Epic FU money stories

[LennStar]

I have made a point of asking 'dumb' questions in meetings in front of the new hire/fresh outs so they can see how it works and it is welcome (at least I hope that was what they took away).  Also I have spoken to some of then about personal finance and recommended mmm.  "I want you to feel financially secure so you can tell me I am full of shit when I am without fear of being fired and broke."

Isn't it strange that there are so many people on the internets who like to tell everyone how shit they are but nearly nobody in real life?
Maybe that are all those who can't say it in real life for this reason and they woudl stop if they would be FI?

Yeah right, but I can dream, okay?

[dhc]

Not really epic, but after an executive not in my chain of command scheduled a meeting with me to discuss his disapproval of some actions he imagined but that I did not actually take, refused to listen when I told him as much, and patronizingly lectured me on how my actions could affect others in the organization, I emailed him and the CEO (his boss) some direct feedback explaining that he was out of line and requesting any future feedback be direct and actionable. Welp...we'll see how it goes over.

Please come back and tell us how it goes.

Both my boss and the CEO backed me up, exec in question seems to realize be overreached despite a non-apology, and hopefully that's the last I have to think about it!

My take is actually that, as someone else mentioned upthread, most people tend to respect you for having a spine and being politely assertive in such circumstances, which seems to be what happened here.

[Ladychips]

Not really epic, but after an executive not in my chain of command scheduled a meeting with me to discuss his disapproval of some actions he imagined but that I did not actually take, refused to listen when I told him as much, and patronizingly lectured me on how my actions could affect others in the organization, I emailed him and the CEO (his boss) some direct feedback explaining that he was out of line and requesting any future feedback be direct and actionable. Welp...we'll see how it goes over.

Please come back and tell us how it goes.

Both my boss and the CEO backed me up, exec in question seems to realize be overreached despite a non-apology, and hopefully that's the last I have to think about it!

My take is actually that, as someone else mentioned upthread, most people tend to respect you for having a spine and being politely assertive in such circumstances, which seems to be what happened here.

Very nice! Thanks for following up!

[gooki]

My wife exercised our fuck you money to perfection this week.

She applied for a senior business partner role at her current employer.  It's a promotion in paper and dollars only as she's been doing the senior role for sometime already just without the recognition/reward. My wife's well respected by the managers she coaches, a great mentor to the younger staff in their team, and trusted by her team mates

She went through the whole interview process with her reporting manager (not one of the ones she coaches) and a couple of other staff, waited a couple of weeks, and was then told nope, no senior position for you, were hiring someone external...

Update time. Because of our fuck you money, my wife has been picky about her next role... Now shes just signed up with a new organization at a higher level position, better salary and doing more of what she loves and less of what she doesn't.

[LennStar]

My wife exercised our fuck you money to perfection this week.

She applied for a senior business partner role at her current employer.  It's a promotion in paper and dollars only as she's been doing the senior role for sometime already just without the recognition/reward. My wife's well respected by the managers she coaches, a great mentor to the younger staff in their team, and trusted by her team mates

She went through the whole interview process with her reporting manager (not one of the ones she coaches) and a couple of other staff, waited a couple of weeks, and was then told nope, no senior position for you, were hiring someone external...

Update time. Because of our fuck you money, my wife has been picky about her next role... Now shes just signed up with a new organization at a higher level position, better salary and doing more of what she loves and less of what she doesn't.

Sounds like a good deal to me!

[Dicey]

My wife exercised our fuck you money to perfection this week.

She applied for a senior business partner role at her current employer.  It's a promotion in paper and dollars only as she's been doing the senior role for sometime already just without the recognition/reward. My wife's well respected by the managers she coaches, a great mentor to the younger staff in their team, and trusted by her team mates

She went through the whole interview process with her reporting manager (not one of the ones she coaches) and a couple of other staff, waited a couple of weeks, and was then told nope, no senior position for you, were hiring someone external...

Update time. Because of our fuck you money, my wife has been picky about her next role... Now shes just signed up with a new organization at a higher level position, better salary and doing more of what she loves and less of what she doesn't.

Has she given notice yet? I want to hear how that went :-)

[Loren Ver]

My wife exercised our fuck you money to perfection this week.

She applied for a senior business partner role at her current employer.  It's a promotion in paper and dollars only as she's been doing the senior role for sometime already just without the recognition/reward. My wife's well respected by the managers she coaches, a great mentor to the younger staff in their team, and trusted by her team mates

She went through the whole interview process with her reporting manager (not one of the ones she coaches) and a couple of other staff, waited a couple of weeks, and was then told nope, no senior position for you, were hiring someone external...

