Financial independence can have various meanings depending on who you ask. To some it is being able to drive a Mercedes, to others it is vacationing in Europe, whereas others define it as having no debt. To me, financial independence means getting to go to a job that I love even though it does not pay a large salary.

I am a special education teacher in Georgia. Because my family is financially independent, I am able to stay in the classroom and my wife is able to be a stay-at-home mom and raise our two daughters. There are so many people out there that hate their jobs. When that alarm clock goes off on Monday morning, they hit the snooze button a few times because they do not want to get out of bed and face the day. Because I am financially independent, I get to remain in the classroom and do a job that I love.

In fact, according to the 2006 General Social Survey, teaching ranks among the top 10 most gratifying jobs. Here is the list of the most gratifying jobs, along with the percentage who said they were very satisfied with their job, according to this survey:

• Clergy - 87%

• Firefighters - 80%

• Physical Therapists - 78%

• Authors - 74%

• Special Education Teachers - 70%

• Teachers - 69%

• Education Administrators - 68%

• Painters/Sculptors - 67%

• Psychologists - 67%

• Security/Financial Service Salespersons - 65%

According to Tom Smith, the director of this survey, "The most satisfying jobs are mostly professions, especially those involving caring for, teaching, protecting others and creative pursuits." In contrast, the least satisfying jobs are mostly low-skill, manual and service occupations. People who reported being dissatisfied with their job included roofers, waiters, bartenders, cashiers and furniture/home furnishing salespersons.

I think that one of the silver linings to this economic crisis we are in is that people are beginning to seek out jobs that give them satisfaction and not always a large paycheck. For far too long people associated making a lot of money with being wealthy. I think that this survey shows that being rich does not always mean having and/or making a lot of money. I think that financial independence means having the freedom to choose my job and not having to worry about making more money to fund my lifestyle.