The first time I learned about a F*ck You Fund was when I read an online article from Paulette Perhach. I was blown away by the idea and immediately went to my own numbers to see if I had inadvertently created such a fund of my very own. Short answer – yes, I have!
Props must also be given to one of the grand-daddies of the financial independence moment, J. L. Collins, who gifted the world with this wonderful article about F*ck You money and why everyone should have some. Mr. Collins also shared this delightful and instructive video on the importance of being in the position to say “F*ck you!”. This video is not safe for work, nor is it particularly suitable for children. However, it is very suitable for anyone who is looking to ensure that they have options for walking away if the need should arise.
A few months ago, the wise couple known online as FireCracker and Wanderer at www.millenial-revolution.com posted an article about how money in the bank limits your employer’s ability to f*ck you over. I’ll call it the Index. In short, there is a strong suspicion among those of us who have worked for a long time that employers are more inclined to exploit employees who don’t have the option of walking away. The exploitation might be job-related, as per the charmer interviewed by Wanderer in his article, or the exploitation might be of the illegal variety, such as the various forms of harassment that are no doubt experienced by countless employees who cannot simply walk away from their paycheques.
Both of these ideas were incredibly powerful to me! I’ve been pursuing financial independence for a very long time because I want to know that I don’t need my job to survive. I want to know that I can take care of myself without having to put up with intolerable situations at work. Thankfully, I work in a bright office with smart & friendly people and I get to solve challenging problems for a great salary so I haven’t felt the need to storm out of the building while giving everyone the double-birds…yet.
No one knows what tomorrow will bring, right?
Having a decent-sized F*ck You Fund provides me with a sense of peace about my decision to go to work every day. I don’t have to go. I can quit and bum around for a little while before finding another position. If the circumstances warranted it, I could take a dream job for a drastic cut in pay and still reach my retirement goals thanks to having met my Coast FI number. Building this particular pot of gold one dollar at a time alleviates the frustration that I sometimes feel at work because I know that I don’t have to stay – I don’t feel trapped because I know that I have options! Even if I never have to storm out of my office, it’s very comforting to know that I would be okay if I did.
I would suggest that you create a F*ck You Fund for yourself, if you haven’t already. Unlike an emergency fund, the fund gives you options beyond mere survival if you find the need to part ways with your current employer. It puts a little bit of power back into your hands so you can say “No” to your employer when it’s reasonable to do so without having to worry about how to put food on the table and a roof over your head. This is where the Index comes in. You’ll gain the confidence of knowing that you won’t have to eat whatever crap is dished out your way because you will have a feasible option for taking care of yourself until you find your next job. Near as I can tell, the size of your fund has an inverse relationship to the amount of grief and misery that you’re willing to put up with at work. The more F*ck You money that you have, the less poop you have to eat.
Please do not mistake an F*ck You Fund for being financially independent. Being FI might mean never having to work but a F*ck You Fund definitely means never having to work for a jackass. The distinction is subtle, but ever so important.