Monday Blues

[laurence]

So it's monday, I found out I wasted two weeks of my time as well as several sys admins because we were sent the wrong version of a software package to test, and I realize I still have 5170 odd days until retirement. Who out there has a loooong time until they can retire and how do you keep yourself motivated? After the initital rush of revelation that I can ER (around 45) I'm feeling a let down knowing it's still 14 years off. This has been a mixed blessing in some ways.

 

[retire@40]

After the initital rush of revelation that I can ER (around 45) I'm feeling a let down knowing it's still 14 years off.

14 years is way too long to get in the habit of starting to count days remaining to ER.  I guarantee you that you will be on medications in about 2 or 3 years if you do this.

Just worry about earning and saving.  You might even surprise yourself with how much you can save if you put your mind to it.

How to stay motivated?  Set financial milestones up for yourself and then give yourself a reward for achieving them.  The goal might be saving your next $100K.  Open up a cold beer, or take the day off, or whatever makes you happy for your reward.

Another motivator is to keep track of your net worth on a monthly basis.  That exercise keeps you focused and makes you accountable to yourself.

 

[BristolBane]

Laurence, I also have a long time to go. What I'm trying to do is stay positive and actually try to engage more fully in my work. I spent the first 10 years of my working life just having a "job". I realize now that I should have been trying to build a career so now I'm setting some career goals and thinking about what I can do to make the next couple decades more interesting and possibly more financially rewarding in my work life. I don't want to be grinding for another 20 years. Besides, time flies when you're having fun

I think @40 was right that you'll go nuts if you focus on the countdown this far out.

 

[Cut-Throat]

Laurence,

Is there anything that you are not doing today, that you are putting off until retirement? For example, if it's travel, I suggest that you book a vacation for a week and go somewhere. Do this every year. It will give you something to look forward to.

Or is your current job bad enough, that you just want out of there? - If so, I'd look for another job.

But, you have to ask yourself. What would you do different today if you were retired? -

We're both surfing this website right now. (Albeit, I am listening to my stereo and thinking about getting a cool one 8) ) - But hey cocktail hour for you is only a couple hours away!

 

[BigMoneyJim]

When I first found these boards I had arbitrarily figured I could retire in 15 years...maybe 10 if I'm lucky. One day I finally put it through a spreadsheet and found that 20 years from now is more likely.

It's hard to stay motivated, and sometimes hanging out here is counterproductive.

I try to find ways to enjoy now. Ultimately you just do things because you have to. Even single with no kids I'm motivated to pay rent and eat. You have a child with Down's Syndrome; that must be a greater challenge than any financial hurdle life can throw at you. I've never heard you complain about that or have any motivational troubles regarding her. Whatever we do to deal with things in life that we have to we need to figure out how to apply to our careers.

You didn't mention saving, but it's intimately tied with career and ER aspirations. Ever since I saw the light at the end of the debt tunnel I've been struggling with how much to save versus how much to spend beyond basic needs. I've been spending rather freely the past 5 months but still saving 20% of my salary in my 401(k). Recently I reduced to 7% 401(k) so I can build up a cash account in anticiaption of moving and eventual car replacement and home purchase. It's tough to see a $300 401(k) contribution turn into a $200 savings deposit, but I have a lot of living to do between now and ER.

 

[laurence]

Thanks for letting me vent, guys. My job is the best I've ever had so far, I've just come to the realisation that no job is as good as ER.

CT you are right, I need to travel, take a vacation. That's what I most want to do when I ER.

BMJ, the difference with Tori is there is a clear cut reason and reward with her. DW and I feel we get too much credit with regards to her, because she gives us more than we'll ever be able to give her. This morning I came downstairs and found her playing with Mom, she looks at me, smiles and says, "DA! DA DA!" and kicks her arms and legs so hard she almost falls over in DW's lap, laughing the whole while. All this at 8 months old! Work never gives me those kind of thrills.

