Author Topic: Quitting at 55 - yay or nay?  (Read 23015 times)

OzzieandHarriet

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Quitting at 55 - yay or nay?
« on: May 27, 2013, 08:23:14 AM »
Would it be really stupid for me to quit my job? I’m 55, husband is 53. We don't have kids. I spent the first part of my working career as a musician, so barely survived financially, forget saving money – though I did emerge from that without debt. In my mid-30s, I started working office jobs and worked my way up to the place I’m in now, where I earn $62,000 a year. I got married in my early 40s; husband has always earned about double what I have. For most of the years we’ve been married, we have saved the maximum in 401Ks, and then opened some Roth IRAs and have been putting the max into those as well for a while. We obviously live well within our means. We don’t carry any debt except for the mortgage. We own an investment property (long story, but it was kind of a stupid purchase, and we’re planning to sell it this year).

The problem is that I don’t like my job. The people are nice, workplace is good, pay is okay, but the work is extremely boring and unfulfilling, and there are long stretches of misery. I want to develop work that will be more satisfying. We’ve looked at the numbers, and we could manage on husband’s income, but I would be forfeiting a chunk of retirement savings along with our really comfortable safety margin. Also, as my husband says, we’d be reduced to one point of failure. OTOH, I wasn’t planning on working at this job past age 60 unless I had to. Our pooled retirement savings are currently a bit north of $1 million. We have more than 50% equity in our house, and we own the investment property free and clear.

For the past year I have been working toward getting out of this job. I have some freelance things lined up, but of course those aren’t steady and will not pay as much. I could possibly suck it up and stay in the job for a few more years, but something else would have to give. And the next few years are, I think, crucial if I want to have any chance at all of setting up an alternative work life, especially in music. If I wait, I will be too old and may not have the health and energy levels I need to do this stuff. The music I would do anyway, whether it paid or not, but it's getting beyond frustrating trying to do this in my spare time. Everything is suffering.

So what do you all think? I appreciate any opinions.

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Re: Quitting at 55 - yay or nay?
« Reply #1 on: May 27, 2013, 08:40:15 AM »
Answering a few questions will help people respond:

How does your husband like his job? When would he prefer to retire?

Have you created a budget for how you would live if you retire and he keeps working? How about a budget if you both quit working (or you quit and he later loses his job)? (You said that "single point of failure" is worrisome for your husband.)

Is downshifting to part time in your current role an option? Working 3 or 4 days per week might give you the opportunity to gin up freelance work while you are still young, while still generating extra income / savings.

OzzieandHarriet

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Re: Quitting at 55 - yay or nay?
« Reply #2 on: May 27, 2013, 11:03:49 AM »
Answering a few questions will help people respond:

How does your husband like his job? When would he prefer to retire?

Have you created a budget for how you would live if you retire and he keeps working? How about a budget if you both quit working (or you quit and he later loses his job)? (You said that "single point of failure" is worrisome for your husband.)

Is downshifting to part time in your current role an option? Working 3 or 4 days per week might give you the opportunity to gin up freelance work while you are still young, while still generating extra income / savings.

Thanks for responding. My husband likes the type of work he does, and he's been at the same workplace for 30 years (yes, he started there in his 20s and never left). He has usually liked it there -- it's a good place to work -- though the tone changes with different management teams. They seem to like him, he's senior staff, and he gets modest raises every year. He doesn't have any interest in retiring early (he says now). He has a master's degree in his field and has been working on some interesting projects. He tends to be a worrier -- I really don't think it's likely he will lose this job.

