Mustachian Post is one of the rare blogs of French-speaking Swiss people seeking financial independence, through frugalism. It is also one of the best known, if not the best known, having made the front page of several media outlets in the country. The site is written in English, but translated into French and German. This predisposition to Anglo-Saxon culture is also felt through reading the articles. The influence of the American movement "FIRE" Financial Independence Retire Early" is notable.

I got to know Mustachian Post when I saw its author on the RTS show Mise au Point. The subject, devoted to frugalism, was unfortunately covered in a rather superficial and somewhat caricatured manner. Nevertheless, I was happy to see that there were other bloggers from French-speaking Switzerland covering financial independence. Suddenly, I felt a little less alone. I must admit to you, somewhat shamefully, that until now I have never really read in detail MP's journey on his blog. It is neither out of disinterest nor disdain, but simply because I was quite busy with my own site, my e-book and my other occupations.

Book "Free at 40"

MP recently contacted me to submit a preview copy of his book "Free at 40". Being in my forties and considering myself free, I was eager to read what was going on. It also allowed me to get to know him better.

The author is a strong supporter of personal development and his book is not short of references and advice on this subject. He also gives many recommendations for managing and optimizing household finances in Switzerland. Whether for the personal or financial development aspect, MP cites several examples taken in particular from readers of his blog or other bloggers. He also refers to his own situation, explaining his awakening to frugalism in 2013 and the various and numerous strategies he has successfully implemented since then. Just like his blog, we feel a strong North American influence, not only on the substance of the message, but also on the form.

Despite this Anglo-Saxon touch, the merit of his work is that it is entirely adapted to Swiss life. All the Swiss particularities are reviewed, in particular taxation, health insurance funds, the LPP, the 3rd pillar, banks, insurance and even Migros! The author gives lots of tips and tricks for saving in our country, which can be useful for an expatriate who does not have knowledge of Switzerland or even for residents who still do not know how to optimize their finances. Since there are many of them, it is good for them. Since MP is a "Y"A bit of a geek, fintechs hold no secrets for him. Revolut, Neon, Transfer-Wise, VIAC, YNAB, everything has been put through the wringer, which doesn't fail to shake up the old guys"X" like me.

Common points

Reading his book, I realized that I had a series of rather disturbing common points with MP. Financial independence calls for very specific personality profiles, in particular INTJs and ISTJs. This probably explains this resemblance, even if MP seems a priori to belong more to the second type, while I am part of the first. Which would also explain why despite many and astonishing similarities, we also opted for a rather different approach.

First of all, in terms of common points, MP started his "FIRE" adventure at the age of 27, just like me. He hates insurance and insists on this in his book. I enjoyed these passages because I have always considered insurers to be thieves, whether they are private or public. Like MP, I was a night owl when I was young and, like him, I became an early riser later. Like him, I love developing new skills, I practice meditation, sports and like spending time with my family. And I almost forgot, like MP, I haven't been to the hairdresser for a long time. Thanks to the clippers.

Differences

In terms of the differences in the sequel, MP lives an assumed and quite extreme frugalism. In 2020, he is at an impressive savings rate of more than 50%. I say hats off to Mr. Moustache. We are not at the level of extreme frugalism advocated by J.-L. Fisker, but still. This is strongly felt in his work, which gives enormous importance to the question of saving. There is no such thing as a small profit, as they say.

Although I believe that saving is important, I don't think it is necessary to save that much to become financially independent (even quickly), as I explain in my e-book. Saving is certainly a prerequisite, but I prefer to focus on how to invest my money wisely. Not that MP doesn't care, quite the contrary, but you can tell that he is first and foremost frugal before being an investor. And for me it's just the opposite.

Same goal

These few differences being underlined, it remains that, even if our paths are not quite identical, we agree on the goal. MP made his calculations and submitted them to VZ who confirmed them, taking a nice commission in the process. Yes, he will be able to be free at 40 as he plans. I like this term "free" because it corresponds better to reality than "rentier" or worse, "retired". In fact, when you become financially independent, you are not inactive, quite the contrary. You can continue to work at a small percentage, start an independent sideline, do volunteer work, acquire new skills, etc. MP describes several of his fellow Anglo-Saxon bloggers who have discovered new passions and who are renovating houses for example. It's funny because that's exactly what I'm doing.

I confirm, MP is right: you can be free at 40. As for me, the first time I felt like I had broken the chains, I was 43 to be exact. It was from that moment that I started working less than full time and realized that I was getting there. Since then, my activity rate has continued to decrease and I consider my job in a completely different way.