Update time. Because of our fuck you money, my wife has been picky about her next role... Now shes just signed up with a new organization at a higher level position, better salary and doing more of what she loves and less of what she doesn't.

Has she given notice yet? I want to hear how that went :-)

She turned in her resignation in the original post with no place to go (IIRC).  gooki cut the quote short. 

[dandarc]

My wife exercised our fuck you money to perfection this week.

She applied for a senior business partner role at her current employer.  It's a promotion in paper and dollars only as she's been doing the senior role for sometime already just without the recognition/reward. My wife's well respected by the managers she coaches, a great mentor to the younger staff in their team, and trusted by her team mates

She went through the whole interview process with her reporting manager (not one of the ones she coaches) and a couple of other staff, waited a couple of weeks, and was then told nope, no senior position for you, were hiring someone external...

Update time. Because of our fuck you money, my wife has been picky about her next role... Now shes just signed up with a new organization at a higher level position, better salary and doing more of what she loves and less of what she doesn't.

Has she given notice yet? I want to hear how that went :-)

She turned in her resignation in the original post with no place to go (IIRC).  gooki cut the quote short.

Goddamn is this badass - end of that story in gooki's words: "The managers response was 'oh? Do you have somewhere else to go?' and my wife cool as ice says 'no, I'm happy to go', spins round and exits the room."

[moof]

I have about two years left to hit my number, but things have been rough at work.  I am tired of having to manage my managers, among a great many other faults.

So after my wife realized just how unhappy I was she gave me the freedom to resign without getting anything lined up.  I told my manager today what I was thinking.  I gave him 48 hours to change my mind (i.e. come up with a viable plan to make things suck less) or he’ll get my official notice Friday.  I like most of the folks I work with, including him, but the company just is a basket-case that has broken my spirit.

FU money is a wonderful thing and this is what it's for!  Good job!

I ended up giving them till today (Monday) to finish discussing my minimum line in the stand for changing things.  Company policy is not bendable enough, so I signed my resignation later and slid it across the table.  I feel for the managers, I like both of them personally, but the company has driven me crazy.  2 weeks and I'm out of here.  Sad, but relieving.

[BicycleB]

I have about two years left to hit my number, but things have been rough at work.  I am tired of having to manage my managers, among a great many other faults.

So after my wife realized just how unhappy I was she gave me the freedom to resign without getting anything lined up.  I told my manager today what I was thinking.  I gave him 48 hours to change my mind (i.e. come up with a viable plan to make things suck less) or he’ll get my official notice Friday.  I like most of the folks I work with, including him, but the company just is a basket-case that has broken my spirit.

FU money is a wonderful thing and this is what it's for!  Good job!

I ended up giving them till today (Monday) to finish discussing my minimum line in the stand for changing things.  Company policy is not bendable enough, so I signed my resignation later and slid it across the table.  I feel for the managers, I like both of them personally, but the company has driven me crazy.  2 weeks and I'm out of here.  Sad, but relieving.

Congrats, @moof! Best wishes in your new adventures. You've crossed the Rubicon!

[CowboyAndIndian]

My wife exercised our fuck you money to perfection this week.

She applied for a senior business partner role at her current employer.  It's a promotion in paper and dollars only as she's been doing the senior role for sometime already just without the recognition/reward. My wife's well respected by the managers she coaches, a great mentor to the younger staff in their team, and trusted by her team mates

She went through the whole interview process with her reporting manager (not one of the ones she coaches) and a couple of other staff, waited a couple of weeks, and was then told nope, no senior position for you, were hiring someone external...

Update time. Because of our fuck you money, my wife has been picky about her next role... Now shes just signed up with a new organization at a higher level position, better salary and doing more of what she loves and less of what she doesn't.

Really EPIC FU!

Congrats to your wife.

[CowboyAndIndian]

I ended up giving them till today (Monday) to finish discussing my minimum line in the stand for changing things.  Company policy is not bendable enough, so I signed my resignation later and slid it across the table.  I feel for the managers, I like both of them personally, but the company has driven me crazy.  2 weeks and I'm out of here.  Sad, but relieving.

Way to go @moof.

I've resigned once without a job lined up due to a toxic boss. Looking back, it was the best decision I made. It was wonderful for my mental health.

I spent a couple of months at home decompressing, then found another job (Story somewhere in the archives of this thread)

[LetsRetireYoung]

I'm not sure if my story is epic, but it definitely puts the "F" in "FU" hahaha

I spent 11.5 years working for Amazon, from a lowly warehouse temp to being a financial analyst at one of their biggest warehouses in North America. (Amazing what you can do if you transfer a lot, learn Excel, and are stubborn.) And yes, every negative story you heard about the company is true in some form or another. (I.e. it's not the warehouse workers that pee in bottles - it's the van drivers. Etc...)

