We are fast approaching July 4th, the anniversary of America’s Declaration of Independence from the Kingdom of Great Britain in 1776. Though the war was not officially over until the Treaty of Paris was signed in September of 1783, we celebrate the July 4, 1776 as the birthday of our nation.
July 4th is a special day for many Americans. To me, the 4th of July represents not only the birth of our nation and the sacrifices that millions of military members and their families have made throughout our nation’s history, but it also represents the symbol of freedom and hope.
It is not a stretch to take this a step further and relate freedom and hope to financial independence. This year, I am declaring July 4th Financial Independence Day .
I challenge everyone to declare financial freedom
Financial independence has different meanings to everyone… it could be freedom from debt, no longer being a slave to your day job, earning more money, eliminating credit cards from your life, creating multiple streams of income, finding a new job, planning for retirement, or anything else that helps you achieve the life you want to live. Make Financial Independence Day your day to create a financial plan to take you through life and give your the freedoms and opportunities you desire.
Share your Declaration of Financial Independence
There are many inspiring financial stories out there and if you have already declared financial independence or would like to declare financial independence, I want to hear your story. This doesn’t mean you need to be 100% financially independent now. Like the Revolutionary War, or anything else worth fighting for, financial independence will take sacrifice and time. But until you declare war and make a concerted effort to change your ways, you will never be financially free.
On July 4th, I will host the Carnival of Financial Goals at my other website, Military Finance Network. I will link to each entry and share everyone’s story with the world. The goal is to create a repository of inspirational articles for people to reference.
How to Participate in Financial Independence Day
Participation is easy. If you have a blog, write your Declaration of Financial Independence and publish it. Then submit it to the Carnival of Financial Goals. If you have already written your Declaration of Financial Independence, you can still submit it to the Carnival.
If you don’t have a blog, you can write an article and send it to me. I will publish a selection of the best articles on my site. The sooner you send in an article, the greater your chances of being published. 
Need some inspiration? Here is a sampling of recommended personal finance websites that were created because the writers declared financial independence: Being Frugal, Gather Little By Little, I’ve Paid For This Twice Already, Get Rich Slowly, No Credit Needed, The Simple Dollar, Million Dollar Journey, No Debt Plan, and many others.
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Thanks for the mention Ryan!
That sounds fun, Ryan! I’ll see if I can come up with something.
Funnily enough, we don’t celebrate it so much in the UK. And it took us until 1918 to have representation for our taxation.
Looking forward to the carnival.
Financial independence to me is when my passive income is more than my expenses. That is a great idea isn’t it.
Hey Ryan,
We’ll get something prepared and send it over.
Thanks
Anthony
For anyone who’s declaration of financial independence includes saving for retirement, it has become painfully clear that preparing to retire can be a real challenge. You can’t necessarily count on Social Security or a pension anymore so personal savings are crucial. One of the best ways to build retirement savings is through a workplace savings program, yet half of Americans have no access to these. That’s why AARP supports implementing automatic IRA plans in the workplace. Congressman Neal from Massachussetts has voiced his support for this plan and you can see more about his thoughts on AARP’s blog ShAARP Session.