We have created a budget for finances if I quit and earn nothing and he keeps working. The main problem is that it would cut our saving rate down, though he would still be able to put the max into his 401K. If we sell the rental place, we will be fine; if we don't sell it and have to pay the carrying costs without a tenant, things would be tight -- however, the way it stands now, the tenant can stay until the end of this calendar year so it's not an emergency yet. So I know the prudent thing to do would be to sell the place before I quit my job. I THINK I can make it through the summer juggling my full-time job, part-time freelancing, and my own practicing if I take full advantage of paid leave. But after that, I don't know. It's a quality-of-life thing -- I'm so sick of feeling like I'm wasting my time sitting in a cubicle (one problem with this job is that I often don't have any work to do -- it's been like that for years, and management is aware; I am a very productive employee and get things done quickly). There's more to life than money, right?

Another thing is, if we sell the place we will have enough cash left over (after taxes, etc.) to pay off our mortgage (though it might be better to invest the money instead). That would be a big safety net.

I have broached the idea of working part time at my current workplace, but my manager was not enthusiastic. I think they might have to create a new position for me and hire someone else to fill my current job, which I doubt would fly. It's been more than 2 months since I brought it up and nothing has been done about it.

If he lost his job and I wasn't working? I suppose we have resources -- for example, we could tap into the 401Ks with a SEPP program if our cash ran out before he found another job. In 4 years, I am eligible to start withdrawing from my 401K (my savings there are about 1/3 of our total).

I guess I'm wondering if there's something I'm missing. Is it obvious that I should either stick with the job as long as possible? Or that I don't need to? Or ...?

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Re: Quitting at 55 - yay or nay?
« Reply #3 on: May 27, 2013, 11:42:48 AM »
If I were you, I would bring up part time with the manager again, this time with a specific proposal including a trial period:

"Hey [manager], I got the work you assigned me done in 30 hours again this week. That's common, and it makes me miserable to be so bored 10+ hours every week. So let's try changing my schedule to 30 hrs per week. (I'll take a 25% pay cut.) I promise you I will work more hours during any week you need me.

"Would you be willing to try this out for 90 days? We can both re-evaluate it in three months and see if you and I are both comfortable. If it doesn't work, I'll switch back to 40 hours. If it does work, you commit to 30 hours per week for me (with the ability to work more hours occasionally as needed."

If he agrees to try it, doesn't like it and wants you to go back to 40 hours - you just quit (which you are considering doing anyway). But you get significant benefits if it does work: a) a smoother glide path to eventual freelancing / retirement b) a happier husband and c) less risk and d) less boredom at work, more time to expand your other interests.

OzzieandHarriet

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Re: Quitting at 55 - yay or nay?
« Reply #4 on: May 27, 2013, 01:05:06 PM »
I was going to try that -- but like I said, I don't think it will go over very well. I believe the deal is that my job is slotted as full time, and for overall planning/budgeting purposes for the department, they don't want to lose that full-time slot. (Plus, how would it look for the other people in my same job description if I were only working 3 days a week and getting as much done as if it were 5 days?) So I may need to be prepared to walk if they don't want to consider it, and for all of the above reasons I'm not sure if that's a good idea.

My manager doesn't have the last word on something like this, either. There are bureaucratic layers that it would have to filter through.

Another Reader

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Re: Quitting at 55 - yay or nay?
« Reply #5 on: May 27, 2013, 02:11:29 PM »
Are there other jobs in this organization that might be more interesting and challenging?  Could you go into managing those folks that take 5 days to do three days worth of work?

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Re: Quitting at 55 - yay or nay?
« Reply #6 on: May 27, 2013, 02:53:58 PM »
I hear you on "losing the FTE" thinking. (Yet another example of how perverse incentives keep front managers from making the right decisions.)

I second Another Reader's suggestion. I suspect you are more valuable to them than you may realize - they have strong motivation to keep you happy one way or another.

nktokyo

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Re: Quitting at 55 - yay or nay?
« Reply #7 on: May 27, 2013, 06:04:28 PM »
Three Questions:
1. What is your asset base?
2. What will it pay you each year?
3. What is your cost of living?

