I need to rant for a minute. Originally when I entered the work world I thought I was simply missing something, but after 7 years I can confidently say this: People like to cash in on buzzwords. Buzzwords they use incorrectly, buzzwords they don’t understand. The people they’re selling to also don’t seem to know what they’re talking about and don’t seem to care. Continue reading “Cashing In On Buzzwords”→
I’ve been working for almost 7 years and I have always had a hard time pinpointing exactly why I dislike traditional work so much. After help from my partner I’ve figured out one of the reasons. The 9-to-5 work schedule was originally created in the Industrial Revolution with physical laborers in mind. 8 hours being a cog in a factory gives you another 8 hours with your family (theoretically) and another 8 hours to sleep. Perfect! Continue reading “Constant Low-Level Stress”→
Something shocking happened at work. I was hosting an event to share recent vacation pictures with the group. Our other presenter had recently spent a month in Mexico. He even wrote a blog post for our company about how to successfully work from anywhere. He used 2 weeks of PTO to basically work half time and extend his time there. Their main goal for the trip was to look into buying a house near Puerto Vallarta. Continue reading “Early Retirement Dropped At Work”→
This is hilarious and unnecessary in my case because…
I got a raise! And not just a cost-of-living increase of 2%, but a REAL raise of 4%! I’m assuming that’s just on my base salary so I’m going from $90,000 base to $93,600 with a guaranteed $10,000 target bonus and $600 for my cell phone. Without any stretch bonuses I’m up to $104,200! Continue reading “A Raise (And What It Means for Retirement)”→
It’s been a cloudy and rainy week in Seattle. Before I moved here I would have thought that’s a normal sentence, but it’s really not. Seattle is a wonderfully sunny place. Even when the day starts out crazy cloudy it’s sunny with a clear blue sky by the afternoon. This week has not been like that. We have been experiencing downpours this past week, which have kept the skies grey. It being January the fact that the sun rises at 8am and sets around 4pm has not been helping. Continue reading “Letting Motivation Come”→
I set up LinkedIn 6 months into my career in 2012 when I was starting to think of my first job hop. That also happened to be the time when I lost 30 lbs in 3 months by starving myself (coincidence?!…yeah I think it was…) As a result, the picture I used showed a skinny me smiling (also wine glasses…you have to show who you are, you know?) I’ve had that picture on LinkedIn since then: 6 years. Continue reading “LinkedIn Picture Lies”→
The human brain is insane. I’m talking specifically about mine. We come to expect what’s happening now to happen forever. This is part of the irrational exuberance that creates bubbles and crashes in the stock market. It’s our nature and it’s hard to reign in. I caught my brain in the same trap recently. We recently received our Q3 bonuses. As I’ve mentioned before part of my compensation is a guaranteed target bonus that everyone receives unless they’re on a performance improvement plan. The rest of the bonus is discretionary and based on performance. I call this the “stretch bonus.” Continue reading “Disappointment Over Free Money (AKA Dumb Feelings)”→
Guess we need to start hanging out in a place like this – because stereotypes.
My partner brought up American classes the other day and discovered something shocking: within these weird and seemingly arbitrary classifications a household income over $200,000 OR a net worth of over $200,000 is the baseline for Upper Middle Class.
…We’re Upper Middle Class?!?! Even without my partner I’m Upper Middle Class?! That’s just baffling to me. Yes I know the bias that everyone thinks they’re Middle Class whether they make $5 million or $50,000 based on a recent NY Times article, but I still didn’t consider this. I think of Upper Middle Class people as Manhattanites that own a condo and have a club membership: not mega-spenders like the stereotypes of Upper Class, but definitely very different from what I consider my simple life. Continue reading “We’re Upper Middle Class?”→
I need to rant for a minute. Originally when I entered the work world I thought I was simply missing something, but after 7 years I can confidently say this: People like to cash in on buzzwords. Buzzwords they use incorrectly, buzzwords they don’t understand. The people they’re selling to also don’t seem to know what they’re talking about and don’t seem to care. Continue reading “Cashing In On Buzzwords” 
I’ve been working for almost 7 years and I have always had a hard time pinpointing exactly why I dislike traditional work so much. After help from my partner I’ve figured out one of the reasons. The 9-to-5 work schedule was originally created in the Industrial Revolution with physical laborers in mind. 8 hours being a cog in a factory gives you another 8 hours with your family (theoretically) and another 8 hours to sleep. Perfect! 
Something shocking happened at work. I was hosting an event to share recent vacation pictures with the group. Our other presenter had recently spent a month in Mexico. He even wrote a blog post for our company about how to successfully work from anywhere. He used 2 weeks of PTO to basically work half time and extend his time there. Their main goal for the trip was to look into buying a house near Puerto Vallarta. 
I set up LinkedIn 6 months into my career in 2012 when I was starting to think of my first job hop. That also happened to be the time when I lost 30 lbs in 3 months by starving myself (coincidence?!…yeah I think it was…) As a result, the picture I used showed a skinny me smiling (also wine glasses…you have to show who you are, you know?) I’ve had that picture on LinkedIn since then: 6 years. 
The human brain is insane. I’m talking specifically about mine. We come to expect what’s happening now to happen forever. This is part of the irrational exuberance that creates bubbles and crashes in the stock market. It’s our nature and it’s hard to reign in. I caught my brain in the same trap recently. We recently received our Q3 bonuses. As I’ve mentioned before part of my compensation is a guaranteed target bonus that everyone receives unless they’re on a performance improvement plan. The rest of the bonus is discretionary and based on performance. I call this the “stretch bonus.” 
Guess we need to start hanging out in a place like this – because stereotypes.