I'm finding myself increasingly challenged to stay motivated at work. There is a lot to be proud of, but the BS level continues to increase. Having enough to FIRE makes it hard to put up with, but I really want to Fat FIRE. As much as I admire the concept, I'm really not very mustachian in a lot of ways.
How are others dealing with this? I know @Bateaux seems to be in a similar boat, and maybe BeanCounter, too. Are you still working for the financial security? For the ego? For the social connections? Out of habit? How do you know when enough is enough?
My OMYx2 (or 3) started out as being driven by additional financial security. We still have elementary aged kids. We need health insurance and the price of that for a family of four is no joke. The kids are in private school and do various expensive activities that I am unwilling to say no to (band, Taekwondo, scouts etc) So when we hit our first $1M it didn't seem like enough. And though I put up a lot of BS at work, I'm highly compensated for the effort I put in. So it seemed prudent to stay. But shortly after we hit $1M invested, my last parent died. I am an only child. This more than doubled our net worth. But more than anything my mothers death put me into a bit of an existential crisis. So I continued to work just for the routine of it, the normalcy. For the security of having to get up and march myself into the office. It's been almost two years and I've spent the last year rebuilding a cash reserve from a home remodel we did and trying to figure out what exactly I want to do with myself if I quit. And how I feel about the risk of leaving.
This thread actually helped me the most with the anxiety about the risk of leaving my career. These internet friends helped me to see that it's very likely we will be just fine, but if we are ok with being flexible we can make anything work.
As for the what to do with myself when I leave. Much of that is around ego. I want to stay home with my kids and enjoy the rest of their years at home, relaxed and available. But I've also never seen myself as a SAHM. And what will I do while they are in school all day? What if I want to return to my career after they go to college? I think the answer to this is to continue some part time work. Preferably working for myself. I have been starting to explore looking for clients that need a "part time CFO/controller".
Anyway as I've slowly figured this stuff out it really has decreased my tolerance for work politics and BS. And when you're 41 with $2.5M of invested assets, having watched both of your parents die young- WORK REALLY SEEMS MEANINGLESS. But that doesn't change the feelings around walking away. It will be hard. But I'm still sticking to the plan for May. And I do think I need to find some part time work for myself. We will see how that works out.
Best of luck
@Taran Wanderer. Know that ALL of your feelings around FIRE are very valid and others feel it too. I think it's good to keep posting about it as it does help you and others to work through it.