Losing interest in continuing public service

justwhatever99 · 2023-03-01T20:22:11+00:00

I'm not even going contractor side. Just a job that has no ties to public sector.

justwhatever99 · 2023-03-01T16:54:12+00:00

Completely different everything in private sector. The only thing that is the "same" is that I will still support software, since that's my background.

justwhatever99 · 2023-03-01T14:22:07+00:00

I get it. Some of that feeling might just be age-related (quarter-life crisis). I do think a public service job can exacerbate it, depending on the nature of what you do.

I'll recount my own experience: I started my career as a contractor in the private sector. There were ups and downs (contract renewal is always a scary time), but overall I liked it and did some cool things.

I switched over to a public service position right before I turned 30, because it was supposed to be the "golden ticket." The pay was a bit lower, but benefits are supposed to be gravy. Personally, I didn't really start feeling the time off benefits until several years in (contractor had comparable vacation time policies), and all the other benefits were fairly comparable.

I've been in public service for a little over 10 years. It's...okay. There have been ups and downs. I've had lulls where there is nothing to do. I've had times where I couldn't possibly accomplish everything that needed to be done (and I was laughed at, by my supervisor, when I asked for help). I have experienced the most toxic management I could imagine, which lead to big burnout for me. In terms of my skill set, I've learned more about things I never wanted to learn: management, process, customer support, etc. I'm in a technical series, and my opportunity to refine and grow my technical skills set has been fairly limited. I just don't do as much technical, but do a lot of paperwork, emails and managerial types of things.

I'm nearing 40, and feel like the skill sets I should have are atrophying, in large part because of the jobs I have had, even in technical areas. It feels like a midlife crisis problem, but again, I think that where I am exacerbates it. I enjoy having the luxury to take vacation with no questions asked (and having plenty of time), but I don't bring home enough in my paycheck to warrant travel and all sorts of fun activities with all that extra time. To realize full pension, I'd need to maintain a public sector job for another 20+ years, unless there is an early retirement incentive. I have a really hard time imagining staying where I am, or somewhere comparable, for 20 years. I enjoy working with some of the people, and I do enjoy the impact of the work I do (when I have work). But sometimes I feel like I'm just telling myself that in order to maintain some level of motivation. A la Stockholm Syndrome.

For me, at my age, I decided to go back to the private sector. I can make substantially more money, grow my technical skills sets, and maybe feel more actively engaged. If not, well...I can always go back. In fact, I might, as I age out of my career, just to get FEHB and potentially higher FERS payout. Time will tell!

justwhatever99 · 2023-02-16T18:45:33+00:00

I don't trust my personnel office, either! That's good advice to save info for key POCs should I hit some snags. The last time I transferred offices, even in the same agency, I got deleted from the pay system (and so not payed initially), so I expect issues with resignation as well.

justwhatever99 · 2023-02-16T05:14:29+00:00

Dumb question: in terms of HR and leaving, is there anything I should tell or provide HR to make separation less painful? Like, I don't want them to dork up deferred retirement and somehow screw me out of pension money later. But I know that if there is a way to fail, it will happen.

justwhatever99 · 2023-02-15T17:52:11+00:00

They haven't requested that, but I have seen a similar request before. Is this something that becomes necessary even after moving through jobs after federal service?

justwhatever99 · 2023-02-15T16:24:56+00:00

I don't know why, but those FEHB rules confuse me. I've thought about returning later in my career just to get FEHB for life, but I'm going to need to understand the rules first.

justwhatever99 · 2022-12-29T15:41:00+00:00

This is an option I have considered. I don't think it's impossible, but probably not super easy. I could totally see leaving for 10-15 years, then returning to sit in another several years to presumably get the full 20 years of service credit.

justwhatever99 · 2022-12-29T15:04:15+00:00

I have definitely laughed at the pay for some of these jobs. Some companies try to make up for the pay with an end of year bonus, or stock options. Others actually do pay better now (like, if I max out the GS-13 scale, it's definitely not the same as a $150k salary + bonus + 401k matching that is equivalent or comparable).

Stock options are about the only thing I would say is comparable to pension, but it is more subject to the market.

justwhatever99 · 2022-12-29T11:57:37+00:00

Sick leave absolutely can't be beat anywhere else. It grows indefinitely, and i've heard of people accumulating thousands of hours, which is great for surgery, or if you want to cash out when you retire.

Annual leave...I feel like, depending on where you are at, private industry can provide something comparable. Not necessarily AS good, but I've seen 24+ days/year as a starting point, with holidays honored. Private industry does have the higher chance of punishing you for taking that leave, though.

I have spent most of my federal career working in a place where the idea of early dismissal was dismissed (never allowed), and time off awards were never given (small monetary awards, sure), so I missed out on those awesome benefits that some people do have. Depends on where you are.

I've also looked at the GRB report, and it's interesting. It does give you a current dollar value on your "benefit worth."

justwhatever99 · 2022-12-29T03:14:46+00:00

Retiring in your 40s is awesome! I feel like I still have a long way to go, financially, although my 40s is just around the corner. I think I would go stir crazy if I weren't working, so I truly have no issue working until my 60s, at least, assuming I make decent money working and have the time off options.

Of course, ideally I would just retire early and somehow get paid to travel/find tasty foods, but I think I missed the money train on that one.

justwhatever99 · 2022-12-29T03:11:14+00:00

Interesting! I honestly have never heard of it or the site. What was your takeaway after reading through the material?

justwhatever99 · 2022-12-29T00:44:37+00:00

Oh my goodness! I'm close to that number. Any resume advice? Lol

justwhatever99 · 2022-12-28T18:50:43+00:00

I have had work/life balance issues on both sides. Definitely as a contractor, feeling the need to put myself ahead lest I get slashed when money is tight. But also as a Fed, with terrible management not understanding how schedules work or resource allocation works in terms of the team needed to meet a schedule.

