Reflections
In this final segment of my career, I’ve worked for “Mega Corp”, Fortune 100 behemoths. Prior to this stage, I worked for much smaller companies, mostly software firms with fewer than 1,000 employees. I had a very scary realization shortly after onboarding at Mega Corp 1 (which has been confirmed at Mega Corp 2): Many if not most corporate employees are hostages with serious Stockholm syndrome.
Mega Corp employers are experts in professional entrapment. They’re like an abusive spouse, always sending the message to employees that nobody will love you like I do. Yes, the total compensation packets offered by Mega Corp are Cadillac: Sometimes overly generous pay, top-notch health insurance, chunky 401k matches and mega-Roth IRAs. And many employees of Mega Corp still envision a long-tenur; even today, its not uncommon for Mega Corp employees to join the company right out of college and retire from that same company 30+ years later.
Mega Corp “lifers” openly profess their loyalty to and love of their employer. They wear corporate swag, gleefully stockpile stock grants and coast along in a series of reorgs and annual initiatives. Until one day, the abusive spouse (Mega Corp) turns outright rabid and casts off a bunch of loyal 50-somethings in a cost-cutting measure for shareholders. The number of LinkedIn posts from recently laid-off middle aged folks who just can’t move on from their corporate abuser is mind-numbing. First the denial, then anger, some bargaining, and where most posts are focused, the depression. (I haven’t noticed many of these people reaching acceptance.) They cannot believe that the big company they gave themselves to for a quarter century just unceremoniously dumped them like spoiled fruit. I’ve literally seen posts from laid-off corporate lifers indicating their entire world has crashed down, the bank is foreclosing on their home and they’ve applied for public assistance. What on earth did you do with your Mega Corp. six-figure salary and chubby 401k match each of these past 25 years, smoke it?
I mean, folks, really. There is so much life outside of Mega Corp if you just look around and try something else.
My Solution
There’s a concept popular in the early retirement (aka “FIRE”) movement called “F-You Money”, and I’ve embraced this from early in my career. Simply, F-You Money is the accumulation of enough financial resources to be able to tell your employer to pound sand while still meeting your financial obligations. It’s the ability to walk away from corporate entrapment without your life coming to an end financially. This gives you the freedom to walk away from a job that no longer serves your needs. I’ve always been a saver and worked diligently to build my financial net worth and have additional streams of income. I also abhor debt so that I don’t owe anyone interest or principal. This gives me options, from a strictly financial standpoint.
There’s another concept I embrace, that of understanding that you can love a company all that you want, but they’re never going to love you back. This requires staying pragmatic about the relationship between you and your employer. It’s business and nothing more. It’s wise to have a professional free agent approach to work. Throughout my career, I kept an eye on other opportunities and never got too comfortable in my current role. Corporate jobs can change on a dime, and job loss is only one reorg or crappy new boss away. It’s always been clear to me that just as I am disposable to my employer, so my employer is easily replaced by another source of income. A job is a job, it’s a tool to earn money and really little more. Don’t expect too much emotionally from an employer, and you won’t be disappointed.
Key Takeaways
If you’ve spent your career in or adjacent to corporate America, by the time you’re in your 50s, I really hope that you are in the “Go ahead and lay me off, I wanted an excuse to retire this year, anyhow” position. But if you’re not on solid financial ground, I suggest building and executing a plan to significantly downsize your lifestyle in the event of late career job loss. Ditch the car payment and drive a simple, affordable car. Downsize your house, especially if the kids are grown and gone. Skip the fancy dinners and big vacations. Be prepared to live a smaller, simpler, cheaper life overall in the event that corporate America renders you professionally useless tomorrow.
And whatever you do, if you’re in love with your employer, stop that nonsense now. Don’t get so enamored with your compensation and benefits that you fall for the bogus belief that no other company can take care of you like Mega Corp can. Don’t bother being a company man / woman, wearing the swag and swearing allegiance to any corporate entity. They truly don’t give a hang about you and will forget your name before your severance package even runs out. Be prepared to for a split by emotionally severing yourself from your employer. Don’t expect too much emotionally from an employer, and you won’t be disappointed. And don’t fall in love with your captor.