With your unannounced retirement looming did you still care?

[rayinpenn]

Me 4 months out, working 4 days a week. Complex assignment assisting an inexperienced colleague who is in the middle of a life meltdown (self imposed relationship stuff— as well as possible health issue?). Last meeting the individual was down right rude. I choose to Ignore it. Worked on my day off to get work done and avoid the coming blame game. Spent lots of time explaining technical stuff to a non technical person but the individual doesn’t get it. Colleagues have indicated similar experience with the individual.

My Mantra: As long as they pay me I’ll do good work to the very last minute. I know I shouldn’t care but my patience is wearing thin.

What was your mindset when you knew your time was limited?

 

[braumeister]

One of the main reasons for retiring was the intensity of the w*rk. It was stressing me to the max. I gave about six months notice and it went by in a flash, due to that same intensity. There was no time to think about it, just keep the nose to the grindstone. So it can work both ways.

 

[FireFool]

I decided I would allow others to make mistakes, while I was there to advise them IF THEY later decided to seek counsel on corrective/preventative measures. I also protected myself as best as I could from being the one to actually do the work of cleaning up other peoples messes - just like they would need to do once I was gone.

 

[Stormy Kromer]

I ran hard just like I as running the mile back in high school. Pace yourself well then hit the finishing kick til you feel the tape at the finish line. You'll feel good looking back on it.

 

[CardsFan]

I decided I would allow others to make mistakes, while I was there to advise them IF THEY later decided to seek counsel on corrective/preventative measures. I also protected myself as best as I could from being the one to actually do the work of cleaning up other peoples messes - just like they would need to do once I was gone.

^^This.

I decided in January 2015 to retire in August that year, but did not discuss with my boss until June. Ended up stayed part-time through the end of the year. From the time DW and I made the decision, I found I simply could not get interested in anything that was long term. I won't say I didn't care, since I liked my co-workers and wanted the company to continue to succeed, but I could no longer fight the internal politics since I knew I really had no skin in the game.

What really felt good was leaving on my terms. No package, no kick in the pants.

 

[cathy63]

Yes, I continued to work diligently during the 6 months after I knew I was retiring but before I told everyone else. They were paying me well and treating me well, and my half of the bargain was to do the best work I could. I wouldn't have felt right about slacking off just because I didn't need the job. Also, I had a staff of 30 people, most of whom I liked, and I wanted to leave them positioned for future success if I could.

I gave 2 months notice when I left and that was much more of a transition period of giving away work and winding down. My Dad also died during that time, and I ended up taking some unplanned time off as well.

 

[harley]

I ran hard just like I as running the mile back in high school. Pace yourself well then hit the finishing kick til you feel the tape at the finish line. You'll feel good looking back on it.

Not me. I started walking and let the others run. And 12 years later I feel good looking back at it.

 

[scrabbler1]

I was working part-time, only 2 days a week, in the 17 months before I retired. I was working mainly on one big, important project most of the time. I chose my final day one month out (9 working days for me) after I gave my notice, guessing that I would be done with my role in the big project by then.

I worked hard in those 9 days, barely finishing my role in the big project on the last day, about 45 minutes before I left for the day (and forever!).

 

[Amethyst]

I gave it my best until I walked out the door. I presume this is why I was invited to return (part-time, old salary, full pension).

 

[Music Lover]

I went back and forth between not caring in the slightest to "give me the hardest/ugliest file to work" as I was leaving I didn't care a bit about making production any longer.

 

[CaptTom]

I was very public about counting down to the first day I'd be eligible to retire. But I also let it be known that, while I may not retire on that day, my attitude would change on that day!

I kept my word. After that date, I ignored the politics, and pretty much told it like it was. My j*b satisfaction went way up and my blood pressure went way down. Since I had "no skin in the game" as was said above, I like to think my advice was actually more respected than before, when I could (in theory) have had selfish motivations.

I w*rked OMY, but I continued to put in an honest days w*rk most days, and focused on getting long-term things turned over to whoever would be stuck doing them when I was gone.