Retirement is a numbers game. What I read in your post is that you're sick of your job, have you talked to recruiters about changing roles? A month off + a new environment can be great for energy levels.

jrhampt

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Re: Quitting at 55 - yay or nay?
« Reply #8 on: May 28, 2013, 11:46:15 AM »
Do you have the option to telecommute a day or two each week?

OzzieandHarriet

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Re: Quitting at 55 - yay or nay?
« Reply #9 on: May 28, 2013, 08:35:02 PM »
RE telecommuting -- I already do one day a week. I really don't mind going to the office; it's the work that bothers me. It's almost worse trying to do it at home.

I'm really not management material (I don't think). I've looked for other jobs on and off during the years I've been at this place, and there's nothing out there that would be any better in this line of work. I mean, this is a very cushy job in a lot of ways -- I'm just not enjoying it anymore. There are so many other things I want to do before I'm too old.

nktokyo, your three questions:

1. ~$1.1 million in retirement accounts; ~$300k investment property that we are planning to sell that would net at least $200k (after costs -- lowballing this); ~$30k in savings account (this is our "just in case" $$ -- varies depending on what expenses come up).
2. This would pay, what, $45k a year @ 4% withdrawal rate? But the amount will be higher by the time we would be drawing on it. Nothing right now, obviously.
3. Current expenses, not including the rental property, are ~$60k a year. Without the mortgage, they would be about $45k. Our plan has been to pay the minimum on the mortgage until the amount of the payoff is an amount we can pay in full without sweating it. We have 18 years left on a 20-year loan @3.875%, so I've been estimating that somewhere around the 10-year mark we may have enough to do this, but in any case, by that time the amount of interest we're paying will be very low.

The big unknowns out in the future are health care and whether we will have any major expenses in that area. But it seems like we should have enough to cover most things, especially if we are able to wait to draw on our retirement savings until later.

meadow lark

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Re: Quitting at 55 - yay or nay?
« Reply #10 on: May 28, 2013, 10:34:44 PM »
I think I would retire.  Or ask for a six month leave of absence.   Try it out.  There is a good chance if it were uncomfortable you could be rehired, or get a new job.

nktokyo

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Re: Quitting at 55 - yay or nay?
« Reply #11 on: May 29, 2013, 04:52:26 AM »
I think I would retire.  Or ask for a six month leave of absence.   Try it out.  There is a good chance if it were uncomfortable you could be rehired, or get a new job.

+1

Could you decrease your living costs further upon retiring or are you going to want to travel and live a little? If that's the case maybe it makes sense to work 6-12 months longer and put everything into a "fun" account.

daverobev

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Re: Quitting at 55 - yay or nay?
« Reply #12 on: May 29, 2013, 02:48:20 PM »
No I don't think it would be stupid at all.

Finances aside (from my perspective you are way way able to retire, but ignore that)...

You only live once. There is NO point going in to a miserable job every day. Just none. I mean - I take that back - there is, if it gets you where you want to be, fast. You can hack it for a few years if it means you can then do what you want.

But - I don't mean to be rude here - you're 55. You have 20 years, or less, of 'full activity' left - just say. You will NEVER get that time again, guaranteed! 100% absolute fact. You've done well, you've got a nice stache. I'm sure you can cut spending by $1k a month if it allows you - get this - 20 years of worry-free fun, outdoors, walking, reading, doing *whatever you damn well please*!

SnackDog

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Re: Quitting at 55 - yay or nay?
« Reply #13 on: May 30, 2013, 04:44:42 AM »
You have saved plenty so quit when you want and do something you like better. Or tell the boss you want 15% more pay and completely flexible hours including work from home. All she can say is no.

OzzieandHarriet

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Re: Quitting at 55 - yay or nay?
« Reply #14 on: May 30, 2013, 10:55:45 AM »
daverobev -- yeah, I get that! I've been trying to convince the husband. He seems to have a visceral mistrust of that type of thinking. But after many ad nauseum discussions he thinks it would be okay. He's gone through periods of hating his job, too, and at those times I offered the option that HE could quit and we could live on my income. But there isn't anything else he's thirsting to do, whereas I would love to have the time to work on my music and see where that takes me in my old age.

