Tag: early retirement

Corporate Stockholm Syndrome

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): […]

I’m no stranger to risk, but early retirement is scary

Reflection I spent a lot of my 30s and 40s chasing mountain summits. I finished the Colorado 14ers, summited the “Roof of Africa” (Kilimanjaro), tackled my share of 5th-class technical rock and plenty of exposed 3rd- and 4th-class scrambles. I snow climbed steep couloirs, slicing my arm open with my ice-axe in spring conditions, bleeding […]

Keeping the Courage to Leap into What’s Next

Reflections The tension between who I have to be at work and who I really am is just getting to be too much. It’s exhausting to be the high performer with the master’s degree and a quarter century of experience. I’m just not her anymore. In fact, I don’t want anything to do with her. […]

I Hope Retirement Didn’t Slip Out of Your Hands

Reflection Over the years, I’ve worked with plenty of professionals making really, really good money. Certainly plenty of people earning a comfortable $150,000-$250,000 per year. But executives aside, I’ve worked alongside and am networked with folks who, as sale representatives or consultants, have had a few back-to-back years earning mid- high-six figures. I wouldn’t be […]

Early Retirement: The Ultimate Career Flex

Reflection My LinkedIn feed can be a bit depressing these days. As if the layoff announcements aren’t enough, I deal with another sad phenomenon: Folks my age “career flexing” about the same stuff they’ve been posting about since their 30s and 40s.   Careers have seasons. That I have learned. The same things that fueled […]

Late career: Don’t overstay your welcome

REFLECTIONS Timing your corporate exit A lot of factors go into deciding when to exit your career. Many of these factors, including financial readiness, are deeply personal. Many people just seem to have an innate sense of when it’s time to exit stage left. Others, however, persist well past their professional expiration date. Let me […]

Over 50? You really ARE capable of amazing things

REFLECTION I saw this poster this morning. It was 5:25 AM as I was heading in for my weekly weight training. It caught my eye. You are capable of amazing things. Yes, you are. I want to yell this from the mountaintop every time I read my LinkedIn feed, which is flooded with woe-is-me posts […]

I’d Rather Clean the Chicken Coop

  REFLECTIONS   I’d rather clean the chicken coop than: When I clean the coop, my hens brrrrr with affection and approach me to be petted. They produce the most amazing, rich eggs. They say “thanks” in their own way, and they mean it. And I actually enjoy the work. I can see the end […]

Time to Hire a Corporate Jailbreaker?

Reflections You’re sitting at your desk, staring at your computer, feeling stuck and dissatisfied with your job. Maybe you’re yearning for something better—a chance to retire early or a miraculous financial windfall to liberate you from the grind. You know that such dreams are unlikely, yet the idea lingers. Perhaps you’ve even toyed with the […]