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The 10 Stages of Financial Freedom | A Clear Roadmap to Achieve FIRE - Based on My Real Journey!
Sep 10, 2025
Most people think Financial Independence (FI) is a single milestone… but the truth is, it’s a multi-stage journey.
In this video, I walk you through the 10 clear stages of Financial Freedom, based on my real-life FIRE journey that started in 2015 and led me to achieve Financial Freedom by the end of 2022.
Whether you’re just discovering FIRE or are already on the path, this video will give you a complete roadmap, emotional insight, and a free tool I’ve built to help you track your current stage and how far you’ve come.
Read full article here: https://fabtrader.in/where-to-start-and-how-to-track-your-f-i-r-e-journey/
Download the Roadmap Handbook (pdf) here:
https://fabtrader.in/product/f-i-r-e-journey-the-full-roadmap-to-freedom/
The free online Self Assessment Tool is available online at our community Tools page!
Go to our tools page below and then you can find it under 'Calculators' tab.
https://tools.fabtrader.in/
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0:00
Whenever I meet someone from the fire
0:01
community or even when people message me
0:03
after watching my videos, they often ask
0:04
me the same thing. They say, "I'm really
0:06
passionate about fire. I want to achieve
0:08
uh, you know, financial independence,
0:09
but I don't know where to start and I
0:11
have no idea how to track my progress."
0:13
So, every time I hear that, I kind of
0:15
feel a deep sense of familiarity because
0:17
truth be told, I was exactly in that
0:19
same position about 8 9 years ago. Back
0:21
then, I had stumbled upon the concept of
0:23
financial freedom and I was completely
0:25
drawn to it. But the problem was that
0:27
there wasn't a clear path. uh I I kind
0:29
of jumped from blog to blog. I book to
0:31
book trying to understand what to do. Um
0:33
there were a few forums, some Reddit
0:34
groups if I remember. But there was no
0:36
structured step-by-step guide. Uh there
0:38
was no clear road map to follow. I had
0:40
no clue whether I was doing things
0:42
right. Um I don't know what comes first,
0:44
what comes next. Uh I don't I didn't
0:45
even know how far I was in the overall
0:47
journey. And uh that's what actually
0:49
made me uh you know pass and think uh
0:51
what if I could simplify this for
0:52
others, right? What if I could take
0:54
everything that I've learned over the
0:55
past 8 years and create a clear
0:57
step-by-step process for anyone pursuing
0:59
fire? And that's what uh I want to offer
1:02
through this video. A simple road map, a
1:03
road map that worked, a road map that
1:05
helped me achieve fire in 2022. In this
1:08
video, I'll walk you through the four
1:10
major phases of a fire journey, the 10
1:13
stages across these four phases, and
1:15
what to expect at each stage, what goals
1:18
you should uh, you know, look for and
1:19
how your mindset should be across these
1:21
stages. As a bonus, I've built a small
1:24
free self- assessment tool that you
1:26
could use in which you input a few basic
1:28
details and the calculator will tell you
1:30
exactly where you are in the fire
1:31
journey and which stages you are at to
1:33
complete and what specific actions you
1:34
need to do uh, you know, in order to
1:36
complete that journey. Right? Also, you
1:38
can download the the PDF version of the
1:39
the entire road map and this entire
1:41
presentation for free as well. So,
1:43
whether you're just starting out or
1:45
you're already halfway through the fire
1:46
journey, this video is for you. Let's
1:48
begin.
1:50
The content shared in this video is
1:51
based on my personal experience and is
1:52
meant purely for education and
1:53
information purposes. It is not
1:54
financial, investment, tax, or legal
1:55
advice and should not be considered a
1:56
recommendation to buy, sell, or hold any
1:58
financial instruments. Please remember
1:59
that investing and training involves
2:00
significant risk of loss and past
2:01
performance is not indicative of future
2:03
results. Always do your own research and
2:04
consult with the qualified financial tax
2:05
and legal professional before making any
2:06
financial decisions. Fire. The financial
2:08
independence in retire early uh is often
2:10
misunderstood. Most people think that
2:12
this is just one definite state of
2:13
accomplishment. It's almost like one
2:14
fine day you you get up from the bed and
2:16
uh you've arrived. Sadly, it's not the
2:18
case. Fire is actually a long journey.