Aaaanyway, the last 5 years were just part of my big plan: get a work transfer to another country, become a permanent resident of that country, squirrel away enough money to lean-FIRE, and then pull the plug. When I transferred from Seattle to Toronto, I had to take a 48% cut (yes, forty-eight percent) to my total compensation. That sucked - a lot - but it was a stepping stone to my final objective.

After yet another re-org, almost everyone (except me lol) transferred away, and we ended up with a lot of external hires who didn't quite know what the job entailed, so they doubled down on pointless paperwork, etc. Some of my newer, less experienced colleagues would take it all seriously, to the point where they would log on and work on Sundays (!!!) just to get the meaningless Monday reports done ahead of time. They would also keep bridging the bridges to the weekly bridges allll the way until Thursday. That was not healthy, and there were many other such incidents.

I finally got my Canadian PR (permanent residency) 2 years after moving here. That meant I no longer needed the job: before that, I was on a work permit, which meant "lose the job = go back home." :( I'd also used my financial skillz to handpick a portfolio of vastly undervalued stocks in May 2020... (Energy, retail shopping, cruise ships, etc) After I cashed in all my AMZN stock for my beat-up stock portfolio, it went up 197% the following year. Sooo, money was no longer the issue, either. :)

I think that toward the very end, my bosses realized I might not stay there forever. They finally got me my long-awaited promotion. It was just a 10% raise in total compensation. :-/ That's not too bad in and of itself, but that still meant I'd be making 43% less than when I was a lower-ranked office clerk back in Seattle 2 years prior.

Soooo, a week after they sent out the big and fancy promotion email, I sent them my 2-week notice LOLOLOLOL. In the email, I made it clear that my motivation wasn't spite or anything of the sort - it was just money, plain and simple. The bosses did not reply (aside from a curt acknowledgement), so I can only imagine how much my insubordination pissed them off. :) I finally received a very dry and formal "Thank you for all your hard work" reply from them at the very end. I'm a bit sad that I'll never know just how much my "FU" email embarrassed them, but on the upside, my imagination can keep coming up with different hilarious scenarios. :)

[zolotiyeruki]

I suspect the rigid bureaucracy and HR processes in the company have more to do with your only-10% raise and your bosses' silence than any intent the bosses may have had.

[ysette9]

Nice work creating a plan and then executing it to get what you want in life! Bravo.

[LetsRetireYoung]

I suspect the rigid bureaucracy and HR processes in the company have more to do with your only-10% raise and your bosses' silence than any intent the bosses may have had.

To be fair, I did not blame my bosses - they were only the symptom of the company's many failings. I do, however, blame my immediate boss (a typical MBA cultist who never even bothered to install the Excel ODBC connections in 3 years of working there...) for lying. He'd claimed he'd promoted lots of people under him (turned out that wasn't true), and he kept dangling a carrot in front of me, saying I "won't believe how huge the raise is gonna be! :) " It later turned out that he had no idea what it would actually be LOL - compared to his grandiose promises, 10% seemed rather on the low side. Ahhh, corporate world...

Nice work creating a plan and then executing it to get what you want in life! Bravo.

Thanks, eh. :) I like to think of myself as a strategist. Most people live paycheck to paycheck and plan 2 weeks out. I plan 5-10 years at a time. I actually do make literal 5-year plans for myself - I write them down, then document my progress, etc. You can take a boy from the Soviet Union... :P

[bmjohnson35]

Congrats! It's so rewarding to develop and successfully execute a plan.   

I certainly don't miss the insidious corporate "machine".   

[LetsRetireYoung]

Congrats! It's so rewarding to develop and successfully execute a plan.   

Thanks. :) And yeah, that was such an indescribable feeling, driving back home after turning in my badge and my laptop, knowing that not only did I complete my 5-year plan ahead of time, but that I also managed to beat the system by retiring 30 years ahead of time. This is what the Ocean's Eleven crew must have felt like after they pulled off the heist hahahaha

[gaja]

Congrats! It's so rewarding to develop and successfully execute a plan.   

Thanks. :) And yeah, that was such an indescribable feeling, driving back home after turning in my badge and my laptop, knowing that not only did I complete my 5-year plan ahead of time, but that I also managed to beat the system by retiring 30 years ahead of time. This is what the Ocean's Eleven crew must have felt like after they pulled off the heist hahahaha

What are the highlights for the updated 5-year plan?

