Financial Samurai

When President Obama proposed to freeze Federal Government pay for two years I thought he was taunting us with an April Fool’s joke in November.  I mean really.  Is the public supposed to take the President seriously after he signed off on a 3.9% 2009 pay hike when Armageddon hit in 2008 while attacking the private sector for getting paid too much?  Not only did all Federal Government employees get a 3.9% pay hike in 2009, they also got another 2.9% pay hike in 2010!  In other words, while practically all of America suffered through the financial crisis with pay cuts and job losses, Federal Government employees raked it in!  We’re talking the percentage of Federal Government employees making over $100,000 jumping from 14% to 19% during the meltdown.  Sweet! Read more…

Here we go guys!  Now is the time to step up your game and go into Superstar mode!  It is very easy to start slacking with Thanksgiving and the winter holidays right around the corner.  Snap out of it!  Slack mode puts your career progression and whatever you are doing at risk during the most important time of the year.

THE 4TH QUARTER IS WHERE IT ALL HAPPENS

Promotions: Practically all promotions are determined in the 4th quarter. Managers will discuss who are the deserving ones who get to climb one step higher.  It doesn’t matter how hard you worked in the first half, if you are perceived as a weak performer in October-December, you can forget about that promo.

Pay Raise: With a promotion usually comes a pay raise.  However, there will often times be cases where you get a pay raise without a promotion.  Again, 4th quarter, or more clearly fiscal year end is when your pay raise for the following year will be determined.  Management need as much information about the current calendar year to determine a realistic budget.  It’s much easier to decide not to give a raise than to give a raise.  It’s up to you to perform so well that management can’t help but feel horrendously guilty for not rewarding you!

New Assignments: If you’ve been looking to relocate to a different office, or move to a different department, there’s no better time to be the best employee possible than in the 4th quarter.  You need the praise of your manager and of your colleagues to change, since they are putting their necks on the line to recommend you.  If you can’t show them that you are an excellent candidate working with them, they are certainly not going to recommend you working with others.

Who To Demote or Fire: As managers figure out their budgets for the following year, they almost certainly come up with a list of who are in the bottom 10%.  Not everybody is like Jack Welch from GE where he famously let go of the bottom 10% every single year.  However, rest assured that all managers are always thinking about who to let go in case profits drop drastically.  Get out of the bottom 10%, and better yet, get into the top 10%!

Bad Memory: Nobody remembers what you did in the first half of the year.  Think about all the times you write your year end review and forget about your own great accomplishments.  How about all those “oh yeah” moments where you forgot you did something awesome 10 months ago?  If you can’t remember, your manager sure as heck ain’t going to remember what you did either!  Hence, strategically, you should front load your vacations and cruise in the first half, and then step it up in the second half if you are so inclined.  Of course, it’s better if you can be the superstar all throughout the year!

WORK WHILE OTHERS PLAY

Always finish the year strong.  It’s the exact same mentality of a distance runner sprinting to the finish and a baseball player running through first base.  The 4th quarter is where you’ve got to give it everything you’ve got.  Come in earlier, volunteer more, increase your exposure and so forth.

Let those who go on holiday mode slack and then complain in 1Q why you got ahead and they didn’t!  And worst case, if you don’t get promoted, don’t get a raise, and actually lose your job there is always government help on the way!

Cheers,

Sam

It occurred to me that when it comes to money, I like to plan.  I have a spreadsheet that contains conservative pro forma estimates over the next 20 years with every line item you can imagine possible.  I’ve calculated monthly expenses 30 items deep and a revenue stream which already looks outdated because the economy has come back.

For everything else, be it a weekend or a vacation getaway, I don’t plan at all.  I’m totally spontaneous and decide what to do the night before or the morning of.  If I’m honest with myself, I attribute much of the reason to my lack of planning to laziness.  I just can’t be bothered to put work into fun, because planning ain’t no fun!  Earlier this year, I decided to go for a week long getaway to Hawaii just a couple days before Valentines Day.  My lack of planning cost me probably an extra $350 in airline ticket costs.  Meanwhile, I miss event after event on the weekends because I don’t bother looking at the upcoming calendar.  That’s not good, especially when N’Sync and the Bacstreet Boys are in town.  Oh yeah!

Not planning leisurely events can be expensive, we all know that.  But, I guess the reason why I don’t plan for fun events is because they are in essence already fun to do.  Being pleasantly surprised on the upside is always a nice feeling.  Who needs planning?  However, when it comes to money, it’s often the medium which allows for great experiences without worry.  Hence, I plan and plan some more.

