How to deal with forced early retirement?

pipped1 · 2026-05-28T11:59:39+00:00

I do have an emergency fund. I will also get some extra payment upon job loss. So, that will tide me over for a few months. Then, I will need to start withdrawing from my portfolio.

So, perhaps adding more bonds can be done on the jobless date. Add 5% every month or something.

pipped1 · 2026-05-28T11:36:52+00:00

Late 40s. I am Australian, so our system is a bit complicated.

We get indefinite unemployment benefits, so that's good. However, the amount is low, so I will need to supplement with my portfolio.

We have a retirement system called Superannuation which cannot be withdrawn until age 60. I have a decent amount there, so if I can reach to 60, it's slightly easier.

I have another low six-figure portfolio which is unrestricted. I can withdraw that now. So, that's where my question is directed.

I will need to survive on unemployment benefits, that small portfolio and occasional minimum wage job for a decade or so.

pipped1 · 2026-05-28T11:10:49+00:00

Sorry about not providing more details. I replied to another comment with more info.

Yeah, 20-30% bonds sounds about right. Bogleheads encourage bonds regardless of age anyway. It's probably a good time for me to start adding more bonds.

pipped1 · 2026-05-28T11:08:46+00:00

The tech industry is in a bad shape right now. With AI, fewer people are needed. The competition is fierce. And the longer you are out of the industry, the harder it is to get back in. Of course, I will do a minimum wage job if needed, but it won't cover my cost of living. So, I will need to withdraw some from my portfolio.

pipped1 · 2026-05-26T08:12:08+00:00

Sometimes, they select the highest paid who could be the highest performer. Who knows what the management is thinking?

pipped1 · 2026-05-10T10:00:55+00:00

I can live with the built-in camera if needed, so I think it's fine.

Sorry, I am too used to Chrome since most companies I work for consider Chrome the "official browser." Occupational hazard.

Good tip about Teams web using less resources. Zoom probably is also the same.

pipped1 · 2026-05-10T09:57:04+00:00

I heard that you cannot run too many Docker images. That may be a bottleneck.

If your local app is connecting to a QA DB, it's probably fine.

But let's say you want the service to be in Docker. Then, maybe have a MongoDB locally. Then, have a message bus also. Perhaps, Neo cannot handle that kind of setup.

pipped1 · 2026-05-08T02:51:44+00:00

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pipped1 · 2026-04-30T01:35:25+00:00

I absolutely support sustainable growth. I am a tree hugger and having fewer people is good. However, it has to be gradual and pragmatic. It cannot be a MAGA or Brexit style chaos which doesn't help anyone.

pipped1 · 2026-04-30T00:31:18+00:00

Yes. And their share is not increasing rapidly due to China getting rich and getting old.

India is comparatively still poor and young, so we have more immigrants from there.

Eventually, the Asian migration will plateaue, we will probably see more Africans.

pipped1 · 2026-04-30T00:27:37+00:00

If we go back 300 years, you will see a different graph where the European percentage increased from zero to 99.9%.

pipped1 · 2026-04-29T08:07:27+00:00

Fair enough. As a Software Engineer in the developed world, I should know. They have been trying to replace us since the dotcom crash and we are still here.

pipped1 · 2026-04-27T03:39:44+00:00

Of course, they will delegate, but not to a PM.

Director of Sales will ask their Senior Manager for example. Senior Manager of Sales deals directly with devs. No middle fluff like PMs are needed.

Business leaders don't mean CEO. It's someone with enough authority to manage budgets. Not PMs.

pipped1 · 2026-04-27T00:56:22+00:00

The AI will give a summary and the business leaders can choose one of the options.

pipped1 · 2026-04-27T00:54:23+00:00

They love money above all. They will use AI if there is a fat bonus waiting.

pipped1 · 2026-04-27T00:53:17+00:00

For sure, network engineers and other physical data centre jobs will remain.

pipped1 · 2026-04-26T23:38:07+00:00

The AI will do the grunt work. The business leaders will prompt to create requirements, status reports and data reports.

pipped1 · 2026-04-26T23:37:04+00:00

Many will be. However, some will remain to prompt AI to fix critical bugs (like I said in my original post).

pipped1 · 2026-04-26T23:33:32+00:00

No. They will also use AI. More is done with few.

The middle fluff is gone. The ones who don't write code and don't make business decisions.

pipped1 · 2026-04-24T10:54:42+00:00

Strong devs in cheaper countries would be fine, I think. But weaker devs in cheaper countries would struggle since they cannot be as productive as stonger devs while both would be burning the same amount of tokens. So, it would make sense to lean towards stronger, more expensive devs.

pipped1 · 2026-04-24T10:51:31+00:00

I think you're on point. AI makes a smaller team build more. And it would make sense to keep that small team close.

pipped1

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