[Anon-E-Mouze]

Okay, this isn't technically an "FU money" story, but it is epic, it involves quitting a job, and there was an "FU", so I think it fits.

When I was a teenager (in the early 80s recession), my dad was working for a small consulting firm that was struggling, and layoffs were looming. Thankfully, my dad had both solid $$ in the bank and had started networking for a new job early on, so he was okay. He gave 4 weeks' notice of his departure to his boss, who learned that my dad was moving on to a big, financially sound consulting firm. And the boss was NOT happy about this because he was stretched thin financially, didn't have a solid lead on a job yet, and was generally an envious and ineffective people-manager.

Until the economic downturn, the company's coffee/tea lady had done her rounds at the office with a company-supplied stock of Peek Frean cookies. We happened to love Peek Freans in our house. They were the favorite cookie of my paternal grandmother, who had lived with us for about 5 years until had died (about 6 months before this story takes place).

On my dad's last day at work, he brought several large boxes of Peek Freans to the office, and gave them to the coffee/tea lady to distribute on her rounds that day. When she arrived at my dad's manager's office, he took a couple of cookies and asked, "Has the company reinstated cookies?" She said, "No. X brought them as a thank you gift for the office for his last day at work."  The manager took the cookie he was about to pop into his mouth, flung it into the garbage can and growled, "I'm not going to eat that F... B..d's cookies."

Well, of course, the coffee/tea lady told my dad this story. But he was a gentleman and he said something like "Many people are feeling stress about the company's future so I understand why someone might act out of frustration."

Fast forward a few months and my dad gets a call from a colleague at his former employer - one of the biggest companies in my dad's industry (BigCo). He was calling to ask my dad if he had any views on my dad's former manager at the small consulting firm, who was about to be offered a job if the reference checks went well.

My dad wasn't comfortable saying something positive (because the cookie-throwing behaviour was consistent with his former manager's general course of conduct) but he also didn't want to torpedo the job either. So he said, "I didn't work with Y for very long, so I'm not in a position to provide feedback."

A few days later, the former colleague from BigCo called back. He said, "I know you and I know you go out of your way to say something positive about people. So your silence concerns me. We are about to hire this guy for a very senior managerial role and I need to know if there are reasons for concern."

So my dad told him the cookie story. And his former colleague said, "I'm not hiring anyone that petty and temperamental."

Moral of the story: Don't toss your cookies in front of other people.

[Fru-Gal]

Thanks. :) And yeah, that was such an indescribable feeling, driving back home after turning in my badge and my laptop, knowing that not only did I complete my 5-year plan ahead of time, but that I also managed to beat the system by retiring 30 years ahead of time. This is what the Ocean's Eleven crew must have felt like after they pulled off the heist hahahaha

Thanks for the inspiring story. Congrats!

[DadJokes]

Okay, this isn't technically an "FU money" story, but it is epic, it involves quitting a job, and there was an "FU", so I think it fits.

How dumb was that manager to use your dad as a reference? Even if he didn't think your dad knew about the cookie incident, it sounds like there wasn't much goodwill between them.

[markbike528CBX]

Moral of the story: Don't toss your cookies in front of other people.

Yes, be more discreet when you "toss your cookies" or "reverse drink" or "talk to Ralph on the big white telephone"   :-)

[Blackeagle]

How dumb was that manager to use your dad as a reference? Even if he didn't think your dad knew about the cookie incident, it sounds like there wasn't much goodwill between them.

The manager may not have used him as a reference.  The guy at BigCo was a former colleague, so he may have just been using his contacts to check the manager out, beyond any provided references. 

[markbike528CBX]

Okay, this isn't technically an "FU money" story, but it is epic, it involves quitting a job, and there was an "FU", so I think it fits.

How dumb was that manager to use your dad as a reference? Even if he didn't think your dad knew about the cookie incident, it sounds like there wasn't much goodwill between them.

I had an potential in-house interviewee/hire, and asked a reference (also in-house) and got the response "I wouldn't touch [person X] with a ten foot pole".   
Slimmed down potential interview list real fast.  If you can't get your references to lie or at least shade the truth for you, they shouldn't be references.

[Adventine]

How dumb was that manager to use your dad as a reference? Even if he didn't think your dad knew about the cookie incident, it sounds like there wasn't much goodwill between them.

The manager may not have used him as a reference.  The guy at BigCo was a former colleague, so he may have just been using his contacts to check the manager out, beyond any provided references.

I agree, this is the more likely scenario.

[Anon-E-Mouze]

Moral of the story: Don't toss your cookies in front of other people.

