Timeline milestones (narrative, not just data):

2011–2014 · Ages 18–21 · Income: $1,335–$3,574 These were my surviving years. I was in college, working jobs that paid just enough to cover what financial aid didn't. No investing. No savings. Honestly, no concept that investing was something I could or should do. I was focused entirely on finishing my degree and getting out of the desert.

Financial lesson: I didn't have one yet. And that's okay. You start where you start.

2015–2016 · Ages 22–23 · Income: $4,452–$14,000 Post-graduation. Federal internships in Boston and Chicago. This was my "I'm doing it" era, I had left home, I was building a career, I was figuring out how to live alone. I was also taking on student loan debt and had zero awareness that what I was doing with money mattered beyond paying my rent.

Financial lesson: A job title doesn't automatically come with financial literacy. I had to seek it out separately.

2017 · Age 24 · Income: $52,000 · Invested: $3,900 (8%) The year everything changed. I landed my first real job in Los Angeles. During new employee onboarding, someone mentioned a 401(k) match. I nodded along, then went home and spent four hours Googling what that meant. I enrolled the next day. I also, that same year, carried significant credit card debt. These two things can coexist — the point is that I started.

Financial milestone: First retirement contributions. The clock started.

2018 · Age 25 · Income: $54,756 · Invested: $8,213 (15%) I opened my Roth IRA. This is the single financial decision I'm most proud of. I was 25, still paying off credit card debt, still figuring out my career, and I opened a Roth IRA with Fidelity. I contributed $8,213 that year — 15% of my income. At the time it felt like a lot. Looking back, it was the best money I ever spent.

Financial milestone: Roth IRA opened. Tax-advantaged investing begins.

2019 · Age 26 · Income: $71,134 · Invested: $11,486 (18%) My income jumped significantly and I let my savings rate grow with it. I also moved to San Diego to start my PhD program. This move meant beginning to make qualifying payments toward PSLF — a decision that would prove to be worth over $300,000.

Financial milestone: PSLF qualifying payments begin.

2020 · Age 27 · Income: $78,801 · Invested: $17,865 (27%) The world shut down. I kept going. Working full-time, studying full-time, and — counterintuitively — investing more than ever. My savings rate jumped to 27% in part because lockdown eliminated a lot of discretionary spending, but also because I finally internalized that every dollar invested now was doing compounding work I couldn't replicate later.

I also met my now-fiancé this year, which had nothing to do with money and everything to do with why I'll never regret moving to San Diego.

Financial milestone: Savings rate breaks 25% for the first time.

2021 · Age 28 · Income: $83,673 · Invested: $26,653 (33%) My AGI that year was $68,101, over $15,000 less than my gross income. This was intentional. Maximizing pre-tax contributions to my 403(b) and other employer benefits reduced my taxable income, which also reduced my income-driven repayment (IDR) student loan payment. Every dollar that came out pre-tax served two purposes: it built my investment portfolio AND lowered my monthly loan payment.

This is the dual-optimization strategy that most financial advice for people with student loans completely misses.

Financial milestone: AGI optimization strategy fully operational.

2022 · Age 29 · Income: $84,132 · Invested: $30,004 (36%) My highest savings rate ever. I was contributing 36% of my gross income to retirement and investment accounts. My portfolio projection crossed $99,000 for the first time — the year I watched it approach six figures was the year I truly understood compound interest in my bones, not just in theory.

Financial milestone: Portfolio projection crosses $100k. Six-figure investor.

2023 · Age 30 · Income: $87,747 · Invested: $20,029 (23%) Coast FIRE achieved.

This deserves its own paragraph. Coast FIRE means the amount I had already invested was large enough that — left alone, with no future contributions — it would compound to full financial independence by traditional retirement age. I didn't need to invest another dollar to hit my retirement number. Everything I contribute going forward is acceleration, not necessity.

I was 30. First-gen. The daughter of immigrants who came to this country with nothing. And my money was now working for me in a way that didn't require me to work for it.

Financial milestone: Coast FIRE achieved at age 30.

2024 · Age 31 · Income: $89,553 · Invested: $20,786 (23%) Portfolio projection: $187,128. I'm watching the curve start to steepen, compound interest becoming visible and undeniable. My AGI dropped to $79,783 through continued pre-tax optimization.

2025 · Age 32 · Income: $92,941 · Invested: $19,391 (21%) Portfolio projection: $230,581. PSLF qualifying payments at approximately 108–114 of the 120 required. The finish line is visible.

2026 · Age 33 · Income: $95,918 · Invested: $25,241 (26%) Portfolio projection: $276,287. Less than 24 PSLF qualifying payments remain. Soon-to-be millionaire. First-gen. Desert girl. Still going.