In 2024 I earned a total of $629 worth of dividends having started in August. By EOY 2025, that number has ballooned to $9,287.
Everything has been on DRIP so I haven't taken a payday yet and don't plan on it until the year end total matches my annual salary.
Keeping track of the dividends purchased through DRIP versus what was purchased manually I think is the metric to be aware of to visually see at what point I'll be in ITM.
At this point, I need to earn over $10,600 to be in the money but I will be moving the goal post as I plan on manually investing more throughout 2026 and onward during red market days.
This all started after being laid off from my job in February of 2024. Nothing lit a fire more under my ass than the desire to never want to feel like I'm at the financial mercy of a company ever again.
Currently 33 y.o. with a 2 month old with a long term goal of being able to retire off dividends by 40. Tracking the progress makes it all feel attainable. Happy to be here :)