Not my circus, not my monkey

[jonat]

I FIREd at the end of 2016 at age 61. This wasn't my plan - I expected to work another 4-5 years - but Megacorp both made it worth my while to retire then, and also dramatically changed the work environment to something I hated, so the decision was easy. Anxiety over the decision was not.

Like many here, I "self-identified" with the work I did, and I had a good reputation both within the company and among our users. I was a software engineer, though in the latter years I was on the support side, and I wondered how I would deal with it psychologically, especially as I didn't want to make a complete break from the field.

I decided that I would "step away" from that part of the world for a month - no peeking in the user forums, etc. Then I'd see how I felt after that. It was easier than I thought - while I was still glad to be a part of the community, I no longer felt the need to answer every question, investigate every problem, and feel personally responsible for issues. The Poles have a great saying that I discovered: "Nie mój cyrk, nie moje małpy", which translates literally to "Not my circus, not my monkey", or more colloquially, "not my problem".

Now I get involved where and when I want to, and don't feel I am shirking my duty if I leave issues to others (including the coworkers I left behind.) I remain active in the community, and have stepped up my involvement in the parts I loved.

Now it is close to a year after FIRE and I feel great! I have lots of things occupying my time, but they're things *I* want to do. DW and I are freer to travel more, and we do.

 

[MBAustin]

Congratulations, Jonat! Sounds like you've found just the right balance for you now. Way to go!

 

[travelover]

Congratulations to both you and your monkey. Like you, I've never looked back, and I'm past the ten year mark. My career was something I did to make money, not who I am.

 

[frayne]

Congratulations to both you and your monkey. Like you, I've never looked back, and I'm past the ten year mark. My career was something I did to make money, not who I am.

Well said.

 

[omni550]

I sometimes had this as my screen saver....

omni

 

[athena53]

I love that proverb!

Like you, I retired at 61 when I'd planned to retire at 65. No severance package but politics got ugly and I looked at the numbers and pulled the plug. That was May, 2014. Sometimes I can't believe that if I were on my original plan I still wouldn't be retired!

This year I went to a meeting of my professional society for the first time since retirement. It was in Toronto, a favorite city of mine, so I figured it was a good excuse. Besides, my field (property-casualty insurance) is still interesting to me and my son works in it as a claims adjuster. It was interesting- lots of new faces, of course, and many who were into rainmaking barely gave me the time of day- I can't bring them business or hire them as a consultant and my contacts, although extensive, are stale. Still plenty of people I was happy to see.

Last month a meeting of a regional affiliate of the society was held in Des Moines, where DS and his family live. No-brainer- I went there. I had a great time- two women with whom I'd worked and whom I still liked immensely were there and we enjoyed catching up, and left with hugs. Weasel ex-boss was not there. Yay! People close to my age expressed friendly jealousy that I was retired already and enjoying life. Some, when they found I wasn't in any sort of consulting, were incredulous that I was even there. I just explained that the insurance business was still one of many things that interested me.

Oh, yeah- the society has a meeting in Honolulu in November, 2019.

Still, when the hurricanes hit TX and FL, I was really glad my income no longer depended on company profitability.

 

[Red Badger]

Congrats on striking the balance and enjoy your freedom!

My last decade at megac*rp was in project management. I thought once I had retired a few months, I would want to do some consulting. 4 months into retirement, and the thought of returning, even if only for one-off projects, is almost nauseating. And, I'm glad for that. My time at the local soup kitchen is much more rewarding and I work with better people.

 

[CardsFan]

Congrats on striking the balance and enjoy your freedom!

My last decade at megac*rp was in project management. I thought once I had retired a few months, I would want to do some consulting. 4 months into retirement, and the thought of returning, even if only for one-off projects, is almost nauseating. And, I'm glad for that.

I could have written this exactly after 4 months (its been 20 now). The first call to come back gave me pause for a few days, the second call I turned down in 5 seconds. There was no amount of consulting work that could significantly impact our retirement accounts financially, and I retired for a reason.

