184 comments

How I Sold This Website for $9 Million

Dearest Readers,

I’ve been waiting to tell you this with considerable excitement for a whole year, but the sales contract prevented me from doing so until this moment. And as of April 1st, 2019, I’m officially free to reveal that:

Mr. Money Mustache has been sold!

Yep. I’m not sure if it’s the age-old truism that “Everybody has their price”, or the fact that I got bored after eight years of writing it and just ran out of things to say, but over time I have come to realize that it was time to pass this golden opportunity on to someone else.

The highest bidder in this case was Shamrock Financial Trust*, a financial products company in the Isle of Man, UK that specializes in special premium investments that beat the market while dodging the taxman.

I was unsure of exactly why Shamrock would be willing to pay so much for my collection of five hundred articles mostly about spending less money and investing in index funds. But when you put six zeroes after a number on a check, it is amazing how quickly uncertainty and questions can vanish!

From my understanding, a site like MMM has a certain value just from its ranking in the search engines, and ongoing traffic of several million page views per month and about 33 million unique visitors over its lifetime. But still, those are just numbers on the page and don’t seem real because I haven’t been taking full advantage of the opportunity.

But, the Shamrock leadership team has assured me that the site will take on a vibrant new life, with a team of professional writers churning out fresh content on the daily, and an SEO-optimized stream of monetized offers that deliver maximum value-added solutions to all stakeholders.

And I just thought I’d reach out to see if we could jump on a call to catch up on the bleeding edge of some big data, to see if there’s any Corporate Synergy in our Core Competencies.

Fuck! Don’t you hate corporate bullshit and business buzzwords? Me too.

(thanks to reader Ron Cameron in the comments below for mentioning this incredibly appropriate Weird Al / Crosby Stills and Nash song. It is SO good!)

It was both fun and sickening for me to type that cheerful little story, but hopefully you realized from the title alone that it is April Fool’s Day, and I thought I should play along with a preposterous headline of my own.

In reality, of course I have no desire to sell this website, because doing so would violate some of the core math of early retirement happiness:

  • It would subtract something from my life that brings me true happiness (the ability to be in touch with you, which in turn brings more friends and lots of challenge and a sense of meaning into my life)
  • while adding more money, which would make absolutely no improvement to my life because I am not feeling any pain due to a shortage of money.

And that’s the real reason I figured this lame April Fool’s prank also contained a life lesson that was worth sharing as a blog article. Because I am still hearing from people every day who are selling out their own lives for their careers.

So many people are using a successful working career and earning loads of money as an excuse for not facing the realities of life.

Although this is certainly not a gender-specific problem, as a 44-year-old man living in a wealthy area I am surrounded by peers who are afflicted by this disease of Success-itis.

People who are rockstars in the corporate sphere and at the peak of their careers, who have become so addicted to the activity that they can’t see they are just chiseled Kuhl-clad rodents jogging in the latest trail runners on a gilded hamster wheel.

Career success is a very sneaky thing, much like a layered salad of Superfood Greens that gradually devolves into a dessert of Creme Brulee enhanced with crystals of Crack Cocaine as you dig deeper. It starts out with all sorts of self-actualization and personal growth, but as you begin dining you are also hooked up to intravenous feeds of ego stoking and copious income. So even as the worthwhile parts fade, you grow more and more addicted to the superficial rewards.

Of course, the standard American tradition is to spend all of this money as soon as you get it, locking in a lifestyle that is so bloated and inefficient that you “need” to keep earning the enormous bucks to “support your family.”

It becomes very easy to justify career-itis as a noble and selfless thing, rather than the lame indulgence it really is, when you are simultaneously addicted to corporate accomplishment, and bad at managing the veritable shitload of money it generates. If you are making a multiple six figure salary in your 40s and still not even financially independent, please grow up and learn a bit about money beyond just buying yourself nice stuff. It should be embarrassing to be still dependent on a paycheck while sitting in such a privileged position.

But even for those of us who get the money part solved, with investments large enough to see us through several prosperous lifetimes, the career addiction still remains strong. The fact that people still end up on redeye flights, missing their kids’ school performances and barking out buzzwords at underlings during endless conference calls even with tens of millions in the bank, should serve as a real warning of how addictive this disease can really be.

