Have you had your "FTE"? (Or Was it an FTM?!)

[Oilman]

@Mikkel linked me to this. Just took a brief look at this. Here's mine:

Worked at current place for nearly a year. Did all kinds of stuff like show up on time, don't talk back, help out with other stations.

Last weekend was the death blow. Manager was disrespectful, on top of doing illegal activity that I don't think will be appropriate to discuss on a public forum. Today I had a chat with an older coworker, told him about said illegal activity.

Interesting nomenclature "FTE".

 

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[Oilman]

I came back from a deployment to Iraq in 2016. I went back to my engineering job. It was my third deployment but things seemed very different. My job never excited me but the lack of passion I had for it bothered me. It was like I needed to keep my adrenaline up but there was nothing to replace it. I went to business school (for free) to switch it up but after finishing my program, I just became a consultant working for a firm where the majority of the consultants didn't have business degrees.

The FTE happened on my second project where my project manager gave me the old "put these binders together" tasks. I heard a similar story from other people so I know that this has got to be some type of kiss the initiation milestone. Like they really want see if they have your nuts. I went from working on engineering projects to a "top 10" business program, all to have some clown tell me to put binders together. I started resignation letter that day but didn't send it in until 2019. I didn't have an exit plan I just new that this wasn't it.

Now I am taking my licks and figuring out how to be an entrepreneur. The hard lessons keep coming but there is something about feeling like control that gives me that adrenaline spike that I have been missing since 2016. I love helping people but God help me to not run out of money before I figure this out.

First of all thank you for your service.

Second of all, I'm just posting this on limited time so bear with me. I wish you the best of your luck. All my life I've had mostly predatory jobs, we're talking about changing starting pay, not promising raises, etc.

I don't know how else I can make this more eloquent besides best wishes.

 

[futurePorscheDr]

Worked at big consultancy firm and mainly worked in a particular industry. Came up with a great (software) product that we could build and sell across our clients. I set-up an offshore development team, created the product and organised a number of demo sessions. We went on and sold it to a number of clients.

This resulted into 6-figure revenues for our firm. They've further built out this IP and have gone on to make even more revenue.

My boss took all the credit.
I received an amazon gift voucher.

omg, when you said you came up with the product, I thought you quit and developed the product for yourself.

It's absolutely true, every level of boss will want to take credit, like a F*cking flock of different kinds and different size of vultures. Then don't want to give anything to the guy on the bottom who actually made it happen, and then they wonder why employees are doing the bare minimum.

 

[futurePorscheDr]

The next day comes and I'm really sick now. At 4:30pm my boss sends me an email asking me to write her an overview of what was discussed the day before at the budget marathon meeting because she wasn't involved. She also wanted an update to a spreadsheet and she needed it by 7pm because she had a call with our London office where it would be discussed.

I turned off my phone, ignored her email and just slept.

I went back to work the next week and my boss had flown in from Melbourne to Sydney for some meetings and she sent me a text on her way in from the airport that she'd had a cancellation for her 9:30am meeting and did I want to catch up.

She rolls up to the meeting room a few minutes late and the first thing she said to me was, "I was pretty disappointed you didn't reply to my email last Thursday, I know you were sick and on holidays, but I really needed that info for my meeting."

This was my FTE.

I picked up my notepad and pen, told her it had been a pleasure, walked back to my desk, packed up a few of my things and left. My staff just looked at me a bit confused as I gathered a few personal effects and told my secretary that she could send me the rest next week.

I was in an Uber on the way home and my phone rings, it's my now ex-Boss, "Where did you go?"

It's almost comical, they think b/c they're the boss, they can do absolutely nothing, claim credit for everything, then express no gratitude, instead express "disappointment", then demand more.

in so many ways, employment is too close to slavery for comfort.

 

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[emavery176]

My latest "FTE" story is rising cost of living. The rents in my city (Atlanta) have almost doubled in the past 1.5-2 years. I have lived in the same apartment since 2016. The rent in 2019 was 900 and now it's 1700 minimum.

 

[realbillperry]

My mom passed on April 29. I've been reading, and action-faking mostly before. With SOME action-taking. My website is up and can make products.

But her passing (at only 70 years), hit me. Just making me realizing I'm running out of time (We all are I guess).
She spent most of her adult life settling from what I can tell, and I could've done more to put myself into a position to help her in terms of money and Quality-of-Life.

That's my FTE.

