The Financial Samurai Value Proposition

Financial Samurai is one of the leading independent personal finance sites in the world. Started in 2009, Financial Samurai's mission is to help readers achieve financial independence sooner, rather than later. Let me share with you The Financial Samurai value proposition and why you should sign up for my e-mail distribution list and free newsletter.

The Financial Samurai Value Proposition

1) The Joy of Communication

Interaction with all of you is what makes Financial Samurai so much fun. I tend to respond to the large majority of comments where there are questions.

Even if you don't have questions, I like to drop an occasional note of observation and thanks. I'm not going to sit in a high chair far above and not interact with you readers. Hence, if you have questions, feel free to ask, and I'll get to them as efficiently as possible.

2) Writing based off firsthand experience

99% of the posts are written by me and I do not employ staff writers or ghost writers. I've got a large backlog of posts that are ready to be published, including several good ones from Financial Samurai readers which I'm sure you'll find interesting.

The whole point of having a blog is to share your own views and opinions, otherwise, you might as well just read a newspaper don't you think? I also welcome all well-written guest posts from the community.

I've found that nobody cares more about your writing than yourself, which is why I tend to lose interest in sites that employ too many voices.  You'll be amazed at how many sites employ ghost writers by the way.

3) High quality writing.

I've been a writer for over 30 years. Online, I've written over 2,000 articles and have guest written for dozens of the leading financial website in the world. Further, I have a book deal with Penguin Random House in 2021.

Nowhere else on the web will you find personal finance content written in an easy to understand, helpful, and entertaining fashion. Because I don't employ freelance writers, there is a real authenticity on this site.

4) Great entertainment

I get easily bored, which is why I will only publish something that I find relatively entertaining. It's impossible to always have the most riveting content on the web. That said, even the most mundane things like raising your credit score can be told through an experience that will incite emotion.

Furthermore, I will keep the topics forever changing. My focus is on real estate, health, insurance, taxes, retirement, government and relationships. There will seldom be a dull moment on Financial Samurai if I can help it. Thank goodness there are so many crooked politicians and companies out there!

5) High Integrity

I don't depend on online income to survive because I have enough passive income to support my desired living expenses. Therefore, I can more readily speak my mind. I simply care less about what other people think because I am beholden to nobody.

If you wrong me, like PG&E wronged me, I have no qualms about pointing out the injustices even if that means a lack of sponsorship in the future. The true power of having financial freedom is being able to speak your truth and live the life the way you see fit.

6) Firsthand Experience

I'm not pontificating on what things would be like, or how things could be. I'm sharing with you my experiences and telling you what I've learned after 13 years working in finance, two years working in financial technology, and six years producing personal finance content on Financial Samurai.

If I don't know about something, and find the subject interesting, I'll ask someone who does know to share their thoughts. Because I own a home, have rental properties, invest in stocks, invest in bonds, and invest in private companies, there is always going to be a ton of investment content that we will discuss. Maybe we'll all be able to make some good returns as a result.

Because I pay a crap load of taxes, hate taxes, and think the government is made up of crooks, we will constantly have philosophical debates on how to improve our country. Because I worked at McDonald's making $3.25 an hour and worked a lot of other low paying jobs since high school, I empathize with those who are financially struggling (See: Spoiled Or Clueless? Try Working A Minimum Wage Job As An Adult).

As a manager in the workplace, you will gain career perspective on how to get ahead and blow yourself up. Finally, as a person who has lived in 7 different countries, and visited 50 more, you will find a diversity of cultural viewpoints to help expand the mind. I hate racism, bigotry, and ignorance.

7) Financially Independent

One of the main underlying goals of reading any personal finance site is to figure out how to achieve financial independence. If someone could teach me how to retire early with real money and never have to work again, I would pay them a lot because time is priceless! Good thing for you, I've mathematically figured it out and have shown you how to realistically retire by 40 or 45 if you want to.

Whether you take the leap of faith, it's up to you. When you work due to the joy of your work, and not because you need the paycheck to survive, that is a great feeling.  It's the same way I felt getting my MBA. Grades didn't matter, just the learning.  

Hopefully by reading Financial Samurai, you will get a glimpse into the way someone who is financially independent thinks about things.