So for this April First, I would like to issue a little reminder, for overly successful men and women of my overly rich country:

A successful career is a fine way to learn some life skills and earn some money. But if you’re still doing it at 40 years old, you are probably sucking at something else.

And if you’re still in the office at 50, you’d better be changing the world and not just a cog in a machine that is doing something you don’t believe in.

Since career-itis is an addiction to success, the easiest way to break free is to give yourself permission to suck for a while.

If you are a Successful Career Man and you want to start a family, there is going to be a 20-year period where you are either a half-assed worker, or a half-assed Dad, or both. But you can’t be amazing at both. And that is totally okay.

Because a good life is one that is well-rounded and nuanced. It’s not about PERFORMANCE at all costs. It’s about being okay with trying new things and making mistakes, and growing as a human in exchange for that.

Your kids don’t care if you make $75,000 or $75 million per year, because either of those numbers is more than enough to have all possible doors to happiness open to them.

So my challenge to you is not to work the longest and most fruitful career possible, but rather to move on to new and bigger challenges as soon as you are strong enough to do so. 

Complacency and doubling down on your existing half-satisfying job is a form of weakness. Moving on and trying new things is a sign and source of flexibility and strength. And mental flexibility and strength are the biggest allies you’ll ever find in the long journey through life.

Thus, of course I did not sell this website, and of course I’m going to keep occasionally writing things for it, on my own schedule and nobody else’s, while struggling and fighting and learning in all the other areas of life.

It won’t be perfect, but it will be interesting and fulfilling and awesome. I wish you the same in your badass and ever-changing life!


* This is a fictional name that I picked because it contained the word Sham, plus a real financial company from the Isle of Man sent around some bogus legal threats to a few bloggers several years ago so I thought it would be nice to combine the ideas. 

  • Marc April 1, 2019, 10:39 am

    On April 1, 2019, I am internet OUTRAGED at this

    Reply
    • Laura April 1, 2019, 7:40 pm

      It’s not April 1st in Australia! I was totally disappointed until I read the whole article 🙉✨

      Reply
      • Ann April 2, 2019, 2:17 pm

        Same! I’m a kiwi and it’s 2.4.19 now. I feel betrayed.

        Reply
  • Matt April 1, 2019, 10:41 am

    I love the annual april fools posts!

    Reply
  • chris April 1, 2019, 10:44 am

    I was feeling pretty smug about not falling for an april fools this year, but for some reason let my guard down at the last hurdle. Congrats on this achievement.

    Reply
  • Ron Cameron April 1, 2019, 10:50 am

    “And I just thought I’d reach out to see if we could jump on a call to catch up on the bleeding edge of some big data, to see of there’s any Corporate Synergy in our Core Competencies.”

    Haha, yes, that’s the spirit. It reminds me of the Weird Al song “Mission Statement”, which is comprised entirely of lyrics pulled from actual company reports. The first lines read
    “We must all efficiently
    Operationalize our strategies
    Invest in world-class technology
    And leverage our core competencies
    In order to holistically administrate
    Exceptional synergy”

    and yes, it’s actually a catchy song! Give it a listen. And congrats on selling out and all!

    Reply
    • Mr. Money Mustache April 1, 2019, 11:41 am

      Wow, thanks for sharing that Weird Al song Ron, I had no idea it existed and I love it!
      https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GyV_UG60dD4

      Again Al proves his brilliant wit along with some badass musical chops. And for younger readers who don’t realize the full extent of this awesomeness, it’s a cover of an iconic Crosby Stills and Nash song called “Carry On”
      https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nP0VBB7BO64

      Reply
      • Ron Suchanek April 1, 2019, 3:49 pm

        Holy crap that video is brilliant. I’m almost a year removed from Core Competencies and Synergy and do the miss them a bit!

        Reply
      • Mountain Mom April 6, 2019, 6:13 am

        I’m not sure if I should laugh or cry that my exact job makes an appearance in the video…

        Reply
    • The Vigilante April 2, 2019, 5:29 am

      It takes a special kind of skill to write a song that evokes both hysterical laughter and night terrors. Weird Al is amazing!

      Reply
  • Steve April 1, 2019, 10:50 am

    I’m usually on the lookout for April Fool’s jokes. But this one got me. A wave of disappointment hit even though I no longer read the blog regularly (I mean no offense, but after you get your plan worked out, the thirst for info decreases). Glad I don’t have to be too sad today.

