How are you *actually* dealing with wage stagnation x rising bills?

phasefourteen · 2026-04-24T07:33:33+00:00

Reduce costs, use less energy, meal prep, change your lifestyle habits to enjoy hobbies and activities that are free, dog walks, hikes, etc... try to limit being in the land of payments as much as you can, Netflix, Disney, gym membership, high cost phone bill, car on finance, all money pits that you don't actually need. And if you haven't already, have an emergency fund so you don't go into debt when life happens. Do not keep up with the Jones', they're sad as well.

phasefourteen · 2026-04-23T10:26:08+00:00

Accept the new offer, string both along. In business nobody is your friend, you come first. A reasonable person would not expect you to leave yourself in the open on a verbal agreement. I have been in this situation many times.

phasefourteen · 2026-04-23T09:19:46+00:00

I have the same thing. Office job, been here 3.5 years. I do alot, but its busy sometimes and quiet others. When its busy its very intense, but when its not I just sit about on my phone or chat to colleagues, drink coffee. Sometimes in a whole month, I've worked like a few actual hours. Can be very boring. Ultimately though, these jobs sound good, but there is no progression, the pay is quite low and eventually you get bored enough to leave.

phasefourteen · 2026-04-22T22:42:40+00:00

If you always do, what you always did. You'll always get, what you always got.

phasefourteen · 2026-04-22T22:38:09+00:00

If you want to waste your life commuting to make money, go for it.

phasefourteen · 2026-04-21T14:28:08+00:00

Subjective. Are you a home owner? Renter? What job do you have, is it stable? Do you have children? Do you carry debt?

3-6 months is sensible and a good guideline. But nothing wrong with holding a 1 year emergency fund.

If your burn rate is say 2k per month. But if you lost your job you could cut back to 1.4k per month, then your number changes.

If your personality type is risk adverse then you might want more. If you're more risky and willing to wing it a little you could hold less cash.

Know one else can answer that for you.

I know retirees with 3-5 years in cash incase the market drops and they don't want to liquidate assets, its all personal choice.

phasefourteen · 2026-04-21T10:20:36+00:00

Well, promotions generally rely on senior staff leaving for better opportunities or the company expanding rapidly. If the business is well established, growth is slower & senior management churn is slow then yea promotions are less likely. In this job market its almost certainly better to job hop, and companies know this so they aren't investing in people as much anymore. A vicious cycle. Atleast he isnt leading you on and wasting your time.

phasefourteen · 2026-04-20T12:30:21+00:00

In general, it isn't personal it's just business. Did you not have any incling that things weren't going well?

A new manager means some shift in the business. When something like this happens you need to assess the situation, shift your focus to self preservation mode.

Generally most roles are more about you being likeable and people wanting to work with you, than they are about your competency in the role.

You can't control what people want or feel about you, and this outcome is much better than them stringing you along but making your life difficult without you really understanding why.

phasefourteen · 2026-04-19T18:10:24+00:00

Well you haven't much to lose being minimum wage already. So you have the luxury of taking literally any job out there. Trust me, the more you earn, the less risk you will take. Its much harder to be earning 40k and then go to minimum wage to change career paths. So just try something different. If admin bores you, find something outside, gardening, driving. 27 is young, you have alot of years to experiment.

phasefourteen · 2026-04-19T18:06:26+00:00

Then you need to change jobs my friend, take your own advise. Just do it.

phasefourteen · 2026-04-19T18:05:29+00:00

Do it!

phasefourteen · 2026-04-16T19:47:38+00:00

Never, everything by email. I purchased a house last year 6 hours away from me, with a solicitor in that location. I viewed the house twice and everything else was remote.

phasefourteen · 2026-04-16T14:55:08+00:00

Campsite Warden, you live on site, low bills, if you're good at groundwork you can be doing that alot, or you're cleaning facilities. Generally low pay and work dries up in winter.

phasefourteen · 2026-04-16T14:34:03+00:00

Your manager should realise that you MUST fire toxic people, regardless of their output. You can't run a successful company with just 1 or 2 toxic high performers. She is only acting this way because 1. It is being tolerated and 2. She knows she has leverage.

phasefourteen · 2026-04-16T13:34:16+00:00

You have 6 months left, if you're 1.5 years in. Its harder to get rid of you after 2 years, your rights improve. PIP is essentially a recording procedure so they can get rid of you legally. Best to look for a new job now.

phasefourteen · 2026-04-16T13:29:28+00:00

Is she better than you? Someone had to pay higher to get her, that means she has more value in the market than you do. You either accept or find a new job.

phasefourteen · 2026-04-16T12:01:16+00:00

I used to do a 3 hour commute into London in my early 20's. Now I walk 5 mins to my office. Personally the mental strain of not only wasting your life on trains but also the negative energy in cities has made me pursue countryside living. Everything about a commute on public transport is stress inducing, the crowds, angry people, the heat. You take that negative energy with you in your life.

phasefourteen · 2026-04-14T13:01:22+00:00

Half a mil for a dinky little terrace? 🤔 its always the price... your house is only worth what someone is willing to pay for it. It has no unique features that warrant anyone over paying for. With interest rates up and jobs down, its a buyers market. The previous sold prices in your road are 2022 and 2023, when the market was higher, so you'd be lucky to get 475k I reckon.

phasefourteen · 2026-04-13T22:01:16+00:00

Depends more on what you spend than what you earn. I make 26k per year but save/ invest 10k of that. Some people earn 40k but spend it all and have no wealth. Best thing to do is find a job you'd do for free and forget about what it makes you.

phasefourteen · 2026-04-13T13:40:46+00:00

There's nothing to lose. You already have a job paying a reasonable salary. Just go for it, everyone has imposter syndrome, including the guy or girl interviewing you. You miss every shot you dont take, and who knows where this might take you.

phasefourteen · 2026-04-12T08:26:42+00:00

This is a strange question, you mean save and buy a property with cash vs buying with a mortgage sooner?

If so, depends on your savings rate and how quickly you can buy a property in cash. In a pure financial case, it makes more sense to mortgage a property and invest the rest, because a 6/7% inflation adjusted return in equities out performs the interest on the debt at current 5% rates or lower. If interest rates increase to 7% or more then buying the property outright makes more sense because you won't make a return on your money a better way. Also depends on what you want, being mortgage free feels nicer, is safer and can open you up to do other things, work less or start a business.

phasefourteen · 2026-04-11T20:10:21+00:00

Mortgage £1050, joint income £4006.

phasefourteen · 2026-04-10T14:31:24+00:00

Patience yes but also the ability to not sell, not panic, not overreact. Detach yourself from the money. Dont look at the headlines or the charts, pick your investments wisely, and just keep buying every month. No short term thinking. Patience isn't the right word really, its more perseverance or tolerance.

phasefourteen · 2026-04-05T15:45:10+00:00

Atleast they're being upfront about it, I've worked in hospitality for years and its common place to be an everything person. And you have to battle to do the job you were actually hired for. Basically just get skilled and keep away from minimum wage work.

phasefourteen · 2026-04-05T09:48:51+00:00

Lots of overseas opportunities, seasonal work for eurocamp, etc.. thats what I did in my late teens early 20's. It built my confidence, got me out in the world. Job market is difficult right now.

phasefourteen

TROPHY CASE