely love this. I think it's brilliant. I think it's going to be massive for the community. And I love that you're looping in the local choose a five groups and making it like a larger community thing too. I think that's, that's really wonderful. So is there anything, anything we've missed, Anything else you want to talk about? Anything that we should tell people about getting involved or donating? Or is it just Simply go to fiservice corps.org yeah, I mean, at the.
- [47:34]
Ryan
Website fiservice corps.org that's where you can learn all about what we do and our mission and upcoming trips and, and there's a mailing list that you can sign up for to learn about, you know, trips that we have in the pipeline and when registration is going to open for those trips. But yeah, just to kind of reflect on what you were saying about how the community can really get behind this. Like, I mean, I really appreciate you saying that and seeing that because I see the shift happening with the FI community as well, where there's this focus and this desire to get together and interact in person and kind of get away from the online forums and have these in person. Events. That's why campfi and economy sell out so quickly. I think that having another option is great for the community. And then there's also this shift in the community where the focus is not so much on the strategies and investment strategies towards fi, but now there's a focus on finding purpose, making an impact, and philanthropy and giving back. So I think that FI Service Corps really does harness those opportunities that exist in the FI community right now. And, yeah, it's a great way for people to give back and to feel like they're making an impact. And I appreciate you pointing out the upcoming event in Tampa. There are still spots open for that one. At the time that we're recording this, I believe there's five remaining spots open for registration, and there's a handful of spots still open for the Colorado Springs trip in July. So, yeah, anybody that learns about this organization seems to be super excited about it. Just the way that you've been, Brad. And, like, the thing that we need to focus on is awareness and getting the word out, because I agree there could be definitely a huge desire for this and we could build momentum to the point that it calls for a trip every month or, you know, multiple trips to multiple locations to satisfy the demand. Like, that would be. That'd be amazing if we got to that point. Like, I feel super motivated to put these things together. Like, I wake up in the morning, like, excited to send an email to the mailing list and, like, excited to reach out to potential volunteer partners. Like, I. I'm super excited about this, and I do kind of. I feel like it's become a calling.
- [50:00]
Brad
That is wonderful. And yeah, just the final word. If you're listening to this and now's not the right time to get involved, but you're worried you're going to forget about it or, you know, now's just not the time. Go to five service core.org and just go to the contact page that's actually join our mailing list. Or really, it looks like it's at the bottom of virtually every page. Certainly the. The volunteer page, just join the mailing list. Ryan's going to send out these opportunities for hopefully many years to come, and you never know when you get involved. So, Ryan, I just want to say, really, a sincere thank you for creating this. I think it's something that has the potential to be really special. So thank you for your service to the community. I think it's really, really remarkable.
- [50:41]
Ryan
Well, thank you, Brad, and I appreciate you taking the time to talk about it with me and to shine a spotlight on this. I think we have something really special. And with Shoespy behind us, I think possibilities are endless. So thank you very much.
- [50:55]
Brad
I love it. I absolutely love it. All right, if you're listening to this, take action. Go to FiveServiceCorps.org and sign up for the mailing list. Take a look at the volunteer options, take a look at the donation options and make something happen. We say we want to make change in the world. All right, you've got an opportunity. So I say take action. That's my call to you today. As always, thank you for being here and thanks for being part of the Choose A five community.
- [51:19]
C
Thank you for listening to today's show and for being part of the choose if I community. If you haven't already, the best ways to get involved are first subscribe to the podcast. So you're listening to this on a podcast player. Just hit subscribe and then subscribe to my weekly newsletter. I actually sit down every Monday and write this by hand and I send it out Tuesday morning. So just head over to choosefi.com subscribe and it's really, really easy to get on the the newsletter list right there and I would greatly appreciate it. It's the best way to get in touch with me. You can actually just hit reply to any of those emails and it comes directly to my inbox. So that's the way that I keep a pulse of the community and how we keep this the ultimate crowdsourced personal finance show. And finally, if you're looking to join an in real life community, we have choose a vi local groups in 300 plus cities all around the world. So head to choose a vi.com local and you'll find a list of all of Those cities in 20 plus countries all across the world. And if you're just getting started with FI or you have a family member or a friend who you think would be interested, two easy ways choose a Fi episode 100 is kind of our welcome to the Fi community and even though it's a couple years old at this point, it still stands up and it's a really great just starting point to get an understanding of what is financial independence. What are we doing here? Why are we looking to live a more intentional life where we save money and use it as a springboard to live a better life. And then choose if I created a Financial Independence 101 course that's entirely free. Just head to choosefi.comfi101 and again thanks for listening.