    Reply
  • JR3 Home Performance April 1, 2019, 10:50 am

    I knew it was an april fools joke before opening but choose to enjoy reading it anyway. Amen to taking leaps as soon as being able. That has always worked out for me

    Reply
  • bob, frugal as dirt. April 1, 2019, 10:52 am

    Well there were tears… then of joy.

    Reply
  • Scott of Detroit April 1, 2019, 10:53 am

    Well done, you had me. I was happy for you too!

    Reply
  • Keith Schroeder April 1, 2019, 10:55 am

    Holy smokes, Batman. No wonder I was ousted. ;-) And on of all days, April Fool’s Day. Who’d thought?

    You are the greatest, Pete. I was wondering if you’d give us a smile this April 1st.

    Reply
  • Heidi April 1, 2019, 11:01 am

    Ha, ha. Knew it at the headline. My BS meter is on high this year. That was a really wonderful message.

    Reply
    • Antoinette April 1, 2019, 12:43 pm

      I knew at the paragraph of everyone having their price, and dizzying zero’s. No way. :)
      But, I love that you tried!

      Reply
  • Danielle Radford April 1, 2019, 11:04 am

    You got me! I was so ticked. Then I smiled. Thanks for the reminders that there’s more to life than a career.

    Reply
  • Rob April 1, 2019, 11:05 am

    What a great article! It’s almost a perfect chronicle of my journey (well, it’s better written than I would do), and rings so true.

    I retired almost 4 years ago at age 50. I went through the learning and growing phase (as you describe) but then also had career-itis. It is *definitely* like a drug. Lucky for me, I finally got to a point where everything felt empty. The work, the life, the future, all of it. That led me to finally realize it was all bullshit – and I left. I live a much simpler life and am so much happier.

    It took more than a year for me to stop having “nightmares” about work: office politics, not being good enough, screwing everything up, and all that. It took another year before I could read articles about the company I left without becoming stressed out. I know, I sound like a nut.

    It’s been four years and I can’t imagine ever working in that way again. Sure, it provided the means for an early retirement, but, boy, the price was high. Freedom is its own type of drug, but one that really doesn’t have side effects. It’s like a fabled cure-all.

    Anyway, thanks for the site and in particular, this article. It really spoke to me. I can attest that, at least for me, it’s all true!

    Reply
    • Alec Williamson April 1, 2019, 1:36 pm

      Yeah I am looking forward to getting out and not looking back. 2 years 10 months from today at 56. Can’t wait. Good on you for on getting to the next chapter at 50.

      Reply
    • dharma bum April 1, 2019, 7:16 pm

      Congratulations on your early retirement!
      50 years old is pretty good.
      I took a year off at 50, and then went back to hell.
      It took me another 6 years to finally get smart.
      In my case, the relief was INSTANT. No PTSD.
      It’s all good.
      Lovin’ every minute of it!
      https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MveiB5Y35uE

      Reply
    • Nuke April 1, 2019, 8:28 pm

      You do not sound like a nut. You sound instead like somebody who figured it out. Your post spoke to me.

      Reply
    • Tomas April 2, 2019, 10:03 am

      Your story did resonate to me since I lived similar experience. At first I tried to repeat the same patterns I had when working a corporate job. Then I found MMM and that opened my eyes to new possibilities that I could not see because I was so focused in pursuing a career and in keeping up with the Joneses.

      Reply
  • Andrew Norris April 1, 2019, 11:06 am

    haha, I fell for it for about 2 seconds. It was a confusing 2 seconds.

    Reply
  • mengdi April 1, 2019, 11:07 am

    Thank you for the yearly reminder MMM! It was sorely needed~

    Reply
  • LoDash April 1, 2019, 11:15 am

    I’m looking forward to your presidential campaign announcement next year.

    Reply
  • Mike April 1, 2019, 11:17 am

    What a timely message given that I just gave my notice this morning – no joke! I started reading this blog in 2012 and its message instantly inspired me toward pursuit of financial independence. I implemented what I learned here and over at Biggerpockets to break free of a six-figure job, and at 38 am looking forward to being a half-assed worker for a while, but the best husband and dad I can be!