Financial Samurai 2021 Passive Income Streams - Financial Samurai Value Proposition

8) High Quality Readers

We have the best personal finance readers on the web. Just spend time reading the comments and reading the FS Forum to see for yourself. It's a virtuous cycle where good content attracts good readers who attract more good readers. I've learned so much from all of you, as I'm sure many of you have learned so much from the community as well.

A large majority of us have moved beyond the basics of personal finance and are looking to maximize our lifestyles, super-charge our investments, optimize our taxation structures, see the world, and have a frolicking good time in the process!

We will indulge a little more than average in some of the luxuries life has to offer. There's no point making money if you don't spend it. Check out details about the typical Financial Samurai reader!

The Financial Value Proposition Helps You Slice Through Money's Mysteries

I am a big fan of the personal finance and lifestyle blog community. So in essence, I am like all of you readers. I like to be entertained while learning something new in the process. Those sites that can offer such a combination are the sites that keep me coming back for more.

I hope the Financial Samurai value proposition encourages you to stick around and share my work. The global pandemic has made focusing on our personal finances even more important. Sign up for my e-mail distribution list and free newsletter so we can navigate these turbulent times together.

If You Want To Start Your Own Site

I never thought I'd be able to quit my job in 2012 just three years after starting Financial Samurai. But by starting one financial crisis day in 2009, Financial Samurai actually makes more than my entire passive income total that took 15 years to build.

If you enjoy writing, connecting with people online, and enjoying more freedom, see how you can set up a WordPress blog like mine in under 30 minutes with my step-by-step tutorial. It's cheap and easy to start. You never know where the adventure will take you!

Pro Blogging Income Statement
You can start your site for next to nothing and potentially make a lot of extra income. This is a real example.

The Financial Samurai Value Proposition is updated for 2021+.

41 thoughts on “The Financial Samurai Value Proposition”

  1. Financial Canadian

    Sam, I’ve been reading your blog for about a year now but have never come across this post.

    I wanted to congratulate you because it’s very clear that your value proposition is carried out in all of your posts. It’s also an inspiration to me as I continue my own writing.

    I have to say – my favorite thing about reading your blog SINCE DAY ONE is that nearly every post is written by you. And when posts are written by a different author, you always make it very clear from the beginning. Keep up the awesome writing – you have a very distinctive voice which is a joy to read.

  2. Brand new…found site by accident. This coming year I will be with USAA for 40 years. I agree with your view about how well you have been treated. I looked at ratings the other day, and USAA was #1 in Auto, #2 in Home and #1 for Brokerage. (independent magazine review) There is a lot on this site and I have not begun to read it all, but I will read more as time moves forward.

    I am coming here for ideas and viewpoints that I might not see, probably want see any other place on the web. I am not a millionaire. I am blessed, as I see it though. I wasted a lot of money on cars during my primary working years. I realized that much later than I should have. We have two cars now, one a 2007 Camry with almost 200K and a 2006 Pilot with about 160K. Both are holding up very well, still look okay and I will not consider doing anything with them until after 10 years. That may or may not agree with your viewpoint. I did read the 1/10 and the 5% of new worth piece about buying cars.

    If I could share with any younger person (I am in the 60 – 65 age range) that the greatest waste of your hard-earned money is to buy cars, especially new ones over and over again in very short time periods, I would. Listen to what is being said about utilization of your money in other ways. I promise you that you will have a lot more money when you reach my age to use the way you wish.

    We have circa 62K in retirement income currently. I do not plan to draw SS until age 70, based on the current financial plan. I realize there is risk in that approach, knowing how our government manages to spend money (make that our money) that they don’t have the financial base to spend. IF we continue down this path, I am confident the ‘dollar’ will lose its ‘world reserve currency’ status. When that happens, all of us will see a reduction in lifestyle of 33% – 50% virtually overnite. Some don’t think it can happen, but it has happened and will happen to us, unless we elect the right people to manage our money at the Federal & State levels…52% of the population receives some form of payment from the Federal gov’t, with 48% actually working to support it. (I receive a small military pension, so I am in that group)

