Dr. Ravi Sundaram
Surgeon. High income. Expensive life. The first plan broke; the rebuilt one works.
Shortfall: $1.1M at age 53
See what Ravi did next ↓
The story
Ravi did not start earning serious money until later than most high-income professionals. Medical training took most of his twenties and a chunk of his thirties, and his divorce in his early forties reset a lot of what had been built. He still earns well north of $400k, but he also lives like someone who spent years postponing every luxury.
His original Fat FIRE plan was built around a lifestyle he considered non-negotiable: premium travel, expensive time with the kids, generous spending in Sydney, and a hard stop while they were still young adults. On paper that plan sounded reasonable. In the model, it wasn't.
What FIRE means to Ravi
A high-spend life without hospital politics or mandatory 5am starts. He is not trying to shrink into Lean FIRE with a nicer watch. He wants the freedom to travel well, help his kids generously, and choose consulting or teaching only if it is interesting.
Retirement plans
He wants a version of retirement that still looks expansive: extended overseas travel, more time with his kids as they move into adulthood, occasional teaching, and the option to take on selective surgical or advisory work rather than a punishing full schedule.
Key challenge
Fat FIRE still lives or dies on savings rate. Ravi's original plan had two problems at once: current spending was too high and the target date was too aggressive. School fees and shared-custody costs kept the runway expensive through age 50, which meant the portfolio never had enough time to catch the lifestyle he wanted to fund.
The numbers
What is Fat FIRE?
Fat FIRE targets financial independence on a large income, typically $150k+ in retirement spending, allowing a high-end lifestyle without compromise. It requires a substantially larger nest egg (often $3-5M in Australian conditions) but the higher income during the accumulation phase can make it achievable in a similar timeframe to Regular FIRE. The key variable is still the savings rate, not the income level.
The projection
What the tool showed
Ravi's original plan: target age 53, Non-Concessional Contributions $90k/yr, expenses $190k/yr. The projection shows a shortfall at 53.
Monte Carlo check
12% of simulated futures reach FIRE by age 53.
Annual income sources in retirement
Stacked bars show where income comes from each year. Line shows target expenses.
Bars above the red line indicate surplus spending capacity (SWR floor > expenses)
Key insights
That's 7 years after FIRE. The non-super portfolio must bridge this gap entirely.
Adds ~$2k/year in government support, reducing portfolio drawdown.
Eliminates ~$48k/year in housing costs, freeing cash for investments.
A savings rate above 30% is the engine that powers early retirement. Every dollar saved today compounds for decades.
Key takeaway
Fat FIRE is not just Regular FIRE with a higher salary. The desired lifestyle is expensive enough that timing, contribution rates, and big family costs matter enormously. Ravi's story works because the tool forced him to stop pretending high income automatically solved a high-burn plan.