I did have a good conversation with my manager yesterday about working part time, and it sounds like it might be possible after all. So I'm going to write up a proposal for a 50% schedule and see what happens.

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Re: Quitting at 55 - yay or nay?
« Reply #15 on: May 30, 2013, 11:06:33 AM »
Hooray for the positive convo with your manager about PT - keep us updated!

OzzieandHarriet

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Re: Quitting at 55 - yay or nay?
« Reply #16 on: June 20, 2013, 06:20:41 AM »
It's been 3 weeks now since I handed in a formal written proposal, and still no response at all.

I would hand in my resignation tomorrow if I knew we'd be okay. I'm fairly certain but have nagging doubts. And then I look at all the security this job offers, and I can't do it -- at least, not yet. But I don't know how to determine when it would feel safe.

Every time I analyze our spending vs. income, I can see there really isn't a problem. Husband's and my gross income is about $200k/year, and we are living on about $60-$70k -- that's with being generally frugal but not nickel-and-diming everything.

Aggh -- I feel like I can't go back and can't go forward! :-\
« Last Edit: June 20, 2013, 06:29:20 AM by OzzieandHarriet »

MsSindy

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Re: Quitting at 55 - yay or nay?
« Reply #17 on: June 20, 2013, 07:59:18 AM »
I enjoyed reading this thread because I see some of my own situation here (conservative hubby, no kids, good stache, hates job), the only difference is that I'm about 10 years behind you in age - which kind of makes it more risky. 

It sounds like you're really struggling between being 'safe' and really 'living'.  Try not to think about it as an all or nothing proposition.  Meaning, just because you quit your FT job doesn't mean you won't make any money, in fact you may make more because you'll throw your passion into something!  Try to plot out the worse case scenario and then discuss provisions for handling it; If A happens, then we could do X, If B happens, then we could do Y.  There is always a solution, just be creative.  This may help you both feel comfortable in your decision.  At the end of the day, you will be taking a risk, but it will be a calculated risk.  But I bet you'll feel alive (even if you're a little scared!).

Don't underestimate your talents or worth.  Go live, times-a-tickin'!

Sweet Betsy

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Re: Quitting at 55 - yay or nay?
« Reply #18 on: June 20, 2013, 08:13:50 AM »
Quit today!  If they valued you, you would have at least heard from them regarding your part-time proposal.  You have plenty of money saved as well as your husband's income so that you could never make another penny and be fine. 

tooqk4u22

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Re: Quitting at 55 - yay or nay?
« Reply #19 on: June 20, 2013, 08:21:43 AM »
It's been 3 weeks now since I handed in a formal written proposal, and still no response at all.

I would hand in my resignation tomorrow if I knew we'd be okay. I'm fairly certain but have nagging doubts. And then I look at all the security this job offers, and I can't do it -- at least, not yet. But I don't know how to determine when it would feel safe.

Every time I analyze our spending vs. income, I can see there really isn't a problem. Husband's and my gross income is about $200k/year, and we are living on about $60-$70k -- that's with being generally frugal but not nickel-and-diming everything.

Aggh -- I feel like I can't go back and can't go forward! :-\

1.  Clearly you can live and still save on just husbands income and he doesn't want to stop working yet, which means you are not only not draining the stash but you are adding to it while it still grows even if it is only for 3 years it is huge.
2.  You have enough resources for both of you to stop especially if you lose the investment property and invest the proceeds.
3.  With that budget/spending for only two people I am sure there is plenty of room to trim if needed as spending $60-70k a year is not frugal (this is not a judgment, just saying that there is likely room if needed).  Heck based on the mortgage payment and 50% equity piece my guess is that you are living in a house that is more than you need - so there is more cushion.
4.  Given your ages you don't have the same risks as someone in their 30's - assets don't need to last as long, some social security is practically guaranteed for you, medicare will be available for you in the next decade, etc.
5.  You plan on generating some income - more cushion

So I look at the list and conclude that it would be borderline insane to continue doing something you don't want to do.