2:21
To achieve fire, you typically have to
2:22
cross 10 milestones. And these 10
2:24
milestones can be grouped into four
2:26
major phases.
2:28
Phase one is solveny. Um this is where
2:30
it all begins from relying on others or
2:32
borrowing to make your ends meet. One
2:34
gradually moves into a state where he
2:35
earns enough just to maintain his basic
2:37
living. So you you move to a point at
2:40
least you you're no longer dependent on
2:41
others. And this is also the phase where
2:44
one gets that first taste of financial
2:45
control and and it's a very powerful
2:47
feeling. Phase two is stability. At the
2:50
end of phase one, you've become solvent
2:52
which is which is all good which is an
2:53
excellent achievement. Uh but that's not
2:55
it's going to be enough, right? But now
2:56
it's a time to build resilience, right?
2:58
So in this phase uh is all about
3:00
managing your risk and reducing your
3:01
vulnerability. This is where one builds
3:03
a buffer to give oneself some cushion.
3:06
So your finances aren't fragile anymore.
3:08
Uh at least one unexpected bill won't
3:09
ruin everything. Uh you've closed all
3:12
high interest debt. You are finally in
3:14
control uh not just of your income but
3:16
your obligations too. Phase three is
3:18
security. At the end of this phase,
3:19
you're you're no longer just surviving.
3:21
U this is actually where fire really
3:22
begins to start feeling real and uh you
3:24
can now cover your essential expenses
3:25
with the passive income or your
3:27
investment returns. Um you still have to
3:28
work uh work for other goals in life but
3:30
at least your core needs are all
3:31
covered. Uh this is also the point where
3:33
you can downshift on your aggressive
3:34
work life travel or even pivot careers.
3:37
And finally the phase four is the climax
3:39
which is the independence. This is this
3:40
is what we all dream of uh where your
3:42
investment and your passive income can
3:44
now cover the full life cycle expenses
3:46
and work becomes optional. At this stage
3:48
money is no longer a limitation in your
3:49
life. It is a tool for impact. Now let's
3:52
shift the gears and dive into the the 10
3:54
stages of fire and I'll uncover it each
3:56
one by one, right? So you may ask why 10
3:58
stages just sounds too complicated,
4:00
right? Well, this is purely coming from
4:01
my personal experience and I I'll be
4:03
honest with you, the journey is not
4:05
going to be easy. So for you to stay
4:07
motivated and keep at it, smaller and
4:09
more frequent milestones make things a
4:10
lot easier for you to stay the course.
4:12
It it gives you that sense of
4:13
accomplishments that uh you know that
4:15
will motivate you to push harder
4:16
otherwise people usually give up on it.
4:18
Believe me, fire can have that effect on
4:20
you. Stage one is financial dependence.
4:23
This is where it all starts. This is
4:24
where many of us begin. Right? So, you
4:26
might be a student uh recently
4:28
unemployed or simply caught in the cycle
4:29
of spending everything that you earn.
4:31
Right? Someone living paycheck to
4:32
paycheck possibly with even a lot of
4:34
debt and completely reliant on your next
4:36
income to survive. Um without your next
4:38
paycheck or external support, you
4:40
couldn't meet your basic needs. Uh if
4:42
this is you, don't worry. Acknowledging
4:43
where you stand is the first step
4:44
towards a positive change. The second
4:46
stage marks your first victory which is
4:48
financial solvency. Here what happens is
4:50
you've reached a crucial milestone. Your
4:51
income is consistently covering all your
4:53
living expenses. You've stopped
4:54
accumulating new debt. You can pay for
4:56
your bills uh on time without borrowing
4:58
really money from outside. Um this is uh
5:01
this is your financial foundation,
5:02
right? You may still have some debt
5:03
which is fine, but at least you've
5:05
stopped basically digging the hole
5:06
deeper, right? Many find this transition
5:08
challenging but immensely rewarding and
5:10
it is also where you take control of
5:11
your spending and start building healthy
5:13
money habits. Stage three is financial
5:15
stability and it's all about creating
5:16
your first safety net. In this in this
5:19
in this stage you you've established an
5:20