 

[acars513]

My FTE happened fairly recently. I had been in the financial services industry for the last few years (where I thought I wanted to retire from) as a banker at a branch. This bank was not paying nearly enough so a friend of mine asked if I would be interested in working for the company he is at and has been for over a decade. It's small, family owned business. I was reluctant at first but with a significant pay increase, I could not turn that down. Within the first few months, my boss was, essentially, telling me they will be training me to eventually take the shop over as the manager of this particular shop. He explained to me that he has been with the company for many years and that "we make the most money out of all of our other shops!" as well as "this will all be yours!". After noticing how stressed he is all the time, his hair falling out, his negative attitude toward the world, his devotion to not that much money (60 plus hours a week) and the sacrifice of never being with his family, all the while, him complaining how much his wife is always mad at him, complaining about customers and how everyone sucks unless they are from this particular area (we work in the neighborhood he grew up in) and his total aura of sadness, I am supposed to be filling his shoes? Is that what will happen to me (or anyone) that takes over his position? In that moment, I could see the future and it doesn't look good if this is what life looks like in 10 years! No way! FTE INCOMING! Nope. No more. I'm done. I am ready to be my own boss, make my own fast lane venture and not just get by because another job will offer me more money in exchange for 50+ hours a week of my time. It's more valuable than that. Way more valuable. I am forever grateful for finding these books, this forum, and community. This is only the beginning!

 

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[Kevin88660]

My FTE happened fairly recently. I had been in the financial services industry for the last few years (where I thought I wanted to retire from) as a banker at a branch. This bank was not paying nearly enough so a friend of mine asked if I would be interested in working for the company he is at and has been for over a decade. It's small, family owned business. I was reluctant at first but with a significant pay increase, I could not turn that down. Within the first few months, my boss was, essentially, telling me they will be training me to eventually take the shop over as the manager of this particular shop. He explained to me that he has been with the company for many years and that "we make the most money out of all of our other shops!" as well as "this will all be yours!". After noticing how stressed he is all the time, his hair falling out, his negative attitude toward the world, his devotion to not that much money (60 plus hours a week) and the sacrifice of never being with his family, all the while, him complaining how much his wife is always mad at him, complaining about customers and how everyone sucks unless they are from this particular area (we work in the neighborhood he grew up in) and his total aura of sadness, I am supposed to be filling his shoes? Is that what will happen to me (or anyone) that takes over his position? In that moment, I could see the future and it doesn't look good if this is what life looks like in 10 years! No way! FTE INCOMING! Nope. No more. I'm done. I am ready to be my own boss, make my own fast lane venture and not just get by because another job will offer me more money in exchange for 50+ hours a week of my time. It's more valuable than that. Way more valuable. I am forever grateful for finding these books, this forum, and community. This is only the beginning!

Have you seen the financials of the shop?

 

[acars513]

Have you seen the financials of the shop?

I have. One of my responsibilities of the shop is our in house accountant and we do, in fact, make waaayy more money than all of the other shops (last year we made 4.3m and our second place shop was less than half that).

 

[Kevin88660]

I have. One of my responsibilities of the shop is our in house accountant and we do, in fact, make waaayy more money than all of the other shops (last year we made 4.3m and our second place shop was less than half that).

Won’t it be a good deal if you take over provided that the terms and conditions are favorable?

Why not discuss succession plan now if the boss is as keen as he says.

How would you value the shop based on PE multiples and existing hard assets?

 

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[acars513]

Won’t it be a good deal if you take over provided that the terms and conditions are favorable?

Why not discuss succession plan now if the boss is as keen as he says.

How would you value the shop based on PE multiples and existing hard assets?

A couple of things for context:

I have zero desire to work any more in this industry than I already do. The owner is the son of the original owner who bought the business back in the 70's or 80's and he has no inclination to sell due to their rapid expansion.

I came from the banking industry (retail) which I didn't exactly hate but knew I could do better. I was offered this position due to the much higher pay. I have only been here for about 6 months and in that short amount if time, the FTE has happened. And I am so glad it did and that I found this community!

It isn't just this specific shop but the company as a whole is valued quite favorably. The owner constantly gets calls from private equity firms regarding buyouts and/or M&A. He has no intention on selling anytime soon and, potentially, wants to pass it down to his children as well. He also is not open to the idea

Long story short: I am ready to be my own boss, have my own business where I provide incredible value to customers and help those with their business needs as well as carve my own path.