FIRE (Financial Independence, Retire Early)

A movement centered on aggressive saving and investing to retire far earlier than typical.

FIRE, short for Financial Independence, Retire Early, describes a lifestyle built around saving a very large share of income, often 50% or more, and investing it to reach a portfolio large enough to cover living expenses indefinitely, letting adherents leave traditional work decades before typical retirement age. Variants range from lean FIRE, built around minimal spending, to fat FIRE, aimed at a more comfortable lifestyle.

He'd been saving 60% of his income for a decade, chasing FIRE (Financial Independence, Retire Early) so he could quit his job at 40.