Japan Man Had Rice, Energy Drink As Dinner For 21 Years To Save For Retirement

A Japanese man lived an extremely frugal life for over two decades to save money for retirement. He wanted to save 100 million yen (US$640,000) to retire early. After landing a steady but demanding job in the early 2000s, the 45-year-old man who wishes to remain anonymous started his savings strategy, as per a report in South China Morning Post.

The business where he worked encouraged people to work overtime, often past midnight, and continually taught that "only by working hard and doing overtime can you achieve future happiness."

The man, whose yearly salary was approximately five million yen (US$32,000), made a careful strategy to save 100 million yen as soon as feasible in an attempt to live financial independence and retire early lifestyle.

He paid 30,000 yen (US$190) a month in rent and used furnishings and appliances for more than 20 years while residing in a company dormitory. He ate very little and his usual dinner would be a bowl of rice, some salted veggies, and a sour plum. There were times when dinner was nothing more than an energy drink that he got with free points from convenience stores.

After his microwave broke, he started eating sweet potatoes all year round, cooking them on his colleague's car's windscreen in the summer heat. He also never used a heater or air conditioning, preferring to warm up in the winter by doing squats and cool down in the summer with a damp T-shirt.

After working for the company for 20 years and 10 months, he eventually declared on social media that he had saved 135 million yen (US$860,00). His way of living also served as an inspiration for writing a book on money-saving advice, which brought in extra income, as per the outlet.

He got a microwave so he could eat hot meals, and he now serves himself four boiled eggs every breakfast. His happiness was short-lived, though, as he recently revealed that the fall of the yen since the start of this year had caused a significant reduction in his savings. "If the yen keeps depreciating, I'll never achieve financial freedom. What have I been working for these 21 years? It's all meaningless, so tragic," he said.