My $0.02

nktokyo

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Re: Quitting at 55 - yay or nay?
« Reply #20 on: June 20, 2013, 08:36:56 AM »
quit

Ishmael

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Re: Quitting at 55 - yay or nay?
« Reply #21 on: June 20, 2013, 08:48:04 AM »
I would calculate the money it costs you to go to work. Car, gas, work clothes, lunches out, convenience meals because you're tired, etc. Include everything. Mine is around $5000.

Then, I would look at the household benefit of you playing 'defence' with the household's money - could you save money by cooking more, or doing some of the tasks you now outsource? How much can you whittle the 60-70k spending down by having some time/energy to focus towards that spending, without crimping your comfortable lifestyle?

Could you improve your hubby's life as well by making him a nice breakfast every morning, or something else? (Not that that is a "woman's role", just that he can directly benefit by you quitting as well, helping to alleviate his worries somewhat).

Household money is like sports, it takes both offence and defence to win. If your hubby is playing the offence (i.e. earning money), and you're playing the defence (i.e. minimizing expenditures), that can be just as effective as both of you playing offence.

Frankies Girl

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Re: Quitting at 55 - yay or nay?
« Reply #22 on: June 20, 2013, 09:00:18 AM »
I may be going too simple looking at all of this, but if you're already living off of less than his salary and saving a good portion of that, you have over 1 mill in investments (earning some decent interest) that you would not have to even touch, and you don't like your current position... I would say just quit.

You are doing really, really well. I think you're probably stuck in the idea of quitting=scary. But it sounds like you're going to be just fine, and maybe just take a little time to really let that sink in, and then turn in your two weeks?

Quit and go find something you really love to do with your time. :)

StarryC

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Re: Quitting at 55 - yay or nay?
« Reply #23 on: June 20, 2013, 10:20:07 AM »
You could go in and say, "If you can't make me part time in the next 60 days, I'm giving my  notice and quitting."  That gives them a choice.  They might say, fine! Quit!  But that's ok for you.  They might say, "oh, we didn't think you were that serious, we can have an answer for you by Monday." 

totoro

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Re: Quitting at 55 - yay or nay?
« Reply #24 on: June 20, 2013, 10:48:16 AM »
Quit if your husband gets on board.  You are okay.  You can spend part of your free time looking at ways to reduce your expenses and up your investment returns.  You can support your husband by doing more at home.  The numbers work, it is more about how it would impact him.

OzzieandHarriet

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Re: Quitting at 55 - yay or nay?
« Reply #25 on: June 20, 2013, 03:17:36 PM »
Thank you for all the great responses.

I don't know why I'm so squeamish about being more assertive at work, per StarryC's suggestion. I guess I hate asking them for favors and then having them expect me to be oh-so-grateful. Plus, I don't even really want to work there at all anymore, but the part-time thing would give me some continuity.

As far as our living expenses go, maybe I'm overestimating what we spend. I just looked at the numbers from this past year again, and it came out more in the low $50,000s, but I always like to round up a bit just in case. We do live in an expensive area, where stuff can cost a lot. We bought our house in 1999 before the big housing price run-up, and you can't even buy a crummy condo now for what we paid, so there's nothing to be gained from downsizing. It's not a big house anyway -- about 1500 sf, pretty energy efficient and low maintenance. We use all the space in the house, and I have my studio set up in a way that's good for private students and my practicing.