A few co-w*rkers knew about my final countdown, but normal practice at my MegaCorp was to keep it quiet until after the annual bonus checks cleared the bank, which I followed. I don't think they really believed I'd pull the trigger anyway.

I had plenty to do right up to the last day, but the pressure was certainly off. Overall, it went very well. I left on good terms.

 

[MRG]

I quit caring when my VP decided he knew more about hardware and software than me. I quit working when they called me for my exit interview.

Actually I was working with an internal audit guy and he started asking why I still had the access I did. I told him after I gave notice my id was read only, yeah I could have changed anything, I wasn't going to.

 

[travelover]

My departure was with a large group of other dead wood, so everyone knew in October that I was leaving at the end of February. That meant that I was largely ignored until departure, but I made sure that everything I did was done correctly, if not enthusiastically. I have my personal ethics and standards, regardless of the circumstances.

 

[Tallman4123]

I made my decision to retire 6 months before I actually did. I only gave 3 weeks notice (the minimum required) so I had a good 5+ months where I knew I was leaving but no one else did. While I did not let the quality of my work suffer, my heart was definitely not in it. What did that look like?
-More time working from home versus the office. I always had that option, but prior to my decision most of my time was in the office, since face-to-face collaboration with my team was more efficient.
-While my client obligations were always met, I began to participate less within the firm in any intermediate and long-term planning.

In retrospect, some of my behavior was passive-aggressive, though not harmful to anyone. The firm had been bought the year before and despite my desire to go with the flow, I was really having a tough time internally adjusting to the Mega-Corp BS. I didn't leave on good terms with my boss, who was unhappy with my short notice, but - a year and a half later - it matters not to me (nor to him, I suspect).

I moved 100 miles away the day after I retired and haven't looked back!

 

[pacergal]

My retirement was not unannounced--it was made loud and clear one year ahead!
I continued my daily due diligence, but ignored the politics as much as I could.
I kept good relationships and stayed in contact with a few work friends.
I was asked to continue on call, but adamantly declined.

Well, here it is a little over a year later, and the supervisor who took my place left suddenly. I am back one day a week, 10 hour shift, catching up almost from where my work was when I left--no question why that person left prior to being let go--my question has been, why did it take them so long to figure out the work was not getting done?? That tells me how much turmoil this place is in!!!

I can handle one day a week, the pay is good, and continue to ignore the BS. My plan is to get them caught up and another new supervisor on board for a few months, then I am re-retiring!

 

[lwp2017]

I gave 12 months notice. I had long service with the small company I worked for and wanted a smooth transition .

I was asked to stay several months and continue management of a very large, high risk construction project.

So I negotiated a extension/completion bonus which put skin in the game to care until the end, it was effective for me.

Once the job was done I gave 30 days notice- I wanted to make sure the bonus money was accurately calculated and deposited before I left the company ( it was).

Last 30 days were very hard to self-motivate, especially when asked to extend retirement again.

 

[splitwdw]

Me 4 months out, working 4 days a week. Complex assignment assisting an inexperienced colleague who is in the middle of a life meltdown (self imposed relationship stuff— as well as possible health issue?). Last meeting the individual was down right rude. I choose to Ignore it. Worked on my day off to get work done and avoid the coming blame game. Spent lots of time explaining technical stuff to a non technical person but the individual doesn’t get it. Colleagues have indicated similar experience with the individual.

My Mantra: As long as they pay me I’ll do good work to the very last minute. I know I shouldn’t care but my patience is wearing thin.

What was your mindset when you knew your time was limited?

Why is it unannounced? Maybe inexperienced colleague could be picking your brain if they knew. If colleague is having a life meltdown and they aren't asking your advice it shouldn't be your problem. No one has to put up with "rude" in the work place. If you are assisting, why are you doing the work on your day off? Since it's their assignment and you are assisting why would you get blamed. Why spend lots of time explaining technical stuff to a nontechnical individual? Why would the company ask you to do that? Is this nontech person that same as the inexperienced colleague?

 

[rayinpenn]

Why is it unannounced? Maybe inexperienced colleague could be picking your brain if they knew.