emergency fund typically uh you know
5:22
covering 3 to 6 months of your essential
5:23
expenses. Um this additional buffer uh
5:25
you know protects you from uh you know
5:27
whenever life throws a curveball at you
5:28
unexpected challenges like you know say
5:30
sudden car repairs, your medical bills
5:32
or your home appliance broke down and
5:34
you it needs a replacement or even
5:35
something a bit more serious like a
5:37
temporary job loss. So consider your
5:39
emergency fund like your a financial
5:40
shock absorber producing stress and
5:42
preventing you from sliding back into
5:44
debt. Now comes a major milestone that
5:47
many consider life-changing becoming
5:48
debtree. So in in stage four which is
5:50
debt freedom. You've systematically
5:52
eliminated all your consumer debts like
5:54
things like you know credit card,
5:55
personal loans, student loans, car
5:56
payments or or in some cases even home
5:58
loan. So imagine the freedom of sending
6:01
your money towards your future instead
6:02
of paying your past. with the debt
6:04
payments uh you know all taken care of
6:06
your your cash flow increases
6:07
dramatically which basically opens up
6:09
new possibilities for saving and
6:10
investing uh personally in my fire
6:12
journey when I became debtree um it was
6:14
almost like somebody you know someone
6:16
just lifted a huge rock off my chest um
6:18
it's kind of very difficult to explain
6:20
uh but it just felt wonderful stage five
6:22
is coasting fire uh with with all the
6:24
debts behind you uh stage five is all
6:25
about coasting your way to the fire um
6:27
in typically in this stage involves that
6:29
you save up to 20 times your annual
6:31
expenses um at the stage you're not
6:33
ready to stop working. However, you
6:34
could choose to lighten up, you know,
6:36
your load. Many people that I know at
6:38
this stage choose to work differently.
6:40
Uh perhaps say some some some sort of a
6:42
part-time work, freelancing or even
6:43
pursuing some passion projects. It's
6:45
very important that you let your corpus
6:46
grow and you do not touch it or withdraw
6:47
any funds from it. On the contrary, you
6:49
could choose to stop contributing to
6:51
your corpus. Although personally, I
6:52
wouldn't suggest it. You know, you need
6:53
to continue to contribute to your
6:55
corpus. So, while you'll likely continue
6:57
to work, uh you've created a safety net
6:59
that ensures that your survival needs
7:00
will always be met, which is very very
7:02
important. This this milestone
7:03
dramatically reduces your financial
7:04
anxiety and that's wonderful.
7:07
Stage six is financial security and this
7:10
is where your uh lifestyle begins to
7:11
transform and your passive income now
7:13
covers all your basic necessities plus
7:15
some discretionary expenses perhaps
7:16
things like you know travel, hobbies or
7:18
even entertainment. The the key aspect
7:20
of the stage is that you know the work
7:21
becomes uh more about fulfillment uh
7:23
than really about survival and and at
7:25
this stage you're completely unstoppable
7:27
uh because you've tasted you know
7:28
freedom and you don't need any external
7:30
push to stay the course and in case if
7:32
you've already reached the stage give
7:34
yourself a big bat in your back. From
7:36
financial security you move to the next
7:37
stage which is stage seven financial
7:38
flexibility. At this stage your passive
7:40
income meets or exceeds uh your current
7:42
lifestyle expenses offering the the
7:44
flexibility to make employment optional.
7:46
So there are two key aspects to the
7:47
stages. Uh you know number one is your
7:49
passive income equals or surpasses your
7:51
total monthly expenses which is very
7:52
very important. Number two ability to
7:54
sustain current lifestyle without any
7:55
active income. Right? So so you you now
7:58
work because you choose to not because
7:59
you must right um I know a lot of people
8:01
who uh you know who achieved this stage
8:03
continue to work um they they kind of
8:05
not work for money anymore but they
8:06
really look to pick up work where they
8:08
can make a lot more meaningful
8:09
contributions.
8:12
Financial independence is stage eight.
8:14
uh you're now officially within the
8:15
threshold of financial independence and
8:16
this is a really significant milestone.