    Reply
  • Dianna Zaragoza April 1, 2019, 11:19 am

    Dang it – you got me! Only because the thought of you selling made no sense whatsoever, and I didn’t want to believe it was true…and I’m so glad it’s April 1st! Whew! :-)

    Reply
  • chris April 1, 2019, 11:20 am

    Wow that’s strange, my FIRE calculator (https://engaging-data.com/fire-calculator/) has also been purchased, though for me, by an anonymous group. And they had me to change the results from “You can retire in 15 years!” to “Saving all that money isn’t good for the economy, find something you think is cool and go out and buy it.”

    But as you say, money is money!

    Reply
    • Peter Grant April 1, 2019, 1:24 pm

      Based on how generic that “buy something” statement is, your calculator must have been purchased by somebody that sells a WIDE Array of goods. I’m guessing Amazon. Or maybe Alibaba. We can figure this out!!!

      Reply
    • Travis April 2, 2019, 10:34 am

      Chris, just wanted to say thanks for the awesome FIRE calculator! I’m going to be playing with numbers all day now. :)

      Reply
      • chris April 3, 2019, 10:09 am

        thanks, I appreciate it.

        Reply
        • Bonnie April 3, 2019, 3:00 pm

          Yes, thank you, Chris! And I’m really excited to see the same age show up for me to retire that Fidelity planning is showing! Three years to go!

          Reply
  • Mick April 1, 2019, 11:20 am

    Oh. My. Word. I am a relatively new reader (two months, max) and this got me hook, line, and sinker. I immediately thought, “are all the old posts still going to be available?!!” Well done, sir.

    Reply
  • BC Kowalski April 1, 2019, 11:28 am

    Somehow I managed not to fall for this – I usually forget about April Fool’s Day but was on high alert this year. Maybe because I think there would be rioting in the bike lanes if MMM sold to a financial services firm!

    Reply
  • Reade Barber April 1, 2019, 11:33 am

    Nice one… fooled me for about 30 seconds…

    I really like this comment:

    “If you are a Successful Career Man and you want to start a family, there is going to be a 20-year period where you are either a half-assed worker, or a half-assed Dad, or both. But you can’t be amazing at both. ”

    That’s how I feel ever since my daughter was born two years ago. I enjoy the Dad part far more than the career part.

    Reply
  • Leo B April 1, 2019, 11:36 am

    I’m literally giving that article a standing ovation in my kitchen right now! What an awesome article, I love the message, you have turned standard BS convention on it’s head. I hope you keep typing this shit into your computer forever MMM. 👏🏼

    Reply
  • Roger Schiller April 1, 2019, 11:49 am

    Haha, well played MMM!

    This is timely for me. I am about a decade into a career in which I’ve achieved modest success but do not really enjoy, so I decided to take an online course and internship in a new field. My goal is to turn it into a side gig at first but hopefully transition into a totally new career and perhaps even a business. The mere act of enrolling, learning something new, and meeting new people has been invigorating.

    Reply
    • Abby H. April 13, 2019, 7:17 pm

      Agreed… I’m 10 years into teaching and have realized that FI is about a lot more than just saving a lot of money. People think I should stay a teacher because I do like it and it’s stable, but for the first time, I am realizing that the only thing keeping me from pursuing more lucrative jobs that also add value and interested me when I was younger (namely, curriculum development, writing and web design)… is me.

      Of course, stuff like writing a novel may need to wait till I’ve achieved FI. But as a teacher, I could use my breaks to relearn these other skills and to figure out what I’ve missed over the last decade as I took the “easy” (to me) path. After all, my hair’s on fire due to debt, so I’m definitely not taking any fun trips at the moment!! It seems logical that I could learn when my side hustles aren’t happening.

      Reply
  • Ben April 1, 2019, 11:52 am

    Spot on about corporate jargon. I fucking loathe it as well, especially metrics…. Asshats think they can “measure” everything. Great reminder what our goal is, which CAN be measured.

    Reply
    • JK April 2, 2019, 2:16 am

      Exactly. Fucking ‘metrics’ and bullshit ‘KPIs’. I’m still in my career job but mentally checked out years ago. Still working on my escape plan.

      Reply
  • Cathleen Cooks Stuff April 1, 2019, 12:00 pm

    I somehow knew this was fake after reading the title. In actuality, I would have thought you’d need at least 2 digits in front of that $million to make it worth re-starting a blog. Which I am sure you would do if you ever sold MMM. The latter part speaks to me (and probably many other people)- I have ANOTHER trip from Hawaii to DC for work next week. I just got back last week- mandatory training. What I could do with my money and time (I have to pay for it) if I didn’t have to do this travel!