We already cook a lot at home, are vegetarian, don't have cable, don't buy a lot of crap. Don't have a cleaning service or go go on expensive vacations. A few extravagances are our cats (they get premium cat food and regular vet visits -- but OTOH, they are healthy and happy), my piano lessons, my husband's book-buying and music-buying habits (he has a subscription to one of those mp3 services and also buys CDs), the silly smart phones -- but even all that together doesn't add up to all that much, and we've put a lot of thought into whether we really want those things or not (i.e., we're not just spending on them mindlessly).

I do agree that if I'm not burning myself out going to work every day while trying to do all the other things I'm doing, I will be able to be more defensive with our money, shop less at Whole Paycheck (it's extremely convenient because I walk by it on my way home from work), take care of more home maintenance myself, etc.

Anyway, I'm inching closer to getting out of there.

mahina

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Re: Quitting at 55 - yay or nay?
« Reply #26 on: June 20, 2013, 04:00:17 PM »
aloha ozzie and harriet
my husband and i quit our jobs and moved to hawaii when we were in our early 50s. never for one minute have i regretted that decision!

yes, we've had to find new ways to tweak our budget, yes we've had months where unplanned expenses gave us a headache, and yes we've taken some part-time jobs for a couple of years to pay for a vacation or get access to health insurance. we had less stashed than you do, and moved to this expensive place.

we had to get over defining ourselves by the work we do, and thinking we could buy stuff and pay it off later. we grow as much food as we can, in our wonderfully free time, and tailor our menus to what we have. we walk, dance, swim, play outside--free 'fitness'.

our friends and family who thought we were insane are now admiring our happy life. the downside is that most of the folks we love, and would love to share all this fun with, are still working. the conversations and activities often shared with very busy people are not now in our repertoire. we have new friends, of course, but we're not on track with our cohort, and that can feel a little odd at times.

if your husband isn't ready, maybe you can go on ahead and make the path more visible for him. but from what you've written, i'd say you're ready to shift away from a job-centered life. i remember that feeling, and the exquisite pleasure of leaving it behind. so very glad i didn't wait!

savingtofreedom

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Re: Quitting at 55 - yay or nay?
« Reply #27 on: June 20, 2013, 08:38:59 PM »
QUIT and enjoy the rest of your life.  I can understand how nervous this might make you but would it really be any different a couple of years from now?

Congratulations!!

MsSindy

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Re: Quitting at 55 - yay or nay?
« Reply #28 on: June 21, 2013, 09:24:29 AM »
Household money is like sports, it takes both offence and defence to win. If your hubby is playing the offence (i.e. earning money), and you're playing the defence (i.e. minimizing expenditures), that can be just as effective as both of you playing offence.

Not much of a sports fan myself, but I really like the offence/defence analogy.  Nicely said!

tooqk4u22

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Re: Quitting at 55 - yay or nay?
« Reply #29 on: June 21, 2013, 09:30:52 AM »
Thank you for all the great responses.

I don't know why I'm so squeamish about being more assertive at work, per StarryC's suggestion. I guess I hate asking them for favors and then having them expect me to be oh-so-grateful. Plus, I don't even really want to work there at all anymore, but the part-time thing would give me some continuity.

As far as our living expenses go, maybe I'm overestimating what we spend. I just looked at the numbers from this past year again, and it came out more in the low $50,000s, but I always like to round up a bit just in case. We do live in an expensive area, where stuff can cost a lot. We bought our house in 1999 before the big housing price run-up, and you can't even buy a crummy condo now for what we paid, so there's nothing to be gained from downsizing. It's not a big house anyway -- about 1500 sf, pretty energy efficient and low maintenance. We use all the space in the house, and I have my studio set up in a way that's good for private students and my practicing.

We already cook a lot at home, are vegetarian, don't have cable, don't buy a lot of crap. Don't have a cleaning service or go go on expensive vacations. A few extravagances are our cats (they get premium cat food and regular vet visits -- but OTOH, they are healthy and happy), my piano lessons, my husband's book-buying and music-buying habits (he has a subscription to one of those mp3 services and also buys CDs), the silly smart phones -- but even all that together doesn't add up to all that much, and we've put a lot of thought into whether we really want those things or not (i.e., we're not just spending on them mindlessly).

