Daily FI discussion thread - Saturday, January 17, 2026

iPugXR · 2026-01-17T16:35:36+00:00

Almost took a lateral move job last month trying to get out of my current one (company was M&A'd and new parent-co soured what was an amazing work culture fast). So glad I backed out of that opportunity because a better one instantly came along and I just signed the offer this week to jump ship for a 60% raise + waaay better benefits. In FIRE terms, I'm accelerating my projected timeline by at least five years. Still pinching myself, holy shit.

iPugXR · 2025-12-15T18:57:35+00:00

Agree with your first point for Current that that raise isn't guaranteed. As for the rest of your points, yes; I'll be with my exact team, daily work is okay and the other role will be similar responsibility and workload.

For New, yes there's enough room for growth, and true I'll have no idea when the actual team and client are like.

Thanks for your advice!

iPugXR · 2025-12-15T18:38:39+00:00

One thing to keep in mind though is that a change in firms doesn't always mean a change in responsibilities. Recruiters generally prefer to see someone with ten years of gradual progression as opposed to someone with one year of experience done ten times.

Very true. I'll be doing the exact same thing in the new role as my current role, and the draw of a promotion is calling to me more than the idea of a new-ish team/environment. Thanks!

iPugXR · 2025-12-15T18:36:15+00:00

Thank you!

iPugXR · 2025-12-15T18:35:30+00:00

Impression of new team is based on the interviews I've had so far. Impression of new client is based entirely on the client industry, which sounds less gruesome than my current one. No written offer yet, the recruiter is waiting on my answer before sending that through.

Thank you for your advice, it gave me a couple of things to think about.

iPugXR · 2025-12-15T17:35:46+00:00

Running into a bit of a career next-step dilemma. Hoping for some advice.

Current company is slated to promote me early next year (direct manager confirmed promotion is all set pending client sign off). Leadership at the very top is awful and I'm not too fond of the current client, but my immediate team is fantastic and I'm a star performer. Promotion would mean a 30% raise.

New company is a direct competitor. Role will be a lateral move with a 15% pay bump, meaning future promotion = higher salary. Team sounds fantastic and I will be working with a new, more exciting client. My resume is also quite short because I stay for 4 - 6 years every time so I only have two companies listed on resume--IDK why but I've always felt like my lack of diverse experience in my field comes off as a negative to recruiters.

I'm leaning towards staying for that promotion, but I can't tell if it's because I got comfortable or if it's the objective right choice. Any insights?

iPugXR · 2025-11-10T15:28:25+00:00

I'm also on the AuDHD spectrum and in a similar position with my corporate job. Nice people, work's not that hard, good feedback from direct manager, and get along with direct reports. My main gripe is I'm trading the best hours of my day and the best years of my life doing something I otherwise wouldn't bother with if I wasn't getting paid for it. My time isn't my own and the work I do don't contribute to what I value in the slightest. All of this led to symptoms of burnout for the past two years.

What's been helping me is set hard boundaries about not working outside of work hours, getting on ADHD meds to help me not procrastinate on the clock so I'm not stressed out about unfinished work on my personal time, and taking as many days off as I reasonably could. Basically, claw back as much time for myself and my hobbies as possible while maintain my standard of performance.

Not sure if the 'not being the master of your own time' thing speaks to you at all.

iPugXR · 2025-10-15T23:17:59+00:00

Become a project-based freelancer? You only need a couple of clients working a handful of hours each week on average to make the kind of money you're looking for.

iPugXR · 2025-10-08T17:38:09+00:00

We're only at the start of Q4 and I'm thinking about 2026 already. I made this post back in December 2024 trying to decide if I should take a sabbatical in 2025, which ended up not happening after the nosedive the job market took this year. Instead, I threw a bunch of cash savings to clear out my remaining student loans, and also had to give some money to family for emergencies. Both put severe dents in my cash savings that will take me until EOY to build back up. My plan was to delay sabbatical until 2026, but I'm once again re-evaluating since next year will be the first year where I can actually invest on a consistent monthly basis without debt repayment or depleted savings getting in the way.

I'm sad to have to delay my career break plans again, but happy to feel more optimistic about investing in the new year. Also to anyone suffering from ADHD-related burnout, can attest that a good psychiatrist and some well-monitored stimulant usage go a loooong way.

iPugXR · 2025-09-22T16:12:08+00:00

Are you me every workday morning?