    Reply
  • Angie April 1, 2019, 12:04 pm

    “Because a good life is one that is well-rounded and nuanced. It’s not about PERFORMANCE at all costs. It’s about being okay with trying new things and making mistakes, and growing as a human in exchange for that”

    Ahhh this is my life the past year. On the verge of taking a self-initiated demotion because I can FIRE in 2.5 years at age 30 either way, because even with a demotion I am making ridiculous amounts of money when I only need $25k a year to be happy. I decided I’d rather spend the next 2.5 years being less stressed, happier & able to spend more time with family. A lot of people don’t understand why I am throwing away such a good opportunity but I tried, I’ve made plenty of mistakes, but I’ve realized what’s important to me so I’m still successful in my own way :)

    Reply
  • Peter stock April 1, 2019, 12:05 pm

    you had me.
    Immediately after I thought “good on ya!” I was looking for the Unsubscribe button
    I don’t have children, but I wanted to share the “Your kids don’t care if you make $75,000 or $75 million per year…” line with my brother. But then he would have to severely throttle back his family’s lifestyle before he could afford to stop pedalling hard.

    Reply
  • Mr. Refined April 1, 2019, 12:12 pm

    Dang your headline! I had outrage fatigue until I had a chance to read the article.

    This is the line I want to stand up and shout on my FIRE date as I leave corporate America… “If you are making a multiple six-figure salary in your 40s and still not even financially independent, please grow up and learn a bit about money beyond just buying yourself nice stuff. It should be embarrassing to be still dependent on a paycheck while sitting in such a privileged position.”

    Reply
  • Kat April 1, 2019, 12:19 pm

    You got me!

    Reply
  • Rebecca Kraut April 1, 2019, 12:19 pm

    Thank God, this was a joke. I totally fell for it. I was like, WTF, MMM?! WTF?! The anger was boiling, I really need to get my ass financially free. I so love, “… give yourself permission to suck for awhile.” So glad you’re not leaving us!

    Reply
  • Rhonda April 1, 2019, 12:20 pm

    You got me!! I was almost drawn in & thinking WT#$(*^$#? I love reading MMM & look forward to so many more great articles that remind me I’m on the right path to FF! Thanks so much everyone for input & thank you Pete for spreading your Mustachianism (is that a word? I think it is now!) everywhere !! Cheers from the Cdn side of the creek!

    Reply
  • Frogdancer Jones April 1, 2019, 12:32 pm

    Timely post for me.
    I’m seriously weighing up going part-time next year, (I’m a teacher.)
    It’ll delay retirement for a year or so, but I’ll get to my number anyway.
    Hmmmm….

    Reply
  • Leif Kristjansen (of FiveYearFireEscape) April 1, 2019, 12:33 pm

    $9M would be pretty neat though. You could start up a whole new blog/cult or maybe that eco city of yours!

    I do often think about selling things that bring me monthly income since I have a lot of my money in rental houses. Often it is financially smart to sell them off but while houses dont bring me happiness buying them is painful enough to cause some unhappiness (too much paperwork) so I just keep them :P

    Every once and a while I remortgage them so I dont feel too guilty about ‘wasting’ money :) Its my happy medium.

    Mustache on and please keep blogging!

    Reply
    • TO_Ont April 4, 2019, 8:52 am

      Yeah, I didn’t actually think it sounded so nuts. I thought he was just going to go on to explain that it was an easy way to make a lot of money for charity, and people who were interested in what he had to stay would be smart enough not to stick around and listen to advertising, and would follow him to his new blog address or whatever.

      Reply
  • John April 1, 2019, 12:33 pm

    I actually bought into it for the first 30 seconds as well. Great joke. The funny thing is of course it is consistent with current tech trends that a financial company would pay that much for a website so they can have shills type up articles every day to increase clicks.

    This particular comment further down in the article was quite impactful to me:
    “If you are making a multiple six figure salary in your 40s and still not even financially independent, please grow up and learn a bit about money beyond just buying yourself nice stuff. It should be embarrassing to be still dependent on a paycheck while sitting in such a privileged position.”

    Embarrassed! Yes! I left the high tech world a couple of years ago and I know many many people making six-figures that couldn’t afford to be out of work for a week. Yikes.

