A few days ago, my brother got offered a permanent job at the place he’s been temping. They’re offering him $60/hr plus benefits. He has to work at least 10 hrs/week, but he can work up to 40. At 40 hrs/week, that would work out to $124,800 a year. Wow. But my brother plans to work about 12 hrs/week ($37,000/year). He and I went for a sweet mountain bike ride this morning before his afternoon flight to Minnesota for the national underwater hockey tournament (it’s a real sport, I promise). As soon as he gets back, he’ll be on his road bike training for next weekend’s round of races. His life is basically devoted to his various athletic pursuits, sleeping, eating, hanging out with his friends and his girlfriend, and just chillin. I’ve known him for 27 years, so his announcement that he only planned to work 12 hrs/week at the new job came as no surprise. But it sort of dumbfounds me. If someone were offering me that kind of money, I think I’d work 40 hrs/week. Or pretty darn close to it. We’d have our mortgage paid off in just a few years, we’d max out our IRAs and our HSA by April every year, we’d have a sweet emergency fund (for just in case I lost that great job) and we’d have plenty of money left over. I guess because I’ve pretty much always worked at least 40 hrs/week, it just seems normal for me, and getting that much money for it (I’ve never even gotten half that much for working more than 40 hrs/week) would only sweeten the deal.
But from my brother’s perspective, he hasn’t worked full time for about six years now. He used to have a full-time cubical job where he worked as a programmer, and he hated it. He hated being indoors all day, he hated the commute, he hated being told what to do. At the time he was 21 and earning about $45,000/year, but he left that job and never looked back. He’s spent the last six years wandering the country (and the world, including a month in Thailand and a month in England), playing all his sports, enjoying life, and working enough to pay his bills. He’s had numerous jobs over the years, some in the computer field, some in construction. He has not had health insurance, which bothers me greatly. He does not have any real savings, as he only earns enough to pay for food, gas, car insurance, and race-related expenses. He and his girlfriend live with her parents, which seems to suit all four of them quite well, although I can’t imagine not having my own place. To their credit, they are currently looking at apartments, and plan to move out before her grad school program starts next month.
My brother is obviously a very talented guy in all sorts of areas, including computer programming. But he doesn’t have any of the obsession with money and security that I have. When we were little, we would get paid pennies and nickles and dimes to do chores. Even then, over twenty years ago, he would spend his money as fast as he earned it. He’d want to go to the Dollar General store and buy army men or a cap gun or little cars. I would just want to go to the bank. We were polar opposites when it came to money – I wanted to save all of it, and hated spending anything, while he just wanted to enjoy his money here and now. Neither of us has really changed much in 20 years. But today my brother mentioned that he’s looking forward to having a retirement account with this new job (one of the benefits) and that he does plan to contribute to it. And he plans to save money in addition to the retirement plan. Even when he’s paying rent, he can live pretty easily on about $20,000/year, so he should be able to put aside a decent chunk of money even if he only works 12 hours a week. And he’ll have health insurance (whew!)
He’s obviously a much more laid-back person than I am, but it seems as if he’s beginning to see the value of having some money in the bank. I guess I could learn a thing or two from him as well – like how to not worry about the little things and just enjoy today. So here’s to my brother. I hope that the new job works out for him, and that he’s able to save some money and get ahead a bit. But I also hope that he doesn’t lose the quirkiness and spontaneity that makes him so unique.
SMY says
I can definitely see the allure of not working a full work week, but only 12 hours a week? Wow, that’s only 1 1/2 days of work each week. I would definitely opt for working more hours for the higher pay, maybe splitting the difference and still having 3 day weekends, or something like that. The main red flag I see is your brother not having health insurance –New York magazine ran an article awhile back about young adults not having health insurance. The article profiled an individual who had a medical emergency and ended up with a hospital bill in the hundreds of thousands. The risks of not having health insurance are much higher than we realize. Your brother has also been lucky not having to pay rent (I assume, or at least, not full-market rate rent), which has always taken up a lot of my income.
Jones says
I swear i don’t sell insurance but don’t forget LTD. when i was 24 someone with whom i worked and trusted, also not in insurance, explained why the policy we had at work wasn’t sufficient and that it’d be smart to consider getting long term disability. So if something bad happens that limits your ability to work, like you get smushed in a race, you aren’t a total burden on your family. i now have a job with a good ltd benefit but keep that policy anyway, makes me feel better knowing it’s not tied to my employment. If I can downsize my job I wouldn’t qualify for somthing as cheap or comprehensive at 38.
Jones says
Also, and no offense. Stuff sounds harsh in writing when trying (tho failing i know!) to be brief. You describe brother as not having your hang ups about security and money. And I”ve not read this long so have no personal opinion as to whether you’re obsessional or just taking care of business. Plus I get that it’s none of my business. But blog interactions are weird this way. Anyway, I’ll take your word for it that you have hang ups. However, I find it tough to imagine a 27 year old white male with a college degree and job options who chooses not to earn his own living, ie lives with girlfriends parents, no matter how thrilled they are to host him, is not without hang ups. Or, fine, he doesn’t have hang ups. Believing that the world is always going to be your oyster might not be a hang up, but (and I don’t think you’re saying it is) it would be deluded to think is it a virtue.
FrugalBabe says
Jones and SMY, I agree completely with both of you on the health insurance issue (and the LTD). I’m a health insurance agent, and I hear horror stories every day. My father was diagnosed with Wegeners Granulomatosis 6 years ago, which caused kidney failure. He’s been on dialysis ever since, and on LTD for about 5 years now. My parent’s well-planned retirement would have taken a huge hit without the LTD, and I’m a big fan of those policies. But at the very least, everyone needs health insurance.
Jones, I don’t necessarily think that I have hang-ups, but I know that a person can be financially responsible without devoting quite as much time and energy to money management as I do. So while I don’t expect my brother to start blogging about money any time soon, I’d like to see him get his own place (the short-term living arangement with his girlfriend’s parents should be over very soon), have a health insurance policy and a retirement plan, and start saving some money every month.