BB, yeah, I've been in what I see as my long term career for almost 5 years now, so it feels good to be on track. It's like I found all this good news (like getting to ER) got on track, set up all the accounts, invested.....and now the dust is settled and I have to passively wait. I first put that counter under my name as a joke with all the people about to ER on this site, but now I think it depresses me too much, I'll change it when I come up with something better.

 

[TromboneAl]

I've always been a tightwad, but I've recently taken my cheapness to a whole new level.  The only problem with this is that I think "Oh, gee, if I'd started being this cheap back when I was 40, I could have saved $20,000 more each year!"

So, you're still working, but the advantage that you have is that you can do that. 

A lot of the tips in The Tightwad Gazette have recently saved us a lot of money, with no decrease in standard of living.

 

[jg35]

I understand the Monday Blues. I work in the IT business (DBA). I took today (Friday) off. I am pretending to be retired today and it is wonderful .. I am trying to stay away from the temptation to read my e-mails from home today. I know there will be a full infile when I get in on Monday ... . I am 48, and trying to stumble through the next ten years ... unitl I can hopefully retire .. Well, back to retirement (for at least the weekend) .. I am even watching Regis and Kelly ..

 

[HFWR]

I am even watching Regis and Kelly .. 

Think I'd rather work...

 

[Dawg52]

Every working day is a blue Monday to me. Just burned out I guess. 
Not unhappy with the people I work with, just tired of the same old work. But with light at the end of the tunnel, I'm gonna try and make the best of my remaining work days. Hey, today is Friday!  

 

[laurence]

Amen to that! This week was a real grinder, I blew up one of our Active Directory servers and a member server implementing some security patches/tweaks ( I swear I tested before hand!) and office politics are at an all time high. But hey, I'm down to 190 lbs. ten more to go!

 

[nuisance]

Don't feel too bad. I just spent a month of my life trying to debug a problem that turned out to be faulty hardware in Japan.
I do think you have to enjoy your life as it currently is, though. Retirement is nice to think about, but just too far away. Which is why I'm only working 4 days a week, and why my fiancee (who's a teacher) isn't looking for a summer job.

Tim

 

[RockMiner]

A wise man once told me "Never wish time away"...it will be gone soon enough.

The last ten years have flown by, but sanity would have suffered severely if I'd been counting days to retirement.

Live for the day and ER will be there before you know it 8)

 

[jg35]

Amen to that! This week was a real grinder, I blew up one of our Active Directory servers and a member server implementing some security patches/tweaks ( I swear I tested before hand!) and office politics are at an all time high. But hey, I'm down to 190 lbs. ten more to go!

I hate putting patches on ... It shows how crappy operating system software is ... There is no consistency anymore .. It is almost impossible to test this stuff, and then feel ready to go for production .. The internet is out of control for large enterprise computing ... It is too wide open for hackers .. We should stick to its original intent ... share information between scientists .. Last statistics I heard was that over 50% of the internet is used for pornography !! And we rely on this internet for e-commerce, credit card information etc. ... I am so wish I could retire right now and not have to worry about database software ever again ..

 

[moghopper]

I hate putting patches on ... It shows how crappy operating system software is ... There is no consistency anymore .. It is almost impossible to test this stuff, and then feel ready to go for production .. The internet is out of control for large enterprise computing ...

Yea, and we should get rid of those cars too. Always crashing... just use 'em to haul ice up from the lake in the winter for our iceboxes. Crazy new fangled fancy pants whippersnappers!

 

[cute fuzzy bunny]

I always laugh when a news report says "The victims car left the road" or "The injured party's vehicle apparently moved into oncoming traffic".

We must, must, must do something about these errant vehicles that do these things that cause injury to their operators...

 

[HFWR]

Last statistics I heard was that over 50% of the internet is used for pornography !!

I am so wish I could retire right now...

Wish I could retire now, too, so I'd have more time to surf for porn...

 

[cute fuzzy bunny]

I doubt that porn only accounts for 50%. I'm pretty sure during the first 3-4 years of general commercial internet availability it accounted for 90+%. Well, it did at my house