I do agree that if I'm not burning myself out going to work every day while trying to do all the other things I'm doing, I will be able to be more defensive with our money, shop less at Whole Paycheck (it's extremely convenient because I walk by it on my way home from work), take care of more home maintenance myself, etc.

Anyway, I'm inching closer to getting out of there.

Only you can decide but this post is excuse after excuse - suffering a bit from ICantItis - like any other addiction you have to want the change or it won't happen.

OzzieandHarriet

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Re: Quitting at 55 - yay or nay?
« Reply #30 on: June 21, 2013, 09:07:38 PM »
Umm ... excuse after excuse for what? (How old are you, if I may ask?)

mstryin

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Re: Quitting at 55 - yay or nay?
« Reply #31 on: June 22, 2013, 09:05:26 PM »
You have a mil in the bank - which you won't need to touch for some time since you're living on less than your husband makes anyway.  I agree with the others, do the math - then actually believe the numbers and act accordingly. 

Random

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Re: Quitting at 55 - yay or nay?
« Reply #32 on: June 23, 2013, 08:25:45 AM »
Perhaps you need to shift your thinking a bit.  What I read in your post is that you want to explore a different part of your self - your love of music, which can also possibly generate some income.  That doesn't sound like "quitting at 55".  You do have the financial wherewithal to do this, especially if your husband will continue to earn for several years. 

Ishmael

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Re: Quitting at 55 - yay or nay?
« Reply #33 on: June 27, 2013, 11:07:42 AM »
Going to throw another idea at you: increase the telecommuting time to the maximum your job will allow.

Then, get your work done efficiently. Your motivation will be that when your work is done, you practice your music. Maybe 30 minutes work, 30 minutes music.

Heck, you could even do some of the freelance work you're talking about, or exercise, or whatever.

Is this unethical? Not at all - you're doing all of the work that you're being tasked with and paid to do, and you're available during the work hours they require you, in case they need to contact you about something work related. It's not different than what you're doing now from your employer's POV - you mentioned the alternative is to rot away in your cubicle for the rest of the day. How is that ethically better than continue to improve yourself as a human being?

So basically, see if you can reengineer the terms of your employment while respecting your job responsibilities.

Just an idea.

OzzieandHarriet

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Re: Quitting at 55 - yay or nay?
« Reply #34 on: June 28, 2013, 08:50:43 PM »
May I call you Ishmael? :)

I don't think that idea is workable -- it would not feel good at all. That's not the expectation for telecommuters (though I'm sure most of them goof off at least somewhat at home).

I am about 99.99% sure I'm going to hand in my resignation next week. I took this week off to do something else I really wanted to do, and it has reinforced the fact that I'm ready to move on. So we'll see what happens.

ep114

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Re: Quitting at 55 - yay or nay?
« Reply #35 on: June 28, 2013, 10:19:12 PM »
As many posters have noted, it sounds like the numbers work, it's just taking the leap that's daunting (I think i'll feel the same way when I have enough to move on from my current job)
What if you spent some time developing your plan for what you want to do next? I think it might not feel like you were just quitting, but moving onto a new job- even if it's something that doesn't pay much.
Best of luck to you! And congratulations- This is what you've been working so hard for.

OzzieandHarriet

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Re: Quitting at 55 - yay or nay?
« Reply #36 on: July 06, 2013, 07:40:15 AM »
Gave notice this week!

Rural

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Re: Quitting at 55 - yay or nay?
« Reply #37 on: July 06, 2013, 07:45:26 AM »
Congratulations!

Zamboni

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Re: Quitting at 55 - yay or nay?
« Reply #38 on: July 06, 2013, 08:00:28 AM »
Yay!  It will work out for you.  All of my family (except me) are professional musicians, and it can be tedious and a struggle, but if you don't give up, then you can make some money.  Congratulations!

