Would you turn down the money?

[pnw_guy]

For context, I work in tech in the Seattle area and have a good job at a company I like. It has good perks, good work life balance, and I like the people on my team. Also, I feel like I'm moving up in the company (not on the fast track but getting raises and promotions). I'm also well paid.

Another tech company that I'm not 100% sure I love (I'll let you ponder which company that could be) is trying to recruit me. The pay alone would be a huge step up. At least $75K and perhaps up to $150K more per year.

While the pro of not even considering it is that I like my team and the people you work with can greatly impact your happiness. However, that's a lot of money being left on the table!!! I just think about how I could use it to reach FIRE faster. Plus, in the corporate world I could be laid off any time (though unlikely). So part of me feels like I need to take windfalls when I get them.

So, any advice on how to think about this decision? Would you turn down the money?

[bacchi]

Ha, I got a linkedin message today from the same company.

How close are you to FI?

[Metalcat]

If you are trying to reach FI faster, then yeah, it's silly not to consider it. But if it's more likely to result in you working just as long, but just amping up your spending, then it's not necessarily worth the risk.

The risk is relative though. You like your job, but how rare is the kind of job you have? Do you like it just because you have a good team and the work is interesting? Or do you like it because this is the one company that allows you to work the way you've always wanted to?

I turned down many much higher paying jobs while I was working because no one could offer what I had, most workplaces in my industry were miserable by comparison, and I was in no rush to stop working.

DH on the other hand works in an industry where he made 4 quick lateral moves over the course of 18 months because he knew it was that easy to find a really great fit on a really great project, so he just hopped around until he landed somewhere he was happy.

For me to turn down huge money offers made perfect sense. Losing what I had meant perhaps permanently damaging my ability to enjoy my career. For DH to pass up huge money just because he likes his current job would be insane, because it's the easiest thing in the world for him to find another great position.

So no one here can really answer this for you, it's entirely personal and depends on what you want your career to do for you.

[pnw_guy]

Ha, I got a linkedin message today from the same company.

How close are you to FI?

We're probably 3 years from lean FI. We got a late start (grad degrees) and have made a ton of progress in the past 2 years. Very early 30's.

[ChpBstrd]

Ha, I got a linkedin message today from the same company.

How close are you to FI?

We're probably 3 years from lean FI. We got a late start (grad degrees) and have made a ton of progress in the past 2 years. Very early 30's.

In terms of time, are you 3-4 years from FIRE at your current job and 2-3 years from FIRE at the prospective job? I.e. How much working time would you save by accepting the risks of a job that encroaches on your personal time, may have a toxic culture, produces products that harm people, etc?

If you were 1-2 years from FIRE, I would have said go for it. With your FU money the politics won't be as bothersome, you can just let them fire you after a year of refusing to answer emails or calls during nights and weekends, and if you actively destroy value while at the company that's great for humanity because the company I think you're talking about is actively destroying humanity.

[ender]

I just went through this process myself, taking a new tech job for a bit over $150k more comp.

The comp increase was how I justified taking the risk.

I don't know what you make now or how meaningful $150k would be to you.

What you could do is interview and turn them down unless they hit the threshold that is enough to make the risk worthwhile. That's kinda what I did. I would have turned them down had they not hit my threshold to make the risk worth it.

[pnw_guy]

Ha, I got a linkedin message today from the same company.

How close are you to FI?

We're probably 3 years from lean FI. We got a late start (grad degrees) and have made a ton of progress in the past 2 years. Very early 30's.

In terms of time, are you 3-4 years from FIRE at your current job and 2-3 years from FIRE at the prospective job? I.e. How much working time would you save by accepting the risks of a job that encroaches on your personal time, may have a toxic culture, produces products that harm people, etc?

If you were 1-2 years from FIRE, I would have said go for it. With your FU money the politics won't be as bothersome, you can just let them fire you after a year of refusing to answer emails or calls during nights and weekends, and if you actively destroy value while at the company that's great for humanity because the company I think you're talking about is actively destroying humanity.

We're probably 3-4 years from lean FI. And by that I mean move to a cheaper cost of living area, pay cash for a house, and live on $40K.

I think this new job would take a minimum of 1 year off.

Should also add that I'm not sure we'll FIRE as soon as we get the chance. Might transition to part time or something.

[trollwithamustache]

how is all this compensation structured? guaranteed bonus or up in the air? RSUs you pay the tax on? Take a look at your marginal tax rate, and the new comp.  I see you are in WA so your income tax situation is much better than others for chasing W-2 income.

Also, if you are 3 years from Lean Fire and thinking about part time/ consulting, which job is more likely to support that transition?

[pnw_guy]

how is all this compensation structured? guaranteed bonus or up in the air? RSUs you pay the tax on? Take a look at your marginal tax rate, and the new comp.  I see you are in WA so your income tax situation is much better than others for chasing W-2 income.