Yes, be more discreet when you "toss your cookies" or "reverse drink" or "talk to Ralph on the big white telephone"   :-)

The manager didn't give my dad's name as a reference. The hiring manager at BigCo called my dad because he knew that my dad had worked with the guy, and because the hiring manager trusted my dad's judgment.

[SwordGuy]

For when you are obligated to give a reference for someone, and you want to be honest, but not get in trouble with your relative or friend for telling the truth:

That's when you need the Lexicon of Inconspicuously Ambiguous Referrals (LIAR).

For a chronically absent employee	A man like him is hard to find.
For a dishonest employee	He's an unbelievable worker.
For a lazy employee	You would indeed be fortunate to get this person to work for you.
For the office drunk	Every hour with him was a happy hour.
For a chronically absent employee	It seemed her career was just taking off.
For a dishonest employee	Her true ability was deceiving.
For a stupid employee	I most enthusiastically recommend this candidate with no qualifications whatsoever.
For the office drunk	He generally found him loaded with work to do.
For an employee who is not worth further consideration as a job candidate	All in all, I cannot say enough good things about this candidate or recommend him too highly.
For an employee who is so unproductive that the job is better left unfilled	I can assure you that no person would be better for the job.
For a lazy employee	He could not care less about the number of hours he has to put in.
For an employee who is not worth further consideration as a job candidate	I would urge you to waste no time in making this candidate an offer of employment.
For a stupid employee	There is nothing you can teach a man like him.

[Adventine]

@SwordGuy  thank you for my laugh out loud moment of the day.

[Chris Pascale]

@SwordGuy  thank you for my laugh out loud moment of the day.

AGreed. I'm glad it's at the top of the page so more people will see it.

[SwordGuy]

LIAR has been around since the 1980s (at least). 

[Sibley]

Re informal references.... I worked at company A. Left there, was working at company B. Company B is hiring, and a guy from company A applies. The manager asked if I knew the guy. Yes, I did. Couldn't speak to his work. But I could speak to the restraining order that one of the women in that department had to take out against him.

Your actions have a way of following you.

[semiretired31]

Not sure this counts as epic. But, I spent the Fall soccer season coaching junior high girls from 3-5 for 9 weeks. Big commitment away from my job and wouldn’t have had the stones to ask to do it if I wasn’t in the position I’m in. Added bonus, actually made a little money for my time.

[LetsRetireYoung]

Congrats! It's so rewarding to develop and successfully execute a plan.   

Thanks. :) And yeah, that was such an indescribable feeling, driving back home after turning in my badge and my laptop, knowing that not only did I complete my 5-year plan ahead of time, but that I also managed to beat the system by retiring 30 years ahead of time. This is what the Ocean's Eleven crew must have felt like after they pulled off the heist hahahaha

What are the highlights for the updated 5-year plan?

In no particular order... :)
1. Sell my Shoreline, WA (just north of Seattle) condo after the subway station right next to it gets completed in 2024.
2. Become a published sci-fi author. (Actual book/short story publications, not Kindle.)
3. Obtain Canadian citizenship (currently a permanent resident)
4. Become a snowbird and visit 3 different continents.
5. Continue enjoying the lean-FIRE life. :)

[Apples]

What I really want to know, what did your boss say when you told him you were quitting after all, a few weeks later?

He was a big fan of phrases/sayings, the midwesterner he was.
So I told him I wasn't impressed by his batting average.
And that a blind man could have been batting better than his attempts to get me anything bigger.
And that I had to take care of myself, my family, and my health (mental in this case).
^all 3 were verbatim phrases he'd say all the time.
It left him gobsmacked. He tried to say something, 3 seconds of incoherent mumbling, and then he put out his hand and said he wished me all the best. He acknowledged at my leaving lunch that it would be hard to replace me. 
I moved to a building right across from my old workplace, and sometimes I have to go to his department for a meeting with engineers there, and end up meeting him. But he's been polite and cordial since (he got promoted).

Another bonus of being a Mustachian and ex-Boglehead is that at my current employer, I complained about our crappy 401k. The owners told me to write up a paper showing proof, which convinced them. Ended up moving the 401k to Guideline, reducing employer fees/costs by 77%.

@jinga nation I'd like to know how you determined what the employer fees/costs were on each plan.  Is there a specific document to find it on?  I ask because I want to convince my boss to change our SIMPLE IRA from Raymond James/MFS to Fidelity or somewhere similar.  RJ/MFS have taken away the sales charge when I buy my A shares each month, but the quarterly charges have increased to my account.  I have access to our company's books (I'm sort of HR, though someone else does the retirement contributions), and to the company's side of the retirement accounts.  I just need to know what to look for.