    Do I have doubts about my longevity in retirement (semi-retirement) financially? A little, but I think it is healthy to review. Some do not have to be concerned. I am happy for them, not bitter. The one area that was lacking in our financial plan was LTC insurance. It is expensive, make no mistake about it…some can self-insure, but 90%+ of the population cannot for long-term healthcare. You may have a strong view on that. I was very careful when purchasing, doing a lot of research and avoiding many of the add-ons that many end up with. My financial advisor wants us to keep it for now, but that could change down the road, depending on how much it increases after the span of time where the rates are guaranteed not to increase. We bought only what we thought we could not self-fund for both of us for three years. LTC can wipe out your finances in short order. There are ways to avoid it within the law, but you have to do so currently five years in advance. Our cost is $4237 per year. What’s your viewpoint on LTC insurance as part of your financial portfolio? I realize age may have bearing on your response.

    Thank you…

    1. Welcome to my site! Please spend time going through the articles and checking out the categories on the right side. I’ve written about 1,000 articles over the past 5.5 years!

      LTC is important given the actual cost of LTC. Check out my article, “Should I Get Long Term Care” for a longer discussion.

      Welcome aboard! How did you find my site in the first place? Always curious to know.

      Cheers,

      Sam

  3. Awesome post Sam. I’ve come across your site before but today was the first time I actually sat down and explored. Loved this post you have a reader for life now. Looking forward to reading more of your material!

  4. I am glad I read this post.. it gives me a better understanding of your motivations. Your values match up well with mine, which I believe is the most important consideration when considering something/someone new. I’ll be honest I did not at all like that post on how to retire early and never have to work again..not at all. But I digress–everything I have read today is top notch. I will spend some quality time going through many of your articles.

    1. Jason, I forget whether you commented on my post on how to retire early. I got a lot of flack for it, likely from people who have not saved those amounts in my charts.

      Why do you not like that post?

  5. Sam,

    I enjoy reading your posts and try to comment when I can add something to the discussion.

    Best regards,

    Mike

  6. Thanks Thomas. I’m glad you appreciate my opinions and frankness about things. I’m definitely willing to see the other side. I just want to read some good arguments arguin the case.

  7. BusyExecutiveMoneyBlog

    Very inspirational Sam. Financial independence is…above all things…liberating. It’s allows you to do what you do. Congrats!

  8. I think the integrity bit is the most important part of all your bullets. I don’t rely on my blog income either and I think that helps when making decisions about what you will and will not put on your site.

    1. Indeed. When I saw an ANTI-DEBT blogger write on a credit card site for money, I was blown away! It made me pretty excited to see what money can do to one’s integrity.

  9. Keep the great blog posts coming! You’re a terrific writer and I think a lot of finance blogs lack the quality writing the audience deserves; I appreciate you putting the time – especially to make a post interesting!

  10. Sam, I admire your honesty more than anything. I think your ability to come up with unique ideas and angles to a subject is what gives you an edge over others. It’s what I try to do, and am getting better at with practice, but have a ways to go.

    Keep it up.

    1. Thanks Doc. Appreciate it! It’s reall easy to be honest when money doesn’t really come to play. It’s invigorating actually. Looking forward to reading your value proposition.

  11. Your posts are opinionated? Alert the press!

    I think it’s your intelligent sense of humor that helps get me through the week. Thanks for some great posts. I wrote recently that the worst part of my “job” blogging was reading other sites. I still regret that comment; it was poorly worded. What I meant was that I don’t like reading sites that don’t have an original voice. I don’t really care about the opinion as much as how it’s presented.

    1. Interesting how you don’t care about opinion as much as the structure of presentation. Good to know! Will think about that point more for future posts.

      Why don’t you think more blogs don’t put more opinion into their writing?

  12. Sam, you speak from your heart. That’s what we need more of than the mainstream media. I agree that since you are financially independent, you have freedom to speak without worrying about creating any controversies or to worry about losing your sponsors. Keep up the great work.

  13. Darwin's Money

    The posts are always fun and controversial – right up my alley! It’s what keeps people coming back!

  14. I find it interesting that you included entertainment. It seems as though the focus in mobile phones, tablets etc is on entertainment too. It seems that just interesting or necessary information is not enough. I have to include interesting stories in my lessons to keep the students engaged. When did this become the norm?

