Monday, March 10, 2025

Surviving the Gauntlet

I am sending out this message to the ether. It has been quite a while since I posted here, but I'm back, maybe for one last article. It is the future; the year is 2025. The United States is limping by, grievously wounded by the worst and most destructive president of the past 200 years. A new president has taken the reins, and we are all wondering (opposite political party included) what will happen in the four years to come, but that is not the subject of this blogspot article. What I really want to discuss is survival. What kind of survival? Not the one where you take your friends or kids into a park, pitch a tent, make sure your portable batteries are charged up so that the kids have their Apple tablets to watch cartoons on, so you and your wife can enjoy the trees sway, and maybe see a deer or two on the horizon. I'm talking about survival in the city, and no, the city doesn't have to be Manhattan or Chicago. It can be five minutes away from your suburban home or apartment. There are cities across the United States of all different shapes and sizes, and we all have to earn our living doing something. I am a regulator; what does that mean? It means that help companies work through and with government regulations. What's the problem with my job? Like most jobs, absolutely nothing other than boredom at times. Here is the real question: what is the problem with the people you work for? That's the riddle wrapped in an enigma. In the past 17 years after college, I have had a total of six jobs. All of which are more lucrative than the last. (We will be talking about saving money later, so hang on for that), and all the while the treatment of employees by these companies has gone from indifferent ignorance to outright detest. What to do? How to survive? It would be easy if people were allowed to work and then have free time with a very limited stress-inducing environment, but that's not the case. Other employees, other than your real manager, trying to manage you, other employees trying to give you their work, and your supervisor, who may be abusive, insecure, and petty, will try to replace you either to your face or behind your back because of very mild pushback on ethical or moral reasons. I mean, the vast majority of people on planet Earth were forced to take a vaccination that is now proven to have very low efficacy as well as a heightened risk of health issues that can include sudden death.
Let's talk about surviving the long haul, the long night to protect you, your family, and your treasure. First things first. Go to college or university for an actual skill. Law, accounting, environmental science, biology, chemistry, engineering, teaching, etc. That diploma will translate to a career. I totally understand how some people have been indoctrinated to believe that college or university is a waste of money. I have seen the propaganda. The issue with this is that as of right now, the entire job sector is built on degrees and experience. You need a degree to get the experience. If you do not have a degree, you run the risk of being stuck in a job for a long time, working from a very low level to a middle level before you retire or keel over. I don't want that to happen to anyone. Let me tell you the secrets of the private sector.
Remain ethical/moral; have your own principles, either coming from your upbringing or your religion or both. Never allow a job to make you into an evil person. A person that does not feel anymore, that does not care, that will allow injustices, abuse, and defiling to continue without a white knight blocking its destructive path. Even if it makes you a target, never do something that is illegal or immoral.


Always ask for the salary range during the phone discussions with Human Resources (HR). Once you know the salary range, you can pick the highest range. Do not go over that range, or they will discard your candidacy most of the time.


Always do your job well, and if you are blocked from doing your job by someone, make sure you make a formal written complaint detailing the issue to your supervisor AND HR (more on dealing with HR later).


If a job is not treating you well, try to fix the situation at that present job, make formal written complaints, try to be placed under a different supervisor, and move to a different department. If all else fails after three years of experience at that present job, start looking for a new company. The new company that you will be at may not be that much better, but at least you took steps to distance yourself from that toxic work environment. Your mental health is very important and can lead to strained relationships with family and friends.


Save your money; there is an old European saying when you get paid. Half the money in your pocket and half the money in the bank. Watch that bank account grow, and when it hits a good amount, make sure you talk to your bank and get a high interest rate and start making a passive income every month. An extra $100 to $400 of bill money can make you more comfortable with your expenses.


If you are offered a job making substantially more money, you can give the new offer letter to your present employer and see if they will match it. Do not allow them to drag their heels on this request. Give them a deadline of 1 business day. If they refuse, take the new offer with the sizable increase to salary. Some people have been known to get 40% more income from a single job move.


If you are ever being abused, asked to do something unsafe, or in a hostile work environment of any kind, start recording. Use your phone to take pictures, video, and audio of the entire situation. Do not tell anyone, even if they ask, that you are recording because it can lead to immediate termination.


Make sure you know what you're signing when accepting a job; some companies have non-arbitration clauses that will make it harder to gain damages from them if they are at legal fault for an on-the-job issue.


If something is found to be unsafe in the workplace, notify your supervisor verbally and in writing so there is a document trail, similar to dealing with Human Resources. If they do not correct the issue, call OSHA and make a complaint. You can legally threaten to call OSHA on your company if they are in violation of the regulations.


Understand who you are speaking with at work and make sure your confidants are really loyal.


If you leave a job and have put a sizable amount of money in a 401(k) account, you do not have to leave it in their retirement plan forever; you can call the old company's retirement plan and have them send you a check so you can roll it over in the bank of your choosing to have better control of it. If you have multiple companies that you work for, you can consolidate them all into one account to have the maximum return with little or no risk (CDs and IRAs that are not tied to market fluctuations).


Well, I hope this helped. No one trains us for dealing with the pitfalls of the private sector. Some people work all their lives to be dashed up against the rocks right at the finish line because of some issue, either medical, financial, or otherwise, because they just didn't have the information they needed to stay two steps ahead of greedy and unethical companies that look at their workers as a piece of coal to burn and discard. I say, burn and discard them and sit high on the totem pole of a company of your choosing that gives you the pay and respect you deserve.
Posted by at No comments:
Subscribe to: Posts (Atom)