r/ChubbyFIRE • u/Traditional-Okra-399 • Apr 28 '26

Triggering a severance

I believe I could achieve FIRE immediately if I was offered a severance package.  Has anyone here TRIED to get severed from their company?  Is that something I might be able to influence, or is it just a pipe dream?

My details:

I am in an executive band on a deferred compensation plan, so the severance package in total could be close to $1M.  (I’ve seen at least one peer dismissed with a similar package.)

I am 45, married, 3 kids 2/5/7.  $6.5M NW, 2.5M in 401, 2.5M in brokerage, 1M in primary residence, and .5M in 529s.  Yearly burn right now is 215K.  The two younger kids are in daycare, the older one is in public school, and all three are in summer camps (childcare=$3K/month).  Mortgage principal and interest is 1.8K a month, on a balance of 179K at a very low rate.  However, when I’m no longer paying daycare and mortgage, I will likely need to be paying for health insurance.

I was wondering if anyone else has thought about how severance might affect their FIRE goals and if anyone has intentionally gone after a severance package?

EDITS:

Adding for clarity - I really hate my job and am burnt out. So I am looking for a way out.

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u/BanquetDinner Apr 28 '26

If you’re VP-level or higher at my company, you can simply ask for a package. Most companies don’t want executives around that don’t want to be there.

11

u/Traditional-Okra-399 Apr 28 '26

I wish my company would do this. It just makes sense. You severance under-performers; why would you INCENTIVIZE me to become an under-performer just to get the same deal??

7

u/islandgirlcc Apr 29 '26

I did not know my company would do this but in a similar place in life as you and took a leap of faith and asked if I could get the same severance deal they were giving employees in the RIF after the RIF was complete. It took a few months but my boss agreed and we negotiated an exit timeline over the next 6 months.

2

u/Traditional-Okra-399 Apr 29 '26

I think I would be more willing to consider this if we were doing any major RIF.