    Reply
  • Kelly April 1, 2019, 12:40 pm

    Hey MMM! Just a few thoughts. I have an amazing husband and a beautiful daughter who is about to turn one. I love my family to pieces and I want to spend all of my time with them. On the other hand, my career is in oncology and my job is to make sure our patients are safe and get the best care possible. I consider it a true privilege to do this work. I definitely understand the “ego-stroking” and addiction you mention – this is a competitive area of academia – and of course my paycheck is nice too. But when you aren’t really in it for the money, it can be tough to balance, and you end up feeling guilty no matter whether you give your time to your family or your job. I try to consider how much of my life I “owe” to my job, but I’m not sure the answer.

    Reply
    • diana April 1, 2019, 3:34 pm

      thanks for what you do. I think this is something a lot of teachers/medical professionals etc etc etc grapple with. not everyone can say that the world is a better place because of the work they do every day, but for those of us who can say that, skipping out on the career early takes on a different significance

      Reply
    • Meta April 2, 2019, 8:43 am

      Excellent point. While I often love a MMM tirade (against cars, trying to buy happiness, etc), attacking people who work a lot seems to land poorly for MOST people. My father never had an education and did have to work hard for a full career to make ends meet and eventually get a pension. For myself, as a doctor in a field with gigantic shortages (primary care), bouncing out of my career early would leave over a thousand people without care, especially as I live in a large physician shortage area.

      Reply
    • TO_Ont April 4, 2019, 9:00 am

      Yes, his advice is kind of: find a job that’s high paying but that isn’t really very important to you or to society, work all the hours possible while putting off family or anything else, get rich, quit, and finally live your real life where you do what you really care about.

      But an alternative model is to find a job that you actually think IS important, to you and to the world, and try to limit your hours in it so that you can balance it sustainably with the other things in life that you also care about, and do both those things for many decades.

      He’s really into the idea of doing different things consecutively, but for some people concurrently is much much more life affirming as well as being more practical.

      The frugal stuff works either way, but the ‘get rich fast then quit’ part is not at all what everyone wants or needs in their life.

      Reply
      • Bob April 6, 2019, 2:35 am

        Yup.. I am another one doing the frugal thing with the alternative strategy. I work in medical research never actually felt I have had a “job” just get paid pocket money to do my hobby. I know it’s a rare gift to have supported myself and my family without “working”. I worked regular jobs when I was a teenager so I know the difference between work and getting paid to do your passion. I earn peanuts and my husband also “works in academia” so we aren’t near to FIRE but we could comfortably walk away anytime we want because of our large FU fund… Something that a wise Professor suggested I start when I was thinking of doing my PhD. That pot of cash has been very important to my attitude to and success in my research career..

        Reply
    • Bob April 6, 2019, 2:23 am

      Hi Kelly, I have the same dilemma (academic working in dementia research) ego-stroking and cut-throat but also potentially highly valuable work for society. I love my job… but I also have 2 little kids, so it’s a hard balance. I am in the UK so my pay check is a bit of joke (frankly pocket money compared to what I could earn in the corporate sector). So FIRE is a long way off but I don’t really consider that I have ever actually worked…. it’s more of a vocation. I have always had an FU fund and no debt (even in grad school) in case I ever found myself not enjoying it anymore so I could just walk away… 20 years of research and I haven’t felt like I want stop yet. But I keep growing my FU fund to keep up with the costs of leaving (which get higher as I get older and less employable in the real world); so whenever the fun stops I can exit with no stress.

      Reply
  • Jen April 1, 2019, 12:42 pm

    Oh man, I can’t *believe* you got me! I let down my guard for April Fools! Great article. Thanks for the reminder of what’s important.

    Reply
  • Chris April 1, 2019, 12:43 pm

    I was shocked! then relieved :)

    Reply
  • MarciaB April 1, 2019, 12:44 pm

    The Weird Al song is great! Takes me back (*shudder*) to business school and various jobs with that horrible corporate speak language. Mission statements, vision statements, made up words like “impactful” and “incentivize” and the like…makes me throw up a little in my mouth.

    Here’s another fun one – a mission statement generator (because why spend time on something no one will ever read or pay attention to?):

    https://lotta.se/mission-statement-generator/

    Reply
    • Jackie_USMC April 4, 2019, 1:34 am

      MarciaB: Thank you for sharing the mission statement generator!! Literally shaking/laughing (silently) in bed at 3:30am, wife is pissed!