Also, if you are 3 years from Lean Fire and thinking about part time/ consulting, which job is more likely to support that transition?

One advantage of this new job is that the rsu and bonus are pretty much the same as where I'm at now - the raise would almost entirely fall under base salary.

Not sure how open either company would be to part time work.

[ChpBstrd]

Should also add that I'm not sure we'll FIRE as soon as we get the chance. Might transition to part time or something.

This is an important bit of info. In your current job, you might go for a fatter version of FIRE and take 4y to get there. In the prospective job, let's plan for the worst and say you have to GTFO with a lean FIRE in 2 years. These outcomes are starkly different.

Let's say with the status quo, you consume the next 4y of your life working and retire on $50k/y. In the alternative option, you only use the next 2y of your life but retire on $40k/y. In that sense, it's a classic life-for-stuff tradeoff. But there are other considerations: Would both options require relocation to a LCOL area? Would you prefer to leave some room to cut spending if market returns in the future aren't good?

To add complexity - there's a chance this prospective job ain't that bad, you get to skip the lean FIRE anxiety, and you win back a year of your life. How well do you work with difficult people, assertively defend your work/life balance, and brush off work pressure? Is your FU money working for you, allowing you to let annoyances go, or might you be vulnerable to stress in this new gig? These questions might tip the scale.

[trollwithamustache]

Not sure how open either company would be to part time work.

ok, maybe not with either company, but would the job responsibilities be different? Different in a way you see being able to do part time for someone?

[pnw_guy]

Not sure how open either company would be to part time work.

ok, maybe not with either company, but would the job responsibilities be different? Different in a way you see being able to do part time for someone?

Nope. Job responsibilities are very similar.

[ender]

Also if you are in Seattle area and considering a major tech company, there's no reason at this point to not have a lot of insider information on it before accepting an offer (or turning it down if you get that far).

[bryan995]

Join blind if you have not already. You can find folks in that specific org/vertical and they can give you plenty of insights.

And whatever you do, do not join Amazon  .. hah.

[pnw_guy]

Should also add that I'm not sure we'll FIRE as soon as we get the chance. Might transition to part time or something.

This is an important bit of info. In your current job, you might go for a fatter version of FIRE and take 4y to get there. In the prospective job, let's plan for the worst and say you have to GTFO with a lean FIRE in 2 years. These outcomes are starkly different.

Let's say with the status quo, you consume the next 4y of your life working and retire on $50k/y. In the alternative option, you only use the next 2y of your life but retire on $40k/y. In that sense, it's a classic life-for-stuff tradeoff. But there are other considerations: Would both options require relocation to a LCOL area? Would you prefer to leave some room to cut spending if market returns in the future aren't good?

To add complexity - there's a chance this prospective job ain't that bad, you get to skip the lean FIRE anxiety, and you win back a year of your life. How well do you work with difficult people, assertively defend your work/life balance, and brush off work pressure? Is your FU money working for you, allowing you to let annoyances go, or might you be vulnerable to stress in this new gig? These questions might tip the scale.

Using our stash as FU money is something I'm really bad at. Should be able to blow things off easier than I currently do.

I think part of the problem is that our stash isn't huge - around 600k in liquid assets. While we could live a long time on our savings, we're still not FI and probably have 3-4 years to go for lean FI.

[ChpBstrd]

Should also add that I'm not sure we'll FIRE as soon as we get the chance. Might transition to part time or something.

This is an important bit of info. In your current job, you might go for a fatter version of FIRE and take 4y to get there. In the prospective job, let's plan for the worst and say you have to GTFO with a lean FIRE in 2 years. These outcomes are starkly different.

Let's say with the status quo, you consume the next 4y of your life working and retire on $50k/y. In the alternative option, you only use the next 2y of your life but retire on $40k/y. In that sense, it's a classic life-for-stuff tradeoff. But there are other considerations: Would both options require relocation to a LCOL area? Would you prefer to leave some room to cut spending if market returns in the future aren't good?

To add complexity - there's a chance this prospective job ain't that bad, you get to skip the lean FIRE anxiety, and you win back a year of your life. How well do you work with difficult people, assertively defend your work/life balance, and brush off work pressure? Is your FU money working for you, allowing you to let annoyances go, or might you be vulnerable to stress in this new gig? These questions might tip the scale.

Using our stash as FU money is something I'm really bad at. Should be able to blow things off easier than I currently do.

I think part of the problem is that our stash isn't huge - around 600k in liquid assets. While we could live a long time on our savings, we're still not FI and probably have 3-4 years to go for lean FI.

Hitting $1M was a big psychological milestone for me. Took a bad ass chewing from a boss back when I was at $450k and didn’t walk out, but now I’m not so sure.