To note, I work on a family-owned farm, with a bunch of employees but my boss is my Dad, and the "other person" who handles retirement contributions is my Mom.  So, easy to access the information if I know what I'm looking for.  I've looked before, but they make it tricky to find such things.

[jinga nation]

What I really want to know, what did your boss say when you told him you were quitting after all, a few weeks later?

He was a big fan of phrases/sayings, the midwesterner he was.
So I told him I wasn't impressed by his batting average.
And that a blind man could have been batting better than his attempts to get me anything bigger.
And that I had to take care of myself, my family, and my health (mental in this case).
^all 3 were verbatim phrases he'd say all the time.
It left him gobsmacked. He tried to say something, 3 seconds of incoherent mumbling, and then he put out his hand and said he wished me all the best. He acknowledged at my leaving lunch that it would be hard to replace me. 
I moved to a building right across from my old workplace, and sometimes I have to go to his department for a meeting with engineers there, and end up meeting him. But he's been polite and cordial since (he got promoted).

Another bonus of being a Mustachian and ex-Boglehead is that at my current employer, I complained about our crappy 401k. The owners told me to write up a paper showing proof, which convinced them. Ended up moving the 401k to Guideline, reducing employer fees/costs by 77%.

@jinga nation I'd like to know how you determined what the employer fees/costs were on each plan.  Is there a specific document to find it on?  I ask because I want to convince my boss to change our SIMPLE IRA from Raymond James/MFS to Fidelity or somewhere similar.  RJ/MFS have taken away the sales charge when I buy my A shares each month, but the quarterly charges have increased to my account.  I have access to our company's books (I'm sort of HR, though someone else does the retirement contributions), and to the company's side of the retirement accounts.  I just need to know what to look for.

To note, I work on a family-owned farm, with a bunch of employees but my boss is my Dad, and the "other person" who handles retirement contributions is my Mom.  So, easy to access the information if I know what I'm looking for.  I've looked before, but they make it tricky to find such things.

Asked my employer's plan admin to find out the 401k plan provider's annual plan admin fees, record keeping/admin/trustee/custodial activities, average investment expense ratio, annual advisor fee, advisory expenses, first year plan costs, loan/distribution fees, and find out which of these are employer paid and which are borne by employee. Use these to come up with a gross ER and effective annual per participant cost. And ask the same questions to the prospects.

[Apples]

What I really want to know, what did your boss say when you told him you were quitting after all, a few weeks later?

He was a big fan of phrases/sayings, the midwesterner he was.
So I told him I wasn't impressed by his batting average.
And that a blind man could have been batting better than his attempts to get me anything bigger.
And that I had to take care of myself, my family, and my health (mental in this case).
^all 3 were verbatim phrases he'd say all the time.
It left him gobsmacked. He tried to say something, 3 seconds of incoherent mumbling, and then he put out his hand and said he wished me all the best. He acknowledged at my leaving lunch that it would be hard to replace me. 
I moved to a building right across from my old workplace, and sometimes I have to go to his department for a meeting with engineers there, and end up meeting him. But he's been polite and cordial since (he got promoted).

Another bonus of being a Mustachian and ex-Boglehead is that at my current employer, I complained about our crappy 401k. The owners told me to write up a paper showing proof, which convinced them. Ended up moving the 401k to Guideline, reducing employer fees/costs by 77%.

@jinga nation I'd like to know how you determined what the employer fees/costs were on each plan.  Is there a specific document to find it on?  I ask because I want to convince my boss to change our SIMPLE IRA from Raymond James/MFS to Fidelity or somewhere similar.  RJ/MFS have taken away the sales charge when I buy my A shares each month, but the quarterly charges have increased to my account.  I have access to our company's books (I'm sort of HR, though someone else does the retirement contributions), and to the company's side of the retirement accounts.  I just need to know what to look for.

To note, I work on a family-owned farm, with a bunch of employees but my boss is my Dad, and the "other person" who handles retirement contributions is my Mom.  So, easy to access the information if I know what I'm looking for.  I've looked before, but they make it tricky to find such things.

Asked my employer's plan admin to find out the 401k plan provider's annual plan admin fees, record keeping/admin/trustee/custodial activities, average investment expense ratio, annual advisor fee, advisory expenses, first year plan costs, loan/distribution fees, and find out which of these are employer paid and which are borne by employee. Use these to come up with a gross ER and effective annual per participant cost. And ask the same questions to the prospects.

Thanks.  I was hoping most of this would be on some special form. Looks like I'll be digging for it.

