Before giving notice - How did you deal with it?

[dex]

Once you knew you were going to retier early and set a date how did you deal with it mentally?

I've set May 1, 2005 as the date I will give notice. It will be 2 weeks or a bit more before I actually am out. I'm doing it at that time because I don't want to stop work during the winter - too depressing - and I want to go to Alaska in the summer

I've been getting heath check ups, getting my finances in order and getting the house ready to put on the market.
My question is how to deal with it mentally while you are at work? A lot of the time I'm looking at my portfolio and making plans for what I want to do. But a lot of the time I'm in a meeting thinking "God I have to get out of here." 6 months is seeming like a long time.
Any suggestions would be helpful.

Dex,

I posted this once before, and since I thought it was brilliant here it is again

********************************************
Here is what you could do. If you are sure about this.

Tell your bosses your intentions - that you plan to retire in 6 months to 10 months - Less than one year. Give them the story that you are doing this for their benefit, so they can plan for your exit and make a smooth transition. After you've informed your bosses make sure all your co-workers know as well.

Once you've done this, your bosses are almost powerless and they will not like this at all. They will be reluctant to give you any projects because they cannot hold anything over your head. Once your co-workers find out, your retirement will be a complete disruption to the department.

1 of 2 two things will probably happen. Either you will not be given any more 'difficult' work and your work life will be a cakewalk. The other thing that could happen is that you will be offered a 'retirement' package so that they can get you out of the way. They know they cannot really fire you and they know they cannot get any meaningful work out of you.

The best thing for management is to get you out of the department as it is bad for morale (the others seeing you leave).

They will probably come to you with a 'deal' in about 2-3 weeks after the situation 'festers' a bit. They will have to pay you to leave

The ultimate payback

*********************************************

[dex]

Cut-Throat,
That is good advise and is in the back of my mind. It is just the timing. I don't want to tell them now and then they find someone to replace me that is not on my time table 5/1/05. I really want to sell the house while I'm working. I think that give me a bit stronger position.

My work situtation is not an bad one. As a matter of fact what makes waiting difficult is that my work is so easy. When I leave I will honestly be able to say it is not because this is a bad place to work. That is one of the reason why I feel good about RE. If it was a bad place to work I would wonder if I want to RE because of that.

[MJ]

Quote:

They know they cannot really fire you and they know they cannot get any meaningful work out of you. The best thing for management is to get you out of the department as it is bad for morale (the others seeing you leave).

Hey Cut Throat,

I am in similar situation. I am looking to retire in 6 to 7 months. I had planned to give them 2 to 3 week notice.

Over the last 3 years, my role has slowly been diminished. Last year, the company cut expenses by letting go a number of employees. I retained my job but they greatly reduced my salary.
I guess I am wondering why you think they couldn't fire me?

MJ

[Nords]

Dex, I may have missed an earlier conversation, but do you have to sell the house? Retirement is a honking big transition without adding in the thrill of selling & moving. If you've made up your mind and that subject is closed, fine, but another alternative would be to delay 6-12 months and see if you care to relocate.

If you're selling, the best real estate frenzies start when the buyer's kids are out of school. It's great if you can sell the house before May but you might not get full price. At least you have six months to get the house in the best condition it's ever seen. And after you're retired you may want to save a realtor's commission and try your own For Sale By Owner. If nothing else, packing it all up is a lot easier when you don't have to show up for work...

As far as work goes, Cut-Throat's method is great when you have absolute job security. If there's even the slightest chance that you'll be shunted to another department or assigned to counting bricks-- or even fired-- then you may not want to give management any more warning than required. You'll also want to consider the effect of a retirement announcement on any year-end bonuses... especially if they don't pay out until Feb/Mar.

You might want to clear out any use/lose sick leave or vacation before you announce your retirement plans. Management will be very reluctant to let you out of the office if they know you're retiring. Same goes for any special trips or conferences that you might want to enjoy.

The biggest advantage of a no-notice retirement is that a buyout or other early-retirement offer might pop up out of nowhere. If you've already announced your intentions then you may not be eligible.

I knew my retirement date three years in advance and you seem to have your preps well in hand. You're on track with medical & financial. If you have the coverage, you may also want to max out the benefits for any dental exams/dental work and optometry (checkups or reading glasses?). You'll want to make sure that you fully fund your 2005 401(k) & IRA(s). You may want to cancel some insurance policies (we cancelled my life & disability policies when I retired) and you may want to let your other insurers know that you'll be retired (they might lower the premium).

I chose no ceremony, no parties, no fuss. I had to fight against management, who either thought that I needed "closure" or who were worried that I'd claim later I was intimidated from getting what I really wanted. About a month after retiring I lunched with some of my co-workers, which was a great chance for us all to catch up on gossip and for me to see if any of them were going to maintain a friendship outside of the workplace.

"How to deal with it mentally while you are at work?" It's not easy! But I kept running a mental movie of what retirement activity I'd be doing at that time of the day. (This was pretty tough when the meeting was held during what is now naptime...) I also kept tapping away industriously at my Palm Pilot, although it was my "Retired Honey-Do" list instead of work. You may not be able to get away with that behavior. Finally, I kept working on my "Before Retirement" list of the people who worked for me-- they needed letters of recommendation, qualifications signed off, promotion interviews, etc. I probably wrote over two dozen recommendations in my final month.

Hello Nords and dex. Nords, great post!

I experienced much of what Nords did when I quit
(except for the meticulous planning ). And I think his advice about maybe not making any physical moves while you are adjusting to retirement is sound.
In 1998, I fully retired, moved twice (one interstate)
and got a divorce. That's a lot to handle all at once.
Like Nords, at the end a lot of my computer time
(at work) was used for "outside" stuff, including
retirement "what ifs". After I left about all I got
was a little unemployment comp. and COBRA
coverage which I couldn't afford.

