Angela Tipton at 19 years of age, was diagnosed with Crohn's disease, yet she refused to let her chronic illness define her. Ambitious and career-driven, Angela built a successful career with various Fortune 500 companies.
While building her career, she maximized her income, made significant financial investments, and paid off $85K of student debt in 18 months. While optimizing her savings, she learned to live below her means so that she could live life on her terms.
Angela started her first business in 2017, and today focuses her efforts on helping people achieve financial freedom through their careers at FIREYourCareer.com. She's passionate about building a career to fuel a FIRE lifestyle because she believes that everyone deserves to live life on their terms.
In her free time, she enjoys yoga, running, and traveling. Angela lives in Salem, Oregon with her husband and two little boys.
Angela Tipton Vroom Vroom Veer Stories
Grew up in New York and started having stomach issues at age 15, doctors didn't know what it was…was it in her head?; finally at age 19 was diagnosed with Crohn's disease and they were eventually able to find a treatment that kept her in remission
Studied biology in school and graduated during the great recession when it was difficult to find any jobs; she did a lot of “any” jobs and finally landed a Temp job in her field which open the doors to future lab jobs
Worked with Dow and Bayer and got to travel to the Netherlands and India for work
When she was thinking about grad school an MBA somehow became possible instead of more science; she realized working head down in a lab wasn't the best fit for her personality; she wrote a fantasy novel and realized she really like writing and communicating more than lab work
Had a wake up call during a meeting with the family accountant; she realized they paid $5k on student loan interest; the A-ha moment for Angela was that could have been a cruise if they paid down that debt sooner rather than later
Most folks in the FIRE community are not talking about how to use your career (job) to work toward fire; they are talking about house hacking; rental income; etc, but those ideas may not fit all people; if you have a job or a career you can totally work toward Financial Independence
Show Summary
In this episode of “Vroom Vroom Veer,” host Jeff Smith kicks off the show with excitement, emphasizing the podcast’s theme of shifting from autopilot life to one full of authentic redirections, veers, and significant changes. His guest for the episode is Angela Tipton, the founder of FIREYourCareer.com.
Angela discusses her enthusiasm for helping others live inspired lives on their terms, stating that her website primarily focuses on using careers to achieve financial independence. This allows people to enjoy their time and lives freely. Jeff agrees, noting the value of reaching financial independence early, although he mentions that this community often doesn't extensively discuss the intricacies of escaping debt.
The conversation shifts to Angela's personal story, with Jeff bringing up Angela’s early life challenges, particularly her diagnosis with Crohn's disease at nineteen after showing symptoms at fifteen. Angela shares how frustrating the journey to a diagnosis was, given the complexity of Crohn’s and its common misdiagnosis due to its symptomatic resemblance to other conditions. She describes the relief and validation of finally understanding her condition. This personal health battle played a significant role in shaping her resilience and perspective on life challenges.
Jeff relates to this with his own anecdote about struggling with undiagnosed skin conditions that were only resolved after a dermatologist accurately identified it as a form of eczema that didn’t require regular medication, just preventive care.
The discussion then veers into Angela's academic and professional journey, highlighting her transition from studying biology with a consideration of dual majoring in physics to solely focusing on biology due to financial and practical reasons. Angela explains her early career moves – bouncing between jobs, coping with the great recession, and the gradual move into Fortune 500 companies, where she gained substantial experience in biotechnological fields.
Jeff connects their stories, reflecting on career shifts and the unforeseen pathways they both tread, like his move to Vegas and consequent temp jobs that led to long-term employment thanks to accumulated and varied experiences.
Angela discusses the decision to return to school for an MBA which coincided with significant career transitions, including Dow closing her department. She narrates how these professional experiences and her personal passion led her to explore beyond lab work, finding fulfillment in merging her technical background with communications which she felt was a gap in the scientific community, particularly in controversial sectors like GMOs.
Their exchange then explores debt-freedom and the FIRE (Financial Independence, Retire Early) lifestyle. Angela shares her aggressive approach to clearing $85K in student debt in 18 months, emphasizing sacrifices and strategic financial planning which allowed her and her husband to repay their debts rapidly.
Wrapping up, Jeff asks Angela for advice for listeners, urging them to start wherever they are in their financial journeys, advocating for small, manageable improvements. Angela promotes her website, which offers resources like a free ebook aimed at helping others pave their own paths to financial freedom using traditional career trajectories, without needing to take extreme measures.
The episode concludes with both sharing a light-hearted moment about personal and family priorities, underscoring the varied personal motives behind financial independence—be it travel, leisure, or lifestyle choices.
Connections
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