I’ll inform my manager a couple of weeks before I retire. I’ll work from home those last few weeks. After nearly 4 decades I’ve earned it.

If colleague is having a life meltdown and they aren't asking your advice it shouldn't be your problem. No one has to put up with "rude" in the work place.

Reality: Most people are nice but there will always be a few rotten apples. Their boss tends to operate ‘if i ignore it maybe it will fix itself’

If you are assisting, why are you doing the work on your day off? Since it's their assignment and you are assisting why would you get blamed.

You are kidding right. You never has a failing colleague point the finger? I want to do my piece of the work and get out.

Why spend lots of time explaining technical stuff to a nontechnical individual? Why would the company ask you to do that? Is this nontech person that same as the inexperienced colleague?

The struggling individual isn’t a coder - I am. Technical discussions are in my wheelhouse. I extract the data, write test code and interpret the businesses code. The individual has a boss who is very technical (very unusual) and will grill about the technical details.

 

[mystang52]

In the last few months (I had not given advance notice) I cared about my work, but only to the extent of my direct responsibilities. There were long term changes that, ordinarily, I would have suggested. But the culture of my company was not interested, and my initial efforts would have fallen on deaf ears. It would have required persistence, and aggravation, to see any changes made. And that presumes the efforts would have ever succeeded.
Knowing what I did about the decision makers, I chose not to say anything and just focus on my responsibilities. For my situation, that was the better course.

 

[38Chevy454]

I gave plenty of time announcement, so there was no surprise, but did not start the real countdown until about 1.5 months out. I continued to work my regular work load and contribution up until the last couple days, where i had to do all of the checkout processes.

Even before formal retirement announcement, a common phrase I told co-workers "It all pays the same". It helps your attitude when dealing with megacorp BS.

 

[Stormy Kromer]

Not me. I started walking and let the others run. And 12 years later I feel good looking back at it.

I owned the company and cared about my clients after I left. I also wanted my successor to be successful, but mostly, I wanted my long time clients I cared about them and wanted to put them in good hands.

If I could have coasted for 12 years I'd still have 10 to go....

 

[harley]

I owned the company and cared about my clients after I left. I also wanted my successor to be successful, but mostly, I wanted my long time clients I cared about them and wanted to put them in good hands.

If I could have coasted for 12 years I'd still have 10 to go....

I guess what I said wasn't clear. I coasted for the last few months between my announced retirement until I left. I knew my Megacorp would roll on without me, because even though I was a valuable employee, I was still just a cog. So when I retired 12 years ago, I wasn't in the least bit worried about what anybody there thought. I was looking forward.

 

[pb4uski]

I figured that as long as they continued to pay me that they deserved my best effort for their money. At the end, my work was lots of small projects, but many going on at the same time.... sort of a consultant to the consultants... so I didn't have to worry much about being blamed for anything other than advice that I had given. Wasn't much of an issue for me... over the last couple of months I just stopped taking on new projects, finished those that were close to the end and handed off those that were mid-stream. I actually didn't do much work the last month or so but I was ahead of the game on chargeable hours from earlier in the year so the slowdown was no big deal.

 

[Scuba]

I cared about my team and my company’s success, plus I guess it’s not in my nature to slack off and not do my best. I knew I was going to RE about 9 months before I resigned, but there was a large bonus at stake that I wasn’t prepared to risk, so I only gave the minimum required notice of 30 days. However, I had already transitioned several responsibilities, documented key aspects of the job, and completed several major projects before I resigned.

My relatively new CEO was an extreme micromanager when it came to financing, as that was his background. Whereas before as the CFO I would have driven any financing projects, he couldn’t let go and allow me to do that. If I had planned to stay, I would have had to have a heart-to-heart with him and if that didn’t work, I would have looked for another job. Instead, since I knew I was going to RE, I just played along with him and pretended to be appreciative of his “help.” His style made it VERY easy for me to leave without any guilt. When I resigned, he was completely shocked and said “but I thought everything was going so well.” [emoji23]

 

[VanWinkle]

I continued to work and meet all expectations. I was also offered a job to work from home for the same company after I retired. I stayed retired!!!