      Reply
  • Charity April 1, 2019, 12:47 pm

    Thank you. This was a fantastic April Fool’s Day article. I had so many emotions reading this. You had me! Sadness. Anger. Relief. Joy. Perfect! Thank you for doing what you do, and doing it well. :)

    Reply
  • HB April 1, 2019, 12:51 pm

    Too bad the April fool is only once a year … Keep on posting annual fool’s stories!
    Thank you for confirming (and encouraging) that it’s ok to be a half ass worker if you want to be a great dad!

    Reply
  • Penny Pinching Ninja April 1, 2019, 12:53 pm

    I have to admit, I read the first few paragraphs in disbelief at the thought that we had lost Mr. Money Mustache. Then it all started to make since when I the SHAMrock Financial Trust section came. Great analogies concerning personal happiness. I love the part about getting over career-it is and giving ourselves the permission to suck for awhile.

    I will make sure to steer clear of Shamrock when visiting the Isle of Man.

    Reply
  • Recovering Gear Head April 1, 2019, 12:54 pm

    You had….. I had another financial writer do that too me last year… I was broken hearted. Good one fine Sir.

    Reply
  • Tom Arneberg April 1, 2019, 12:56 pm

    Man. I woke up this morning thinking, “I wonder what MMM’s April Fool’s joke will be this year?” I even went to his web site to check it out, but found no new articles. Then a few hours later, I get the email with this new article, and thought, “Holy cow, he has sold out! What is this new owner going to write about? Will they pretend to be him? Will they try to sell us high-expense investements?” Yep, you got me. :-/

    Reply
  • Mike April 1, 2019, 12:56 pm

    OMG, I have almost clicked “unsubscribe” on the “big data” and “dedicated team of writers”

    Reply
  • Satya Kommini April 1, 2019, 1:03 pm

    Damn, you had me! I was so saddened to think MMM will now turn into a corporate run, financial blog. And totally relieved to read it was just an April Fool’s joke. :-)

    Reply
  • Brandon April 1, 2019, 1:04 pm

    Definitely got me, though I have to say the wave of relief after realizing it was an April Fool’s prank was great. This blog has been a lifesaver to remain focused when things get rough, glad it won’t be turning into another site giving out bad or partial financial advice.

    Reply
  • Jean-Marc Begin April 1, 2019, 1:07 pm

    Firstly, YOU GOT ME. I read everything you write but usually later via instapaper. This time, I had to read right away because I was so happy for you and also sad that the content and use of this site would change. (Joke’s on me)

    Secondly, you hit me right where it hurts, and I needed it. I am 40 in May and currently a company is trying to recruit me to a 100% commision territory protected sales position where I would be a contractor rather than an employee.

    Having sold my business in 2013 and taking a job with the buyer until now I have always missed being an entrepreneur and my current income is capped due to limitations of employer. I do enjoy nearly complete work from home time freedom but I know I could earn more if the production limits were lifted.

    Your poke to man up and stop being complacent and comfortable has my gears turning, I only wish I had a friend like you I could jump on a call with to help me solidify the decision of should I stay or should I go.

    Continued success sir! Great article.

    Reply
  • Laura April 1, 2019, 1:13 pm

    Not being in my right mind, after pulling an April Fool’s prank myself (put a commode in my neighbor’s front yard with signs saying she was starting a toilet design business) I BELIEVED you. I was pissed. I thought, “He sold out. Damn.” I thought of unsubscribing because I’m not interested in anything Shamrock Financial Trust has to say. Was going to post a not-so-nice comment too. Should of known better!

    Reply
    • Dina April 2, 2019, 5:48 am

      This comment made me giggle! Genius idea to prank your friend like that.

      Reply
  • Fiona Schneider April 1, 2019, 1:14 pm

    I knew straight away this was an April fool I have faith in MMM!!!

    Reply
  • Life Outside The Maze April 1, 2019, 1:23 pm

    That Creme brulee with crack sounds pretty good…thanks for the laugh. Careeritis is real and embedded in our American values, maybe a remnant of our puritanical roots where hard work was deemed godly regardless of output? While I love work that is conciously chosen, I also know how easy it can be to follow an unexamined societal norm for too long and be afraid of not being able to get it back if the alternative doesn’t work. Good news, it does :)

    Reply

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