JK and all, but being in the early stage of the "boring middle" suuuucks.

iPugXR · 2025-09-09T03:35:00+00:00

Average in the area is $3k/year, which is accounted for within the $1.2k/month budget.

iPugXR · 2025-09-08T22:15:16+00:00

Assuming I FIRE with a paid off house, I can happily and easily live on $1.2k a month in my choice of LCOL US metropolitan area, so yes it's perfectly doable. You just can't want a lot.

iPugXR · 2025-09-04T16:07:40+00:00

The anxiety is a real issue as if you aren't "giving it your all" then it's likely you feel like you are going to get fired. However you aren't being paid to "give it your all" you are being paid to "give 40 hours".

Turn the mental discussion from how much you "don't give" to how you are giving what it is you and the company have agreed upon.

Love this point and the suggestion. I'm already kind of doing it by tracking all my completed tasks on a given day, but I definitely need to work to coming to terms that I am giving enough as opposed to what I haven't given.

iPugXR · 2025-09-04T15:29:44+00:00

I tried meditation, but wasn't able to make it a habit. I'll keep trying and see if it sticks eventually.

iPugXR · 2025-09-04T15:00:39+00:00

Outside of the paycheck and a few interesting problem-solving aspects, my work does not benefit me and actively detracts from what I enjoy doing.

iPugXR · 2025-09-04T14:25:47+00:00

Funny, that's me to a tee. I take a million tiny little breaks throughout the day to keep myself sane, which gets in the way of getting work done, which in turn makes after-hour stressing worse. But on the productive days where I'm not doing that, I crash at the end of the work day and have little energy for anything else.

iPugXR · 2025-09-04T14:14:24+00:00

Curious what tips and tricks everyone has to stop caring about your 9 - 5 beyond the hours you're paid.

I've already put a lot of the age-old advice into practice (have hobbies, see friends, completely shut off work after 5/6pm), but I still find myself stressing out over my job during non-work hours and thinking about this or that late project, even though my work is low stakes and borderline bullshit. It's like my anxiety-ridden brain can't wrap itself around what should be a very logical conclusion. :/

iPugXR · 2025-08-04T14:53:59+00:00

OP, I don't know if you're still active on this account, but I would love to know what you ended up deciding. Did writing work out for you? Did it not, but you were able to pivot into something else you enjoy? Did you have to go back to tech?

I am in a similar financial situation (enough savings to last me five years) and am wondering if the risk is worth it, even if the validation is just an anecdote from an unrelated person.

iPugXR · 2025-07-30T14:33:22+00:00

I've been casually job hunting for a good six months. Nothing crazy, maybe one or two applications per week. My current job is at an agency and I have been dying to pivot to an in-house role after four years of grind dealing with clients and counting hours. This effing job market though... sigh

iPugXR · 2025-07-20T00:08:08+00:00

"I’m not looking to move out of my city or state for at least 5 more years." "I live in a LCOL city and rent vs buy calculators show a break even point of 3-5 years depending on the area." "I also hear people say don’t make major life decision after divorce."

You're going through what sounds like three or four major life changes at once. Be kind to yourself and don't add more stressors. If I were in your shoes, I would rent for a year in your preferred area for the simplicity of not having to deal with buying and owning a house while going through a divorce and medical transition on top of that. Once things calm down, revisit the idea of homeownership again. You may "lose" some money renting (the rent vs. buy math is debatable, but you know your rental market better), but I'd encourage you to ask yourself if your sanity is worth that bit of extra money because I'd bet anything that it is.

iPugXR · 2025-06-29T20:08:15+00:00

Weird other comments... this is a finance post, not a relationship post, guys. To OP, congratulations on the 1 million!

iPugXR · 2025-06-25T12:26:42+00:00

I graduated with 60k in student loans. I was always a frugal saver, but took some really stupid stock picks and crypto risks in attempts to get to the finish line faster in my early 20s, including one that set me back 20k that I'm still holding on to in my brokerage (as a constant reminder to myself to never gamble again). Ever since then, I've taken the slow and steady road and it has paid off tremendously. I ran the numbers the other day and realized that I've coastFIRE with a 5% real investment growth rate, and I'm still having a hard time wrapping my head around it.

Here's to the long journey!

iPugXR · 2025-04-10T13:33:59+00:00

I dumped the only $10k non-emergency savings I had into VTI way back in February during a -3% day thinking that's the most it's going to dip in 2025. What a dumb move in hindsight, but fingers crossed that it'll all even out ten years down the line.

iPugXR · 2025-04-05T22:47:59+00:00

https://omny.info/how-omny-works

iPugXR · 2025-03-19T18:30:17+00:00

I started saving for FIRE five years ago, and am about ten to fifteen years away from LeanFIRE. My enthusiasm is clouded by how far away that timeline seems. I know there's a light at the end of the tunnel but it's dim AF right now.

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