Hello,
I'm a 45 yo single from Germany. I always have dreamed of and worked towards FIRE. And now I reached it and my head is a mess.
I'm not ultra frugal - I don't do oil changes or brake pad replacements on my own. But I have a spending habit that is far below my income without counting pennies. On top of that I made an inheritance that puts me at a 3% withdrawal rate and I could reduce it even further if I would move to a cheaper town.
So time to shit on my boss' desk, right?
Not so fast.
"You have studied; that did cost a lot of money; and now you cannot just throw it all away" my mother said.
And there are stock options that will be vested next year - the best reason for the one more year syndrome that you can think of. There was a supreme court decicion recently that this bonus can't be denied if I quit the company earlier (German readers google: BAG Az. 10 AZR 848/12). But this will end up in a lawsuit of which I will have to pay a share and has some risk.
So I decided to go part time. My thoughts were: This is the answer to the "what do you do question", I don't lose my skills, and gives me some room to develop what I want to do next. I have some DIY projects that need time and money so part time would be the best solution.
But even the sheer thought about going part time turns out to be the equivalent to shitting on my boss' desk. At least the reactions are similar. In my company part time is even more a taboo than ER. And it will cause a minor lawsuit, too (minor means low risk/ low cost).
And I wonder what comes next: Being bullied by the company because a broke a taboo? They are keen on keeping me and my boss knows that I'm FI. So they try every trick to avoid me going part time.
I know that these are not only 1st world problems but top 5% problems. Still bailing out of the work force has similar social effects like having your face tattooed.
What are your experiences? Did any one of you go part time or broke a taboo of the company?
Did you have to explain yourself like ER would be financial suicide?