Pull the pin at 52 with $2.5m or take the promotion [Australia]

[mjr]

So, I'd made the hard decisions and manoeuvered myself a redundancy at the end of July because I was jack of it all and I don't like the way the company is heading.

Then, my boss, suffering in the same way, up and resigns.

He's been here 25 years, I've been here 22.  This company is full of career lifers and why not ?  As companies go, things are pretty good here and as managers it's quite lucrative.

So, now my boss' boss comes to me and asks if I want to give up the redundancy and take the corner office.

I'd forego a year's salary in net redundancy payout and I rather suspect that after the short-lived power rush, I'll regret not bailing when I could. 

That said, the new job would come with even more money and stock options and golden handcuffs than I have now, with adequate international travel and all the faux glamour that comes along with it.

It should be an easy decision - get the hell out.  But I am well and truly institutionalised and have been OMYing for years until even I have been forced to admit that $2.5 million is probably enough when my annual expenses are less than $30k.

Anyone want to give me a push ?

[lizi]

Can you somehow manoeuvre six months to a year sabbatical to give yourself a taste of the FIRED life, knowing you have the corner office if you want it? I bet after you taste freedom there will be no turning back. You definitely sound like you don't need the money or the stock options, and you can afford your own international travel and glamour on your own terms. If you're worried about giving up meaningful work maybe you can find a volunteer position or a job that's related to a cause you care about.

[MrThatsDifferent]

PULL!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

You’ve achieved everything you want and more. You have plenty of money. You said goodbye. Let someone else have that amazing opportunity. Live your life. It’s not about work. Challenge yourself in different ways and don’t look back mate.

Remember that line from The Godfather: Just when I thought I was out, they pull me back in. Run!

[mxt0133]

If your annual expenses really are $30K and you have $2.5M then nothing anyone can say here will convince you to actually 'pull the pin'.  If you actually had something better to FIRE to then you would have 'pulled the pin' a long time ago.  I say take the promotions and if you don't like it you don't have to stay a single minute more than you have to.  But it seems like you would like the role and all the perks that come with it.  Don't worry what anyone else thinks, if you like the prestige the job gives you then keep it.  Now that you are higher up the corporate ladder you might actually be able to do something about what you don't like about the company.

[kei te pai]

I hope that if you are smart enough to accumulate a couple of million, you are smart enough to realise you cant buy more years of healthy active life. Surely you can find something more interesting to do than sit in an office!

[marty998]

Yeah I think you're done mjr, depending on how your assets are set up (super or non-super)

Go enjoy life.

[mrmoonymartian]

Everyone agrees you have more than enough money, so you can ignore it as irrelevant.

What do you want to do with this next period of your life? Only you can answer this question.

[Fresh Bread]

You've said you don't like the way the company is heading. I reckon you are just feeling the glow of being wanted and pretty soon you'll regret staying and having to deal with the next level up. Bask in it for a few more days and then pull the plug.

There's got to be something you would rather be doing? Something you wished you'd learnt how to do? A place you wanted to visit?

[former player]

All that status and power and money haven't been enough for your boss: he's been suffering the same way you have and has made the decision to leave, just as you have.

And you are in Brisbane?  Even if that corner office has views of the coast, wouldn't you rather be out on the coast rather than just looking at it?


Bask in the true badassity of not only getting redundancy and making FIRE but turning down the big promotion to make FIRE as well - that puts you well ahead of most of us here.

[Little Aussie Battler]

I would be honest and say that I was thinking of taking a break from work.  My counter offer to them would be to pay out my redundancy, and I would take the more senior role on a 12 month contract with a discussion scheduled after 6 months to figure out if I was the long-term solution or if they need to look elsewhere.

That gives them continuity in the role/department, time to plan for a replacement and do a proper handover (if you aren't going to stay on), and means that you don't lose your redundancy. 

From their side, it's better than their current position where they lose both of you (presumably a lot of institutional knowledge) and have to pay your redundancy?

[sokoloff]

Similar to above, if you do take the role, in addition to the handcuffs with the new position, I’d take it with a 6 months cash bonus (half the redundancy payment) which I think they’d readily agree to. In fact, if they don’t, I’d worry about what that meant for the upcoming year(s).

$2.5 million is a lot, certainly enough to call it quits and live on $80K/yr before taxes, but if you enjoy the challenge of work, don’t have something else to run towards, like flying up front on international trips, you may decide to OMY again and take some of that year to figure out what you want to do with your limited number of circuits left on this rock.