JOhn Galt

[retire@40]

Quote:

Once you've done this, your bosses are almost powerless and they will not like this at all. They will be reluctant to give you any projects because they cannot hold anything over your head. Once your co-workers find out, your retirement will be a complete disruption to the department. 1 of 2 two things will probably happen. Either you will not be given any more 'difficult' work and your work life will be a cakewalk. The other thing that could happen is that you will be offered a 'retirement' package so that they can get you out of the way. They know they cannot really fire you and they know they cannot get any meaningful work out of you. The best thing for management is to get you out of the department as it is bad for morale (the others seeing you leave). They will probably come to you with a 'deal' in about 2-3 weeks after the situation 'festers' a bit. They will have to pay you to leave.

I never really worked long enough for a company since I have been self-employed for most of my life, but common sense tells me that 1 of 3 things may happen. The first 2 that you mention or that your boss and co-workers will become jealous and make the rest of your employment there miserable, giving you the crappy jobs that nobody wants to do and treating you like you are not one of them anymore. If you tell them so far in advance that you are leaving the company, I would say you are putting yourself at a disadvantage. What they would want is to make your life so miserable that you just want to quit so they don't have to offer you anything, not even the ability to collect unemployment which would cost the company more in payroll taxes even after you leave.

If I were planning a year in advance, I would ask for an extremly large pay raise. If you get it you win and you can quit as planned anyway 1 year from now. Whether you get the raise or not, I would wait a few months and ask for a severence package if that what your company does or just keep your mouth shut about ER and give your 2 weeks notice when the time comes. With some luck, you can at least get laid off in a year instead of quitting and collect for a few months.

[dex]

First, thanks for the replies - good advise from people that have been there - that is what I like about this board.
I should have posted that I'm single and 49.

I plan to post more often as I get closer to my giving notice.
Re: The house & moving - I want to get a townhouse with less maintance issues - lawn care, painting etc. The housing market where I live is getting overbuilt. I can live inexpensively in a relatives vacant house for awhile. I don't own a lot of things so moving isn't a big issue. Mentally, I would feel better not owing the house and having something smaller.

Re: sick leave - I think I can add that on to my end date - I'll put it on my list of things to do to check up on.

Re: Termination package - this company is doing great and they are not even thinking of termination packages. They have a problem finding good people. I'm trying to position my leaving so I might get some unemployment compensation.

[dm]

I have the same timeframe for my ER. I plan on waiting and giving two or three weeks notice also. I get a bonus check in April and its pretty much at the bosses discretion on what I get. Im afraid if he know's I'll be gone it could cost me.

I work for a privately owned company. There is nothing forcing them to keep me and severance would be unheard of. Thats not to say its a bad place to work, just not a big corp. or goverment job. I do want to leave on good terms, I have worked here for a number of years and the owner has always been fair to me. I plan to leave with my work up to date and two weeks notice. Thats two weeks more that someone who is laid off or fired gets.

[Whakamole]

I think the notice period depends on your job. Are you a senior manager? Then you should give them a bit more time.

But unless they've treated you very well, there isn't much reason to give them more than 2 weeks. Heck, for all you know they may decide to do some planned layoffs - then you can "volunteer" and get a nice layoff package!


I've had co-workers who have given longer notice and it's depressing for everyone. They aren't happy because they have nothing to do (which may be fine, but do you want to be stuck at work all day with nothing to do?) To the rest of us, they're like the walking dead.


A few of the senior people who have left have instead taken time off for a "sabbatical" or whatever you'd like to call it. Then a few months later, they give notice.

Quote:

Hey Cut Throat, I am in similar situation. I am looking to retire in 6 to 7 months. I had planned to give them 2 to 3 week notice. Over the last 3 years, my role has slowly been diminished. Last year, the company cut expenses by letting go a number of employees. I retained my job but they greatly reduced my salary. I guess I am wondering why you think they couldn't fire me? MJ

Well they could fire you, but that is for you to decide.

Having been a manager and sat in on various discussions of hiring and firing, the last thing management wants at any company is problems. Firing causes problems and they don't want to do it. The exception is when an employee violates a company rule. Theft, Sexual harrasment etc.

Management always says they want to know far in advance of any employee plans or changes. By giving them 6 months advance notice of your retirement, you will have fulfilled their wishes. It would be a very bad message to all the other employees to fire you when you gave them advance notice.

They probably want you gone and will most likely pay you your salary to leave early. One letter from an attorney is not worth the money that they will have to pay your salary for the 6 months. Again - Management hates problems!

If management has reduced your role and your salary, it is my estimation that you have a greater chance of being fired if you don't give notice than if you do. Think about it, they want you out of the way. If you volunteer to leave in 6 months, you have solved a problem for them.

A disclaimer..............I am not recommending that anyone
actually do this.

Even if you have no intention of working again, 6 months or so of unemployment comp. would be nice.
But, you can't get it if you quit. If you were creative
enough to "engineer" your dismissal, and didn't mind
"gaming" the Unemployment Comp. system where you are
located, this could be accomplished. Plenty of people
have done it, but remember, you didn't hear it from me

John Galt

[Brat]

Nords advise is that which you should follow.

Unless you are in a critical position don't announce your intentions, after all your circumstances may change. My 80+ year old mother advised that employees give notice consistent with their compensation agreement. If you are paid weekly a week is appropriate, if your employment is "monthly" one month is appropriate, if you have a contract look to the terms of the contract. Her experiance is a bit dated but the principal is the same.

I was a functional HR Manager in a large firm. Rarely is more than two weeks necessary. If they need you longer you can work on a contract basis.