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Why 2013 May Be The Year You Quit Your Job

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Re: Why 2013 May Be The Year You Quit Your Job

#11

Post by guylhem »

Joeri wrote: post #7

And over here in a socialist northern european country record numbers of small companies are going bankrupt, going into business for yourself is seen as a crazy risk, everyone is looking for a reliable j-o-b type job, retirement plans are still a healthy choice, and the middle class is holding steady. Are we really in such an antithetical situation from the U.S., or is this article part fabrication?

Don't worry, it will happen in Europe soon too.

The only question is whether you start planning in advance, or if you want to be hurt.

I'm not expecting to see a single cent from the money the government is robbing me under the pretext of "retirement" to fund its massive ponzi scheme dependant on an always growing working population.

Re: Why 2013 May Be The Year You Quit Your Job

#12

Post by JunkDNA »

codenerdz wrote: post #3

The article is mostly scaremongering, but the reason I posted it was mostly the 401k comments. Any "old timers" (meaning those that put money away into 401k through out at least 2 recent market crashes, dotcom and the financial one) here willing to comment as to how their 401k fared? The biggest advantage I see(especially working for the company that does the matching) is that a) Its a saving account that you cant ta…

It all depends on what your investing your 401k in, but putting it in a stock index fund is a pretty good guard against inflation. Stocks will adjust accordingly to inflation, but putting the money in the bank certainly won't. Also, it is amusing to me that people freak out and stop investing when the market tanks. That's like only buying groceries when they aren't on sale! The best time to buy stocks is when they are down. If you invest consistently over boom and bust, you can insulate yourself pretty well against major swings. Of course, free advice from strangers on the Internet is worth what you pay.

Re: Why 2013 May Be The Year You Quit Your Job

#14

Post by yeureka »

porter wrote: post #10
yeureka wrote: post #2

In my case 2013 may be the year I go back to a steady job.

Why is that? What happened?

I quit my previous job to freelance in an area I enjoy more. 2 years after that my savings have dropped considerably and I need to start thinking about getting a mortgage and help my parents as their financial situation is very risky even though they have always worked insanely hard. I hope to go back to what I do know but the urgency of positive cash flow is more pressing at the moment.

Re: Why 2013 May Be The Year You Quit Your Job

#15

Post by rprasad »

codenerdz wrote: post #3

The article is mostly scaremongering, but the reason I posted it was mostly the 401k comments. Any "old timers" (meaning those that put money away into 401k through out at least 2 recent market crashes, dotcom and the financial one) here willing to comment as to how their 401k fared? The biggest advantage I see(especially working for the company that does the matching) is that a) Its a saving account that you cant ta…

Until late in 2012, I came out ahead far more by paying down my graduate student loan debt than I did by contributing to my 401(k). However, that is because my graduate student loans are statutorily fixed at 6.5% or higher, whereas market returns have been close to zero or negative.

Re: Why 2013 May Be The Year You Quit Your Job

#17

Post by accountswu »

yeureka wrote: post #14
porter wrote: post #10

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Why is that? What happened?

I quit my previous job to freelance in an area I enjoy more. 2 years after that my savings have dropped considerably and I need to start thinking about getting a mortgage and help my parents as their financial situation is very risky even though they have always worked insanely hard. I hope to go back to what I do know but the urgency of positive cash flow is more pressing at the moment.

That would be the right thing to do. You will still have more time left when you can earn money but you won't have as much time to help your parents if you choose to be selfish today.

Re: Why 2013 May Be The Year You Quit Your Job

#18

Post by eli_gottlieb »

Joeri wrote: post #7

And over here in a socialist northern european country record numbers of small companies are going bankrupt, going into business for yourself is seen as a crazy risk, everyone is looking for a reliable j-o-b type job, retirement plans are still a healthy choice, and the middle class is holding steady. Are we really in such an antithetical situation from the U.S., or is this article part fabrication?

90% of new companies in America don't last 2 years, IIRC. Not That Different.

Re: Why 2013 May Be The Year You Quit Your Job

#19

Post by muzz »

codenerdz wrote: post #3

The article is mostly scaremongering, but the reason I posted it was mostly the 401k comments. Any "old timers" (meaning those that put money away into 401k through out at least 2 recent market crashes, dotcom and the financial one) here willing to comment as to how their 401k fared? The biggest advantage I see(especially working for the company that does the matching) is that a) Its a saving account that you cant ta…

d) It facilitates dollar-cost averaging, and lengthy time horizons

Yes, you have to invest wisely, but most plans have an S&P 500 index fund for growth and a Bond fund for income (your allocation mix should be more growth when younger, more income when older).

Re: Why 2013 May Be The Year You Quit Your Job

#20

Post by muzz »

rprasad wrote: post #15
codenerdz wrote: post #3

The article is mostly scaremongering, but the reason I posted it was mostly the 401k comments. Any "old timers" (meaning those that put money away into 401k through out at least 2 recent market crashes, dotcom and the financial one) here willing to comment as to how their 401k fared? The biggest advantage I see(especially working for the company that does the matching) is that a) Its a saving account that you cant ta…

Until late in 2012, I came out ahead far more by paying down my graduate student loan debt than I did by contributing to my 401(k). However, that is because my graduate student loans are statutorily fixed at 6.5% or higher, whereas market returns have been close to zero or negative.

Market returns have been volatile. S&P 500 for the past few years [1]:

2012 16.00% 2011 2.05% 2010 15.06% 2009 26.46% 2008 −37.00% 2007 5.49% 2006 15.79%

[1] http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/S%26P_500#Total_annual_returns_...

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