[jinga nation]

What I really want to know, what did your boss say when you told him you were quitting after all, a few weeks later?

He was a big fan of phrases/sayings, the midwesterner he was.
So I told him I wasn't impressed by his batting average.
And that a blind man could have been batting better than his attempts to get me anything bigger.
And that I had to take care of myself, my family, and my health (mental in this case).
^all 3 were verbatim phrases he'd say all the time.
It left him gobsmacked. He tried to say something, 3 seconds of incoherent mumbling, and then he put out his hand and said he wished me all the best. He acknowledged at my leaving lunch that it would be hard to replace me. 
I moved to a building right across from my old workplace, and sometimes I have to go to his department for a meeting with engineers there, and end up meeting him. But he's been polite and cordial since (he got promoted).

Another bonus of being a Mustachian and ex-Boglehead is that at my current employer, I complained about our crappy 401k. The owners told me to write up a paper showing proof, which convinced them. Ended up moving the 401k to Guideline, reducing employer fees/costs by 77%.

@jinga nation I'd like to know how you determined what the employer fees/costs were on each plan.  Is there a specific document to find it on?  I ask because I want to convince my boss to change our SIMPLE IRA from Raymond James/MFS to Fidelity or somewhere similar.  RJ/MFS have taken away the sales charge when I buy my A shares each month, but the quarterly charges have increased to my account.  I have access to our company's books (I'm sort of HR, though someone else does the retirement contributions), and to the company's side of the retirement accounts.  I just need to know what to look for.

To note, I work on a family-owned farm, with a bunch of employees but my boss is my Dad, and the "other person" who handles retirement contributions is my Mom.  So, easy to access the information if I know what I'm looking for.  I've looked before, but they make it tricky to find such things.

Asked my employer's plan admin to find out the 401k plan provider's annual plan admin fees, record keeping/admin/trustee/custodial activities, average investment expense ratio, annual advisor fee, advisory expenses, first year plan costs, loan/distribution fees, and find out which of these are employer paid and which are borne by employee. Use these to come up with a gross ER and effective annual per participant cost. And ask the same questions to the prospects.

Thanks.  I was hoping most of this would be on some special form. Looks like I'll be digging for it.

Had to do some digging, but found my post with the attachments: https://forum.mrmoneymustache.com/antimustachian-wall-of-shame-and-comedy/overheard-at-work-the-anti-antimustachian-edition/msg2522176/#msg2522176

[LennStar]

saying I "won't believe how huge the raise is gonna be! :) " It later turned out that he had no idea what it would actually be LOL - compared to his grandiose promises, 10% seemed rather on the low side.

Now, did you believe what you saw when you saw it or not?

[LetsRetireYoung]

saying I "won't believe how huge the raise is gonna be! :) " It later turned out that he had no idea what it would actually be LOL - compared to his grandiose promises, 10% seemed rather on the low side.

Now, did you believe what you saw when you saw it or not?

hahahaha - I'd had a sneaking suspicion that I'd get screwed, so I'd intentionally let my hopes down. (I just wanted to see what it was that I'd spent so many years chasing, before I finally quit. Something to cross of my list, you know?) So yes, I definitely believed it when I saw that moving up by a whole new level was a measly 10% raise. Cheapskates. :P

I haven't stayed in touch with them, but I suspect they had to hire 2 people to replace me. Perhaps more. ¯\_(ツ)_/¯ Getting 2-3 replacements has been the norm for me every time I switched teams or cities. Frupidity strikes again! ;)

[TomTX]

I'd like to know how you determined what the employer fees/costs were on each plan.  Is there a specific document to find it on?  I ask because I want to convince my boss to change our SIMPLE IRA from Raymond James/MFS to Fidelity or somewhere similar.  RJ/MFS have taken away the sales charge when I buy my A shares each month, but the quarterly charges have increased to my account.  I have access to our company's books (I'm sort of HR, though someone else does the retirement contributions), and to the company's side of the retirement accounts.  I just need to know what to look for.

Here you go.  $25 per participant per year, waived with $50k in assets.

https://investor.vanguard.com/small-business-retirement-plans/simple-ira

[Apples]

thank you @jinga nation ! 

[saguaro]

  Re informal references.... I worked at company A. Left there, was working at company B. Company B is hiring, and a guy from company A applies. The manager asked if I knew the guy. Yes, I did. Couldn't speak to his work. But I could speak to the restraining order that one of the women in that department had to take out against him.

Your actions have a way of following you.