BTW: "not my circus, not monkey" will now be my my catch phrase when asked about something not involving me. I never heard it before, but I love it.

 

[WestUniversity]

My career was something I did to make money, not who I am.

Well said... Congratulations Jonat!

 

[Calico]

Congratulations to the OP!

The image below has been taped to my monitor at work for the past 2 years. It helps remind me not to get sucked into the silliness and drama at work.

 

[street]

Congratulations to both you and your monkey. Like you, I've never looked back, and I'm past the ten year mark. My career was something I did to make money, not who I am.

So true in my career and very well said.

 

[MRG]

I wish I'd understood that concept while employed.

It's took a while for me to disengage. I'm very happy I have.

 

[audreyh1]

I did manage that attitude my last two years before retiring, and it was such a relief!

 

[FrugalLady]

So funny...."not my circus, not my monkey" was my motto the last 16 months on the job. After 22 years at the same company, it helped reinforce the need to just keep my head down and do my job and not allow myself to get worked up about the poor decisions being made by the company. It really did decrease my stress level considerably.

 

[audreyh1]

LOL! They granted me lower stock options because I didn't seem as "engaged", and then when I announced my resignation several months later they were worried that it was because of the low stock option grant! LOL!

 

[brucethebroker]

Great post.

Funny how many people out there are managing numerous circuses, owning many monkeys....

 

[Paracelsus]

Ha! I did run away from big business this year as a retiree and ran away TO the circus, where I am now staff there part time. I do love my monkeys . (No real monkeys here)

 

[Walt34]

I'd never heard the quote before either but yeah, I like it!

Another one, I think I first heard it when DW was watching Dr Phil on TV is "I don't have a dog in that fight".

Congrats on making the transition!

 

[CaptTom]

In my w*rk world, monkeys were something we had (or were placed) on our backs.

What other Megacorp buzzwords did YOU use? Ever play Buzzword Bingo at a meeting?

 

[ncbill]

In my w*rk world, monkeys were something we had (or were placed) on our backs.

What other Megacorp buzzwords did YOU use? Ever play Buzzword Bingo at a meeting?

You never had to segue into new paradigms?

 

[dtbach]

The motto I always liked was
Lack of Planning on Your Part Does Not Constitute an Emergency on my Part.

 

[Trooper]

Great post.

Funny how many people out there are managing numerous circuses, owning many monkeys....

Love the saying, but DW and I use it more often when talking about my dysfunctional family! It definitely applied at the office too.

Been FIRE'd a little over a year and a half now, and still no regrets.

Congrats jonat!

 

[Danmar]

Great saying. Will use it for sure. I retired over 11 years ago at 56. Took me a while to disengage from my career. Maybe 3 years or so. Gave up my CPA and CFA “memberships” a few years back. Virtually no unnecessary contact with my old employer. May take a while but inevitably you lose touch and interest.

 

[FlaGator]

OT, but all this chatter about monkeys....

First introduced to the "monkey" idea in 1980 by my boss. He was a very good and patient mentor for a 20 year old with a wide pore filter . The idea of not assuming responsibility for other's work did stick

Here's a link to a Harvard Business Review article from 1974, may have been the origin of "monkeys" into corporate lexicon.

https://myhbp.org/leadingedge/d/cla?&c=34022&i=34044&cs=9178c950820220739a6740a6b1ca6bfc

 

[kcowan]

First introduced to the "monkey" idea in 1980 by my boss. He was a very good and patient mentor for a 20 year old with a wide pore filter . The idea of not assuming responsibility for other's work did stick

Here's a link to a Harvard Business Review article from 1974, may have been the origin of "monkeys" into corporate lexicon.

https://myhbp.org/leadingedge/d/cla?&c=34022&i=34044&cs=9178c950820220739a6740a6b1ca6bfc

Yes Bill Oncken was famous for his entertaining pitches about the management monkeys. The series was called Managing Management Time.