I've been a member of this forum for almost 10 years, and for several years before that at the precursor Morningstar group. A frequent reader but a rare poster, I've learned a lot from the group. More than any one particular subject, this community has been most valuable to me to reinforce the general Boglehead attitudes of thrift, savings, low-cost index investing, and staying-the-course.
I retired from Vanguard a few weeks ago at age 58, and can testify that it wouldn't have been possible without all that information and reinforcement here. The two most significant financial behaviors I learned to be able to retire now were avoiding destructive moves:
- Not reaching for a newer better house when I could have (enabling us to pay off our house a few years ago)
- Not panicking during the Great Recession and keeping our stock/bond ratio the same (enabling us to participate in the subsequent stock run up)
To all the frequent and long-term posters here, and the tireless volunteers who created and maintain this group, I am and will be forever grateful for my early retirement. Thank you all.