Years ago, got a call asking for a reference for a guy that worked in our warehouse and left after a very short time, like 3-6 months.  I couldn't really say anything about his work since he was in the warehouse and I was in the office, completely different jobs.   When I explained this, the annoyed caller asked why then was I listed as a reference, apparently assuming I had agreed to be one.    I said "well, maybe because he had a massive crush on me, yeah that's probably it" which he did, he made no secret of it in spite of the fact I was married and the guys in the warehouse were telling him to cool it.   He didn't cross the line into restraining area territory though.

[accolay]

I've read this entire thread over a few weeks and thought I'd add my own little story for those who need some more material. Not epic, but FU worthy: I had options because I had cash. Long winded and you know mostly how it ends.

I knew little to nothing about money in my formative years except that having money was better than not having money. I had a couple of really broke experiences early on while in the military which eventually developed me into a saver. Prior to my discharge I had manged to save about two years plus of expenses and was planning on it helping out while I was in school.

After discharge I worked in a Far Away Land under a travel work visa, returned state-side, took the summer off then moved to The Big City and worked menial jobs in the autumn. My expenses were low, I owned my car and had no debt. I lived with some roommates and ate meals at home etc. etc.

I was involved in a long distance relationship at the time and was saving up for another long vacation before I started school in the spring semester. The jobs I had payed for all my living expenses, the entire trip and then some so I wouldn't have to touch the savings. A part-time second job was in retail.

If you've worked retail you know that the end of the year is big sale times. Staff is really needed from before Thanksgiving to after Christmas when all the returns come back and people spend gift cards. The FU savings gave me the option to stop working for December. I'd thought I'd either quit or be fired but I wasn't going to be there regardless. The manager wasn't remotely happy when I told her but kept me on to work when I came back- good help is hard to find.

And I spent the holidays in a Far Away Land in the warm and sun while the retail job was in the Cold White North.

Having that cash gave me many opportunities until after I graduated. I cannot remember hardship from the frugality required to save but I will always remember the security and experiences the savings provided me.

[BicycleB]

@accolay, sounds epic to me!

[jalich]

Hi all, I have an unexpected contribution to this thread.

I've been targeting 2/22/2022 as my retirement date for at least 6 years now. The date is getting terrifyingly close and happens to neatly coincide with a major project some friends are starting and would like my help with. This project is something I am pretty excited to work on and will be out of state for maybe 3 weeks, completely immersed in it and having a good time to boot.

With that as my previously-unknown-to-my-workplace background, I was talking with my boss just before Thanksgiving about a new project he wants me to lead. As he's going thru the details, it's apparent to me that the project will be ramping up right as I'm planning on ramping down. While I'm quite certain work will continue just fine without me I don't want to purposefully make things any harder than I have to. Fully prepared and fully expecting to turn this conversation into a retirement conversation, I tell him I'm interested in the project (because I am) but I'll be taking an extended time to help some friends in the spring and that might be a wrinkle on me leading this project. I tell him it's pretty important to me to help my friends, I need a break, the work will be fun, I'm approaching burnout, etc.

He asks how long am I going to be out and I tell him 2-3 months - again fully expecting it to be a way to segue this conversation into retirement planning. Because I'm taking this time one way or another. He doesn't even blink and immediately says "OK, you should do it. We'll figure it out."

Well shit. One one hand, I now have 3 uninterrupted months of vacation to cover 3 weeks of fun-work and the rest to just decompress a bit. All while being paid. On the other hand I now have a mild case of OMY and don't know what's going to happen when I return to work and I didn't really solve the how-do-I-retire "problem". It's not really a problem, but the only reason I was able to politely say "I'm not asking, I'm telling"  is having enough saved to be OK no matter the outcome.

I can't imagine asking for this much time off even a few years ago as it feels transgressive and might put a bump in my career path... but at this point I absolutely do not care about those things. We finally have enough money for the time we have left, and I'm prioritizing time. I still plan on retiring in 2022, just maybe a bit later than planned. My wife's contract runs to 2023, so there's no critical time pressure until then.


:)



tl;dr - was planning on quitting/retiring, got 3 months paid vacation instead, and will sort the job when I return.

[Dicey]

Wow!

[Rural]

We finally have enough money for the time we have left, and I'm prioritizing time.

And this is how it's done. Good for you.

[DaMa]

tl;dr - was planning on quitting/retiring, got 3 months paid vacation instead, and will sort the job when I return.

Epic indeed!  Congratulations!

[Wolfpack Mustachian]

tl;dr - was planning on quitting/retiring, got 3 months paid vacation instead, and will sort the job when I return.

This would also fit wonderfully under Mustachian People Problems :-). As they say, what a great problem to have!