    1. I think entertainment is so crucial to anything. Part of providing good entertainment is having a good voice where the listener, reader, watcher can vividly hear, read, see the person.

      Without stories, I soon tire. But, I have a low threshold for boredom I must admit.

  15. Sam,

    As others have said – its great that you are giving your real opinions. You are writing what you want to write about.

    I often read blogs were there are giving advice but I feel they have not done good research and do not care about what they are writing about. I feel they are just writing with the hope of making money. I never feel that way about your blog posts.

    Keep up the GREAT writing!

    1. David, you are one of those awesome readers and commenters I am referring to. Such good perspective you provide. You should consider starting your own blog too! Thanks for mentioning that you never feel like you’re reading a post in hopes to make money from my site. That makes me very happy!

  16. Great post sam – think the reason I keep coming back is because you get me to think! Even though I dont always agree with you, I do end up at least seeing where you’re coming from and usually it’s an angle I’ve never thought of.

  17. I love reading your posts Sam! I’ve learned so much from your site and I like how you think out of the box and keep it real, writing about things you really care about. It’s so obvious to me when bloggers outsource the majority of their writing because the quality of those posts are bad and they are so boring. Your writing style on the other always make me nod, laugh, and keep coming back for more. There are also some great comments on your sites that I enjoy reading too.

    And wow I wish I had your speed at writing posts! Keep up the good work!

  18. Sam, I’ve always enjoyed your blog. When I get a post from you in my Reader, I know it’s from You. You’re a creative person and I love your fresh ideas.

    Here’s something I’ve been thinking about the last few days (and this has been my parents’ experience and so far my wife and I’s experience): We have money saved, but it’s almost as though we look at it as our emergency fund, or security fund–not something to withdraw. My wife is conservative with her finances and is afraid to retire because of a fear that her retirement benefits will not be enough (even though it will be near 6 figures).

    So with all the monies invested, in a way it almost does not good, because all the money just keeps getting reinvested and not ever actually used. Like I say, I’ve seen that with my mom and dad, and now I’m seeing that with my family. I’d love your ideas Sam, thanks.

    1. Hi Michael,

      Great to hear from you. It’s been a while!

      On your thoughts, perhaps your wife will feel less conservative if she knew when she retired you’d keep on working to help support both of your lifestyles?

      No point making money if we don’t spend it! Median life expectancy is 79 years old!

      Sam

  19. I don’t employ a writer either, but I will probably need to do that if I ever get another website going. I like your value proposition and that’s why I keep coming back. Reading opinionated posts are much more fun than the usual how to save gas posts. I need to work on Retire By 40’s value proposition too.

  20. Thanks for the highlights Sam. I like how you write from the gut. I’ve visited a lot of other PF sites and i’m constantly thinking to myself, “Did they just write that? Is that a sponsored post or a ghost writer? Because the writing sucks.”

    I’d like to read more about how you were able to develop your readership despite the odds.

    1. You’ve probably stumbled across a ghost written or sponsored post, hence your thoughts.

      Might touch more about building a highly visited site more in the future. Or, you can hop on over to Yakezie.com, which has more blogging related material.

  21. Great post Sam.

    I’m a pretty new reader here, and find myself addicted to the plethora of lifestyle blogs pretty often. What I like about your writing is the experiential evidence scattered throughout the posts. So many bloggers write on speculation and perceived authority, it’s hard to tell the real thing from the fakers.

    You don’t sugarcoat issues, and it’s pretty clear that you speak from experience. As a newbie to the working world (coming up on three years at my first company) I’ve been grasping at relevant guidance to my situation. Financial Samurai is surely one of the top sites for me. Thanks for writing and I look forward to more.

    1. As a new reader, welcome! Lifestyle blogs are very entertaining, and I love them actually. The whole movement of friends in their 20’s quitting their jobs and living nomad lifestyles is fun. If you find them being too authoritative, just ask what their income, savings, and experience is, and whether they live with their parents :) At least they are doing something about their situation, which is more than many.

      Yes, I try not to sugarcoat issues, unless it is really offensive, and then i’ll come up with a way to hopefully make readers see the light.

      thx!

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