When I was in my early 40s, I went through a divorce and found myself facing a radically changed financial landscape. Because I had stayed home for a few years off after my son was born, I didn’t have the same earning potential or job security I would have had otherwise. I don’t for a minute regret taking that time off, but as the academics on this forum know, once you hop off the tenure-track, it’s not easy to get back on. When I did go back to work, I took a position as a part-time lecturer; I eventually worked my way to a full-time position, but being a lecturer doesn’t have the security of being tenured, and the is pay significantly less.

Initially, I was consumed with fear and even panic –What if my teaching load is reduced? Or I lose my job entirely? I knew how to live within my means and also knew I could find other work if funding cuts eliminated my position, but being the head of household and knowing that I needed to provide not just for me, but also my son, was stressful.

While I had always been a good money manager, I didn’t really understand investing. I put money in my IRA and, while married, into my ex-husband’s 401k because I knew that’s what one should do, but I’d never heard of index funds, didn’t understand bonds (I still don’t really…despite Adam Grossman’s fantastic explanations!), and had no idea how to figure out an appropriate asset allocation. I just stuck everything into target date funds and called it good.

My new circumstances, with its attendant feelings of financial insecurity, motivated me to educate myself. I wanted to know how much I needed to have so a job loss wouldn’t be a catastrophe. So, I Googled “how to be financially independent” – or something like that – and a whole world opened up. I found JL Collins, Mr Money Mustache, Our Next Life, Frugalwoods, Humble Dollar, and the Bogleheads. I learned about index funds, asset allocations, and, from blogs about the FIRE movement, how to answer that all important question: how much do I need to be financially independent.

So, how are things going 12 years on? The short answer is, pretty good! I took the lessons I learned from the above sources and made a plan. I started tracking my spending and identified areas where I could tighten up and taught extra classes when they were available. These actions allowed me to increase my saving rate. I opened a brokerage account and, together with my IRA and 403(b), constructed a 3 Fund Portfolio (total bond, total US stock, total international stock).

With the magic of compounding and a strong market, I passed my “number” a couple of years ago. I’m still teaching, and while I had a number of years of relative job security, declining student enrollment coupled with state and federal funding cuts to higher education are pointing to a more uncertain future. But that’s ok. Thanks to what I’ve learned from the bloggers and forums mentioned above, I’m feeling secure.

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