It has been 7-8 years since then and I make ~$120k, the job is flexible, the hours are reasonable for this position and I have nothing to complain about, except that I’ve mentally checked out. In the past I thought it was the employer, but I am realizing it’s me.
With FI on my mind and a fairly frugal lifestyle my FI is set at 10-15 years from now realistically speaking (knock on wood). What I keep questioning myself is do I continue to chip away at this and be unsatisfied or do I jump ship to do something I’d like for less money.
If I continue FI could be sooner and I could double my income in 10 years, but I will be miserable.
I've been in that situation. The way you feel now means that you could gut it out in your current status for another year or two, but 10-15 is unsustainable. It's risky to your mental & physical health, as well as your relationships.
I stayed where I was out of fear & ignorance (and supporting the family). My fun-meter failed at about 12 years and I felt fortunate to make it for eight more. In retrospect it was the wrong decision, and I was too overworked to take a step back to assess the situation and find a solution. The saving grace was that the military at least gave me a new duty station and a new group of co-workers every 2-3 years, so the situation changed often enough to avoid Groundhog Day syndrome.
Would you feel better about your field if you were working in a different sector for a different employer? Instead of corporate accounting, try a startup or a non-profit? Forensic accounting for criminal cases or divorces? Financial advisor? Tax prep? Start a blog and write a book? Teach classes online or at universities? Teach the review courses for the CFP or CPA exams? Even just taking a small volunteer gig in addition to your current job, as described in the book "Give and Take" to mitigate burnout?
On the other hand I can think hard and long and find something that will keep me happy (already have an idea of what I want) but I will probably be making half of what I make now, but will work less. The potential to make more is there, but then I feel I’d be falling in the same trap I am in now, except in a different field.
Option 3, which is the least risky, but the most unlikely is to make my current job (doesn’t matter what employer) into a part time gig. If I made 60k for 2 days worth of work then I wouldn’t mind doing this indefinitely and I feel I wouldn’t be as miserable.
Thoughts?
Once you've crafted your escape plan, I think it's fair to share your feelings with your employer and ask for part-time. You're not a hostage to their paycheck-- their choice would be having you part-time or not at all.
If that fails (whether it never gets started or goes bad after a few months) then your other job (the happy one with half the income) will at least improve your quality of life enough for you to step back, assess the situation, and look at all those other side-hustle ideas.
Of course you could also take the extreme ER approach of cutting your spending to the bone, working harder for a bigger bonus, and grunting it out for another 5-10 years as you accelerate your trajectory to FI. Then you could ER as a burned-out husk in poor health and have the rest of your life (such as it is) to salvage that situation.