When I think back on all the crap I put up while working on my career, it's hard to believe I actually survived 45 years in those working environments.
My first employer was a family operation and enjoyed taking money from a gullible pubic and pushing employees to their limits so that they could get wealthier.
My second employer was a Board of Director who during the day were nobodies where they worked and were routinely bossed around like the idiots they were, only to find a little bit of power on the Board controlling for the sake of controlling to achieve no purposes at all.
My third and fourth employers were Community Colleges that played a numbers game with FTE (full time equivalents) because that is how they generated revenues from the State Legislature and it did not matter if it was real or not as long as it was on paper. The Presidents only wanted subordinates that did not challenge their authority and if that happened they had to go.
My fifth employer was a group of men who bought a division away from the parent for the sole purpose of building up its credentials so it could be sold for a substantial profit and none of those owners cared about the 6,000 employees that they were going to put on the unemployment line as long as they were able to turn a profit... but, this employer was Shirley Temple compared to
my sixth employer who simply lied to people and convinced them to spend $70,000 on education that was for all intents and purposes worthless. The teachers this sixth employer hired were backed into a corner and told that if they did not pass students along whether they earned it or not that they would be fired.
My seventh and eight employers were colleges as well and while both of these institutions did try to maintain good student outcomes at a reasonable price, making sure that students really did earn their grade, the supervisors that worked at these schools were not ethical or loyal to their subordinates and if you did not agree with them, then they found some way to terminate your contract.
Long before my first employer,
I spent two years in the military that is famous for it
chain of command and following the rules and giving
extra military instruction to those who tried to be independent.
And, there was a construction company, I worked at during the summers while I was a college student who built highways and simply expected everyone to work their asses off because that was the owner's mentality. No special pay or higher rates of pay just a hard day's work expected, but as a college student I knew no better.
All-in-all, my work was rewarding and reassuring and what made it unbearable were the people with whom I worked or the people for whom I worked and the more Christian they claimed to be, the more horrible their leadership and guidance... and, it was so remarkably bad that when I reached my full retirement age of 67, I could have worked longer, perhaps to 70 but I was so FED UP WITH MANAGEMENT that like my father could not wait to leave.
I lived modestly while working and I continue to live modestly being retired. If I had more money I am not sure if I would live modestly or not, but I live this way because this is all that I can afford... and, for the last 20 years have gradually toned down my expectations and needs in an effort to accept this way of life. Consequently, I have gotten used to living modestly.
Part of my ability to live modestly is that I have NO DEBT. My monthly expenses are right at $4,000 each month which allows my wife and I to take 4-5 vacations each year if we want to... this year there has only been one, even though we had three planned... BUT COVID-19 changed our plans. My wife and I eat dinner out once or twice a week, sometimes breakfast or brunch on the weekends and have plenty of things to do around the house.
Ten years ago, I did some consulting on the side and we used that money to refurbish our house and make it handicap accessible, including putting in a pool, large deck, gazebo, and hot tub to be our vacation if we cannot afford to leave the house which has not yet been the case... but, at 72 and 67 that time is right around the corner.
