[boomzilla]

Be frugal. Don't buy a house unless you have at least 6 months of payments in the bank. Don't buy a car if you need to take a loan. Save as much you can. Build and maintain a strong network outside work (family/friends/professional contacts).

Every time I got into a difficult situation at work, I take a deep breath and tell myself: "Don't worry, give it your best shot to resolve this. And if that's not good enough, you know you can walk out that door and take a break for some time". It's been working well for me.

[throwaway6390]

There's a lot of truth to this, but if you've never worked this kind of job, you won't be prepared. Working this kind of job is what made me really understand the value of being able to say "FUCK YOU" and quit/not worry about getting fired. It drove me to build savings and now I insist on having no debt and at least $10k in the bank. It also drove me to move to a cheaper city, find a cheap apartment there, etc. $10k isn't a huge amount to some of you, but it's enough to pay the bills through a decent job search if your fixed expenses are low. Once I paid off debts and had that buffer, my soul-sucking horrible job seemed way better since I no longer feared being fired. It even allowed me to quit that job abruptly and enjoy life for a few weeks before going back to work.

We're pretty smart in some ways, but too many of us live essentially paycheck-to-paycheck. In an industry where jobs aren't hard to come by, and the pay's pretty good, it's easy to fall into that trap. If you're doing this, stop! Do whatever it takes to break the cycle. Sell your car. Sell your unnecessary stuff if that helps to start saving. Stop acting as if your future paychecks are guaranteed. You have no idea what a weight off your shoulders it is to not fear losing your job.

[defined]

It's well-meaning advice, but understand that, in situations like these, certain personality types don't think as rationally as you would expect. One size does not fit all when it comes to handling adversity.

[fstuff]

He lived in Pittsburgh about 35-40 miles outside San Francisco. Maybe a hour drive with no traffic 2 with, or a 1.5 hour Bart train ride and I think there's a transfer now so it maybe longer. Anyway he didn't go out and buy a mansion the bay area is so expensive even with his pay he lived far from the city where house prices are only crazy...not insane