[Case]

So, I'd made the hard decisions and manoeuvered myself a redundancy at the end of July because I was jack of it all and I don't like the way the company is heading.

Then, my boss, suffering in the same way, up and resigns.

He's been here 25 years, I've been here 22.  This company is full of career lifers and why not ?  As companies go, things are pretty good here and as managers it's quite lucrative.

So, now my boss' boss comes to me and asks if I want to give up the redundancy and take the corner office.

I'd forego a year's salary in net redundancy payout and I rather suspect that after the short-lived power rush, I'll regret not bailing when I could. 

That said, the new job would come with even more money and stock options and golden handcuffs than I have now, with adequate international travel and all the faux glamour that comes along with it.

It should be an easy decision - get the hell out.  But I am well and truly institutionalised and have been OMYing for years until even I have been forced to admit that $2.5 million is probably enough when my annual expenses are less than $30k.

Anyone want to give me a push ?

The way to answer the question is as follows:

If you died tomorrow and had a chance to reflect on your life, would you regret not retiring early and instead pursuing the professional opportunity you have?  How about if you died 5 years from now?  How about 20 years from now?

You are 52, and are at the age where random death events start to become significant.  In 10 years you’ll be in your 60s and health decline will start to become more appreciable.  Does your work affect your health?

It is valid to pursue the professional life if thats what brings the most satisfaction to you.  You have to consider what you are giving up in exchange.  You only live once, live to the max.  Beyond this advice, nothing anyone on an internet forum can guide you further.

[MrGville]

Read this article, if this doesn't help you, I don't know what will

https://waitbutwhy.com/2015/12/the-tail-end.html

Sent from my SM-G920W8 using Tapatalk

This is great.  My motivation for FIRE is to spend time with family, and this article really drives home the fact that quality family time for many working people is very low.  FIRE to do what you want with who you want!

[Dicey]

My favorite pre-FIRE quote is:

"Retiring too early is a mistake you can recover from. Too late and there is no recovery."

I don't know who said it, but I'm grateful for the inspiration it provided to get to FIRE. Five and a half years post-FIRE,  I can attest that every day has been a gift, and worth the effort.

Anther gem is "Nobody wishes on their deathbed that they had worked more."

[CoffeeR]

Anyone want to give me a push ?

Some people enjoy working. Many here cannot or will not see this. You have the money you need, so you can leave at any time and the decision is not about money. This is an opportunity that probably will not come again. Take it today *IF* you want to. You can always quit tomorrow. Now, if on the other hand, you are postponing your dreams desires hope and what not because because of a job you do not need, then you might regret staying. In other words, no one can answer this question, but you. Do not RE, because it is the MMM thing to do. RE because you want to.
 

[Dicey]

Anyone want to give me a push ?

Some people enjoy working. Many here cannot or will not see this. You have the money you need, so you can leave at any time and the decision is not about money. This is an opportunity that probably will not come again. Take it today *IF* you want to. You can always quit tomorrow. Now, if on the other hand, you are postponing your dreams desires hope and what not because because of a job you do not need, then you might regret staying. In other words, no one can answer this question, but you. Do not RE, because it is the MMM thing to do. RE because you want to.

You do understand that taking the promotion today comes with a significant give-back?

As to your comment that many "cannot or will not see this", well, um, do you see where you are? That is totally to be expected, given the scope and purpose of MMM. OP knows he's asking a group with an obvious bias.

[mjr]

Thanks to all for your responses.

It's not an option to take a sabbatical.  If I don't pick it up, it gets thrown open to people further down the chain.  It's a senior leadership position, can't be left unfilled and the EVP won't give it to someone who's likely to bail in 6 months when there are others clamouring for it.

Yep, I enjoy the people and the prestige and the travel.  But I also detest the corporate life and its mind-numbing pointlessness of performance reviews, bureaucracy and late night and early morning conference calls.

So I'm done.  I have peers who are keen for the challenge whereas I have nothing left to prove and staying would be the gutless option.  More personal growth to be gained from taking the leap.

Thanks again.

[Fresh Bread]

Huzzah!

[Dicey]

ClapClapClapClapClapClap! And we have a winner!

[elliha]

Great! I was going to say that you should go for quitting but you decided on your own so just go and live life for real now.

[soccerluvof4]

Right decision! congratulations

[mspym]

Woo hoo! That is awesome - free up the role for someone excited for the challenge!