Quote
I don't know why I'm so squeamish about being more assertive at work, per StarryC's suggestion. I guess I hate asking them for favors and then having them expect me to be oh-so-grateful.

I am worried that you have these types of thought patterns, although they are especially common in women.  Please value your work more!  You were one of their most efficient employees! 

To make any money in music, you have to value your work and stand firm on what you think your time is worth.  My I recommend the excellent book Ask for It by Linda Babcock and Sara Laschever?  It has helped me tremendously not only in getting paid closer to what my work is worth, but also in negotiating for other things in my life.  The last part of the book has a set of exercises to help you practice negotiating. 

Good luck!

MsSindy

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Re: Quitting at 55 - yay or nay?
« Reply #39 on: July 06, 2013, 09:36:43 AM »
Congratulations!!

totoro

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Re: Quitting at 55 - yay or nay?
« Reply #40 on: July 10, 2013, 09:17:44 AM »
Gave notice this week!

Hey - great!  Enjoy your time :)

OzzieandHarriet

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Re: Quitting at 55 - yay or nay?
« Reply #41 on: July 12, 2013, 07:11:08 PM »
Thanks -- the good news is that they aren't interested in keeping me on part time, so I'm really free now! I can freelance if I want to -- or not.

Coup

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Re: Quitting at 55 - yay or nay?
« Reply #42 on: July 15, 2013, 12:40:49 PM »
Congrats!! I enjoyed reading this thread for the first time right now, and was hoping that this is how it would end :)

Ishmael

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Re: Quitting at 55 - yay or nay?
« Reply #43 on: July 17, 2013, 08:22:21 AM »
Congratulations! I had been watching your decision struggle with interest. I am quite confident you'll end up being much happier. All the best in the future!

steveo

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Re: Quitting at 55 - yay or nay?
« Reply #44 on: July 17, 2013, 04:29:49 PM »
No I don't think it would be stupid at all.

Finances aside (from my perspective you are way way able to retire, but ignore that)...

You only live once. There is NO point going in to a miserable job every day. Just none. I mean - I take that back - there is, if it gets you where you want to be, fast. You can hack it for a few years if it means you can then do what you want.

But - I don't mean to be rude here - you're 55. You have 20 years, or less, of 'full activity' left - just say. You will NEVER get that time again, guaranteed! 100% absolute fact. You've done well, you've got a nice stache. I'm sure you can cut spending by $1k a month if it allows you - get this - 20 years of worry-free fun, outdoors, walking, reading, doing *whatever you damn well please*!

This is exactly how I feel. I think you can cut expenses significantly as well.

steveo

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Re: Quitting at 55 - yay or nay?
« Reply #45 on: July 17, 2013, 04:34:34 PM »
Good to hear that you quit.

OzzieandHarriet

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Re: Quitting at 55 - yay or nay?
« Reply #46 on: July 19, 2013, 06:27:16 AM »
Thank you for all the good wishes.

It still feels rather scary, but also exciting because of all the possibilities that I will be free to follow. And I do think we will be able to cut our spending a bit now that I will have more time and energy to devote to that.

(Also getting antsy to get out of there. I keep expecting some deus ex machina to come down and chain me to my cubicle against my will before I can make my escape.)
« Last Edit: July 19, 2013, 06:35:34 AM by OzzieandHarriet »

footenote

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Re: Quitting at 55 - yay or nay?
« Reply #47 on: July 19, 2013, 07:18:07 AM »
Again, congrats! When is your last day?

OzzieandHarriet

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Re: Quitting at 55 - yay or nay?
« Reply #48 on: August 03, 2013, 07:22:45 PM »
My last day was yesterday! I'm out, for better or worse. But I think it will be better.

 

Wow, a phone plan for fifteen bucks!