What about you guys?  Are you meticulous planners or do you do many things on a whim?

GREAT POSTS WHILE I WAS AWAY Read more…

There is speculation that Price William and Kate’s wedding will cost anywhere between $30 million to $50 million dollars.  Surely, that’s a ridiculous amount of money for one day of fun with friends, family, and dignitaries no?  It’s not like the British economy is doing much better than the US economy, what with neighbor Ireland going into the tank, and now much larger Spain and Portugal looking to be next.

Surely $3 to $5 million would be more “reasonable” instead as the Royals plan for festivities surrounding their fine wedding date of Friday, April 29, 2011 at West Minster Abbey.  But really, with the average cost of a wedding in America hovering around $20,000 to $30,000 or a full 40%-60% of the median American household income, the Royal Wedding should be considered one of the cheapest weddings of all-time!

AMERICAN WEDDING EXPENSE EXTRAVAGANZA Read more…

Some of the “99ers”” unemployment benefits are about to run out and the government has to decide whether to extend again.  If one hasn’t found a job after 99 weeks of looking, there is a possibility that there may be an issue with the candidate rather than the economy, which seems to be improving day by day.  As a result, extending unemployment benefits for the 99ers might be a waste of money as some argue.  Not I.  I think there is a serious case for extending unemployment benefits to well beyond 99 weeks.  Stop being so smug!

99 weeks of unemployment benefits is such an arbitrary number frankly.  Why not 78, 63, or 103 weeks instead?  Who knows these things.  What I think the government should do is employ a “Shock & Awe Yeah” (SAY) unemployment policy of up to 260 weeks (5 years) provided one has worked for 5 years before applying.  If one has only worked for 2 years, then s/he will get 2 years of unemployment benefits and so forth.  Why such a long unemployment benefit level you ask?  Why not!

TWO MAIN BENEFITS Read more…

Dear Risk Takers,

It makes me smile every time I read a story about someone who takes a chance and does something crazy with their lives. Make no mistake, as a personal finance blogger I think quitting your job to travel the world without several years worth of savings is kind of crazy, but I love it all the same!  Your risky actions shows the rest of us that we don’t need that much to survive, especially those of us living in America.  We’re spoiled by excess.

You are the lucky ones because you aren’t encumbered with baggage. If you lose everything, you might have a moment of pity, but you never had much to lose in the first place.  For the rest of us, we’re tied down.  Many of us have mortgages to pay and mouths to feed.  How do we leave a job that doesn’t inspire, but pays us just enough to show up?  We’ve got spreadsheets and calculators where we pro-formalize our lives.  If we work this long, and save this much every year, then we’ll get to be free and travel the world!  But in the mean time, we have to patiently wait. Read more…

This is a guest post from Wojo, who likes to challenge the status quo at Fiscal Fizzle. He recently took my cue and asked his readers whether millionaires should file for unemployment.

We are judgmental creatures by nature. We (I think men, particularly) like to compare themselves to others using any identifiable status symbols—obvious ones like dress, cars, or homes, or more subtle things—actions, speech, composure, or respect from others.

It’s not necessarily a bad thing—we’ve been built to make split-second decisions about our environment to ensure our survival. Imagine for a second that you’re walking down the street and ask yourself how many times you’ve done this:

• You see a Maserati convertible drive by and think to yourself “Why would you waste over $100,000 on a car?”
• You come across a pleasant neighborhood you haven’t visited and see simple late 70’s homes with a two-story mega-mansion on a double lot. “Who are they to screw up the neighborhood like that?”
• An older lady walks by with a pampered poodle who’s wearing a custom-knit sweater and tiara. “Who would spend that kind of money on a pet? They’re just dogs!” Read more…

I’ve come up with a great business idea in the worst sector in the world.  No sector has had more bankruptcies than the airlines industries.  That said, I’m undaunted because I know demand when I see it!

Introducing Samurai Airlines, where babies pay more and the person in the middle seat gets both armrests!

The inspiration for my new company comes from years of frustrated flying.  I somehow always win the lottery by getting the middle seat next to bathroom with a baby behind and two giants to my left and right.  Despite all my trips and “Premier Status” on a number of airlines, I’m still treated like donkey food.  As a result, I’d like to propose the following benefits of Samurai Air: Read more…