Do you dream of a life where you don't have to work to earn a living? That's what financial freedom can offer. It's the ability to choose what you want to do and when you want to do it. Achieving financial freedom is the last hurdle to true freedom, and it's something that each of us has an inner yearning for.

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The key to achieving financial freedom is to start with your end goal in mind. Take your current income and multiply it by 25. This is the fund you will need to accumulate to transition from an active income to a passive income. For example, if you earn €75,000 annually before tax, you will need to accumulate a fund of €1,875,000 to fund your financial freedom in today's money. This is the fund required to deliver an annual before tax income of €75,000 based on a 4% safe withdrawal rate.

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While financial freedom may seem like an impossible goal, there are ways to make it a reality. One of the most important steps you can take is to maximise your private pension contributions. In Ireland, a pension is the only investment vehicle that offers income tax relief linked to your employment earnings.

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With each pension contribution, you are buying back future time that would otherwise be spent working. A pension is tax-free when contributing, has tax-free investment growth and becomes taxable upon withdrawing an income once financially independent following receipt of your tax-free lump sum.

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To bridge the gap between your current retirement savings and the fund you need to achieve financial freedom, you should utilise your private pension. As part of your employment, you will have access to an occupational pension scheme and may have legacy pension pots from past employment with other companies.

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If you don't want to work forever and you value the freedom, choice and security that financial independence can provide, I would encourage you to schedule some time with a financial planner to review your pension and personal finances in general. Remember, in life, most of us regret the things we didn't do more than the things we did do. Minimise your future financial regret and start planning for your financial freedom today.

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