I want to retire early but I own a business and my income isn’t stable

Early retirement is something a lot of people aim for. It’s nice to leave the grind behind at a relatively young age so you can enjoy your freedom while your body is still willing to cooperate.

But it takes a certain amount of money and financial stability to be able to retire early. And if your income is variable, it could get in the way of that plan.

In this Reddit post, we have someone who’s trying to retire early. They’ve been saving money aggressively to get to that goal and are on the right path.

The problem is that as a business owner, their income fluctuates a lot from one month to the next. As they write, they could profit $25,000 in one month but then only bring in $14,000 the next month. And that’s making it harder to stay on track with retirement savings.

The poster is wondering what to do. And the good news is, they have a few options to consider.

It may be time to take a step back – or take a different approach

Running a business can be a rewarding thing, but also, a stressful one. Not only are there a lot of responsibilities, but there’s the pressure of not being able to rely on a predictable income.

What the poster may need to do is sit down, run the numbers, and see if their variable income is getting in the way of their early retirement goal. If so, they may want to reconsider keeping the business open and instead pursue a more steady paycheck for the foreseeable future — or for however long it takes to meet their savings goal.

Another option is to keep the business, but make it more of a side thing. That way, the business income can serve as bonus money on top of a salary.

With this route, the poster can potentially boost their income and get to early retirement sooner. And if they keep the business running, then once they do retire, they can still dabble in that business for both money and a means of keeping busy.

While early retirement can be very rewarding, some people who do it find that they’re bored and need something to stimulate their minds. A business could serve that purpose and prevent the poster from feeling lost once they move on to that next stage of life.

It pays to consult a professional

Clearly, the poster has some big goals and tough decisions to make. So one thing they should consider doing is talking to a financial advisor.

In this situation, a financial advisor can help them:

• Figure out how much savings it’ll take to pull off early retirement
• Invest strategically so their money goes to work for them
• Determine whether the business is worth keeping based on their financial needs and retirement goals

It’s always good to have a sounding board when faced with a big decision. So with any luck, consulting an advisor will help the poster make the right choice.

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