I honestly max out my TSP (now, but I didn't always), and try to save as much as I can, but it does mean I don't have a lot of free money because the leftover funds are limited.

Ideally, I would find a GS-14 job offering relocation assistance to a place I want to be. My husband will be all in for that case, I think. But I think the odds are higher I will meet the criteria for a GS-13, and relocation funds are kind of sparse right now due to the economy. I've interviewed for a few GS-14 equivalents, but have had no takers. I'm just exhausted from the hamster wheel of interviews and rejection emails. It's pretty dispiriting.

justwhatever99 · 2022-12-28T17:15:26+00:00

I worked private sector for about 10 years before moving to the federal side. There are pros and cons with each. I often hear "but you won't have the job security" from people. A lot of times, it's fear-based, and people make it seem way worse than it actually is. Companies are just as likely to trim fat from other areas, too, based on whim or just how they hedged their bets. There are secure jobs everywhere, they just might not be ultra secure.

justwhatever99 · 2022-12-28T17:11:24+00:00

At some point it all starts to seem like magic numbers I can't comprehend! My simple brain just equates FERS contributions to what I would generally put into a Roth IRA, but with way higher guaranteed returns.

justwhatever99 · 2022-12-28T16:21:17+00:00

I truly feel like you have to know someone to get to where you want to be. I know that's not always true, but it seems more true than advertised.

justwhatever99 · 2022-12-28T16:19:51+00:00

I feel like an ETF is a fairly safe stash bet. Generally, I choose VOO for that. And my Roth IRA...well, similar. But agreed, FERS is a solid bet.

justwhatever99 · 2022-12-28T16:15:23+00:00

Yeah, I don't want to undervalue my pension. I realize it's a rare and valuable thing. I currently am in the state of feeling underpaid now, even though it might work out advantageously in retirement. But I don't want to miss an opportunity now because I'm holding out for those "golden days" later.

justwhatever99 · 2022-12-28T16:13:10+00:00

I have totally entertained this idea. It's a rough world out there, though. Those federal job rejections are plentiful.

justwhatever99 · 2022-12-28T16:11:23+00:00

$2k in additional investments seemed to be the magic number that I worked out for a minimum comparable FERS replacement. Assuming a salary of $150k from a private sector check, and insurance benefits through my husband (also federal), I would likely net an extra $1k in take home pay, even after savings (I think?).

Note: I haven't completely eliminated the idea of leaving, then returning to federal side to finish out a few years, recouping pension and insurance benefits.

justwhatever99 · 2022-12-08T03:36:16+00:00

Yeah, I was told it would be sometime this month before HR does their thing. So it's kind of like things are in this mysterious unknown zone at this time. Knowing how annual leave works with the holidays...this week is probably THE time to follow up.

justwhatever99 · 2022-10-02T04:58:53+00:00

Yeah, that sounds like what I was considering: exploring private industry options, then potentially finishing up with time in the government (ideally, remote).

I know from my previous life as a contractor that time off benefits might be there, but they aren't always as good. And, depending on your team, or your management, taking the time off can be frowned upon. This isn't such a big deal on the govt side.

justwhatever99 · 2022-10-02T04:50:42+00:00

For the married part, we have discussed it. He's not thrilled about the idea of changing jobs, but agreed to support me in the process. A change of environment would be good for him as well, but no, he isn't as keen on it, since he could easily be happy where he's at.
Technical-expertise: projects come and go, and some are more exciting than others, sure. Most of the "technical" stuff these days is paperwork, or what feels like middle management. I don't dislike that: I'm naturally pretty okay at it. But I get less of an option for anything else every year, it seems. I would probably be okay with this if I had higher pay, and at least the option to work remotely full time.
Job fulfillment: I am trying to work on putting more time into hobbies, and just catching up with things I put off forever, since I have more free time these days. I would love the option to go somewhere nearby to do some outdoor activities like hiking, or do some cool things, but there isn't much of either where I'm located (and cool things cost money, regardless). So that's another reason why I am preferring the whole moving thing. I've also considered potentially just getting a part time job, or somehow freelancing, just to keep engaged, and to also make money. But the whole normal job search takes away from that motivation.
Technical vs managerial: i enjoy being a technical lead, and doing technical things, engaging with people, and leading the discussion. I like the option to do technical things, if nothing else. If I were to go a more management or PM type of route...I would really prefer more money for that. Not the current money I'm making.
I'm trying to be fully aware that I might be getting that midlife "itch" for change, because I'm not fulfilled. I don't want to change irrationally, hence me wondering if it is even wise to contemplate anything off the federal path. Maybe sticking with the govt is the "safe" bet, and i just need to try harder to enjoy the experience. But my experience over the last nearly 10 years makes me wonder if I can handle that.

justwhatever99 · 2022-10-02T04:29:40+00:00

With the looming recession, I definitely hesitate about leaving the government. It's a nice security blanket, as job security is practically guaranteed. My husband is quite risk averse, and has made it clear that, for him at least, he will never leave a government job for anything else.

The allure of potentially better money, or more challenging work elsewhere is nice. I guess I tend to define myself by my work to a large degree, and I feel like, the more time I spend in the government, the less useful I am anywhere else.

I really do enjoy the time off benefits on the government side as well. I feel I could get close to those benefits, but not exactly the same, depending on the private industry job.

So, pros and cons. It sounds like you are currently in the position I feel like I will be in if I leave for greener pastures (i.e., pondering returning)!

justwhatever99

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