It’s been almost three years since my wife and I retired early at 56 and 57. The more distance I get from that decision, the more I find myself reflecting on a simple question:

What actually made it possible?

Looking back, there wasn’t a secret investment, a magic formula, or some special financial knowledge that we had access to. Our path was actually pretty simple.

Simple, of course, doesn’t mean easy.

In this video, I share the eight principles that I believe made the biggest difference for us—from believing early retirement was possible in the first place, to living below our means, saving and investing consistently, and eventually having the courage to take the leap.

I also share one of my favorite stories from my cycling days. For years, I thought joining an elite cycling team required a secret code. As it turns out, the code wasn’t nearly as important as I thought.

Financial independence is a lot like that.

There is no secret code. But you still have to put in the miles.

Watch the video below to see the simple path that helped us retire early—and hopefully find a few ideas that can help you along your own path.

Today I can, so today I will.