8:19
Um in this stage your your passive
8:20
income well exceeds your current needs
8:22
allowing you to indulge in um you know
8:24
kind of lifestyle enhancements like you
8:25
know you can travel more luxuriously you
8:27
can move to one of the dream locations
8:28
that you always wanted to or you can
8:30
indulge in hobbies without really have
8:32
to you know having worry about cost
8:34
right the the global thumb rule for this
8:36
stage is that you need to have at least
8:38
30 times your annual expenses saved up
8:40
in your retirement corpus. Financial
8:42
freedom is stage number nine. Uh you
8:43
have arrived and you've arrived in
8:45
style. Uh this is the stage that
8:46
everyone dreams of. Uh where your assets
8:48
produce significantly more income than
8:50
you could uh you know ever reasonably
8:51
spend. Um again if you if you talk about
8:53
thumb rules here you need to have saved
8:55
up in your retirement corpus over 50
8:56
times your annual expenses. Bear in mind
8:59
this corpus does not include your other
9:00
long-term goals like your kids
9:02
education, uh wedding or any other
9:04
lifestyle expenses. Those you would need
9:05
to save up on top of the the retirement
9:07
corpus that I'm talking about. Uh
9:08
personally I crossed this stage in 2022
9:11
and uh I was literally on top of the
9:13
world when I did it. Uh especially after
9:14
8 years of slogging it out. And finally
9:17
stage number 10 which is financial
9:18
abundance. Uh you know if you if you
9:20
have uh 100 times your annual expenses
9:23
saved up in your retirement corpus. Uh
9:24
you you basically get to have achieved
9:26
this uh stage. This is the stage I also
9:28
call as nirvana of wealth because the
9:29
the final uh stage that transcends money
9:32
entirely. Right. It it's it's all about
9:33
aligning your wealth with a purpose. um
9:35
you've actually built generational
9:36
wealth that will not only last your
9:37
lifetime but probably a couple of next
9:39
generations as well. Uh at this point in
9:40
time it's no longer about the money uh
9:42
but using money in ways that brings the
9:43
you know the greatest joy and impact. Uh
9:45
personally this is also the stage that
9:46
I'm trying to work towards and I'm
9:48
hoping that I would uh you know reach
9:50
very shortly. I spoke about a self
9:52
assessment tool that I built um which
9:54
will tell you basically where you are
9:55
within the journey. Uh you can access
9:57
that tool for free. All you need to do
9:58
is just go to our community website
9:59
which is faprader.in And then you click
10:01
on this access tools here, right? And
10:03
then when you click on it, it basically
10:04
opens up this and then you can find the
10:06
the self assessment tool right at the
10:08
top which is test yourself which stage
10:09
of fire journey I'm currently in. So
10:11
this is the one. So you you put in some
10:12
basic uh you know some of your basic
10:14
numbers here and then when you try and
10:15
say calculate my stage uh this will tell
10:17
you exactly what are the stages that
10:18
you've already cleared and what are the
10:19
the stages that you are yet to clear
10:21
along with what exact uh you know
10:22
actions that you'll have to take.
10:25
Also you can download the the entire
10:27
road map this this presentation take for
10:28
free as well the PDF version of it. I'll
10:30
provide the link in the in the
10:31
description. This contains the the
10:32
entire road map and along with along
10:34
with it all the details that you need.
10:36
Um in fact you can take a print out of
10:37
this particular uh road map and then
10:39
stick it on your desk and then you can
10:41
write your your personalized plan as to
10:43
when you plan to achieve uh you know
10:44
these these stages as well which could
10:46
be a great reminder uh for you.
10:50
We have come to the end of the video and
10:52
I want to close with these words. Um, as
10:54
someone who's walked this path, I want
10:56
you to know that I understand what it
10:57
feels like, you know, to start this
10:58
journey with more questions than
10:59
answers. Um, and I know exactly how
11:01
overwhelming this can be. Looking back,
11:04
I'm grateful that I did not give up and
11:06
and that's why I created this road map
11:07
and tool to make your journey a little
11:09
easier than mine was. Um, if you are
11:11
someone along the way wondering if
11:12
you're doing enough or heading in the
11:13
right direction, uh, I just want to say
11:15
that you're not alone. Um, I'm available
11:17
for any questions that you may have,
11:18
please write to me and and you can
11:20
always get in touch with me anytime. And
11:22
if this video or tool has helped even a
11:24
little bit, I'm I'm truly happy to have
11:25
been part of your journey. So, keep
11:27
going and I'm rooting for you. Thank
11:29
you. If you genuinely found this video
11:31
useful, please consider subscribing and
11:32
liking the video. And I will see you
11:33
soon in another video. And until then,
11:35
take care and happy trading.
#Financial Planning & Management
#Investing