Anonymous
Post 08/21/2025 19:42     Subject: Feeling so stuck in current fed job
I'm trying to lean in to not feeling guilty about using my acquired leave, even though we've had a 75% reduction of staff in our office. I don't know what else to do.
Anonymous
Post 08/21/2025 19:30     Subject: Feeling so stuck in current fed job
How old are you?

The hotelling sounds really painful. I think in your shoes I would try to figure out ways to make it more tenable and any possible workarounds.
Anonymous
Post 08/21/2025 19:28     Subject: Feeling so stuck in current fed job
Anonymous wrote:No, everyone is not right there with you. We worked low wage jobs with no benefits or even a contract. We all bought growth stocks and crypto in 2020 and we thought we were late. We had nothing to lose. I put my $800 a week unemployment into them. I had previously made only $400 a week.
Everyone with a fancy job seemed skeptical as we jumped in. I'm talking about 10 people who could have done what I and few of my co-workers did.
I retire this year. All those people with decent jobs, 401k's, and benefits are still working and will be til they are 65.
'If I were to lose the money, it's only 10%'. The rest is what I have learned. I can get it back, but faster this time.


Stick it up your butt.
Anonymous
Post 08/21/2025 19:23     Subject: Feeling so stuck in current fed job
Anonymous wrote:
Anonymous wrote:No, everyone is not right there with you. We worked low wage jobs with no benefits or even a contract. We all bought growth stocks and crypto in 2020 and we thought we were late. We had nothing to lose. I put my $800 a week unemployment into them. I had previously made only $400 a week.
Everyone with a fancy job seemed skeptical as we jumped in. I'm talking about 10 people who could have done what I and few of my co-workers did.
I retire this year. All those people with decent jobs, 401k's, and benefits are still working and will be til they are 65.
'If I were to lose the money, it's only 10%'. The rest is what I have learned. I can get it back, but faster this time.


You worked low wage jobs and....what? Bought enough crypto to retire? Get out of here


Let’s say they retired at 45 with $2M

The low for BTC was $7200, it’s now $112000, so it’s a 15x multiple. So you would have needed to buy $130k worth of BTC at that low point to have made enough to retire. And $2M is a sparse Mr money mustache retirement.
Anonymous
Post 08/21/2025 19:21     Subject: Feeling so stuck in current fed job
Anonymous wrote:
Anonymous wrote:No, everyone is not right there with you. We worked low wage jobs with no benefits or even a contract. We all bought growth stocks and crypto in 2020 and we thought we were late. We had nothing to lose. I put my $800 a week unemployment into them. I had previously made only $400 a week.
Everyone with a fancy job seemed skeptical as we jumped in. I'm talking about 10 people who could have done what I and few of my co-workers did.
I retire this year. All those people with decent jobs, 401k's, and benefits are still working and will be til they are 65.
'If I were to lose the money, it's only 10%'. The rest is what I have learned. I can get it back, but faster this time.


You worked low wage jobs and....what? Bought enough crypto to retire? Get out of here

One weird trick!
Anonymous
Post 08/21/2025 19:19     Subject: Feeling so stuck in current fed job
Anonymous wrote:No, everyone is not right there with you. We worked low wage jobs with no benefits or even a contract. We all bought growth stocks and crypto in 2020 and we thought we were late. We had nothing to lose. I put my $800 a week unemployment into them. I had previously made only $400 a week.
Everyone with a fancy job seemed skeptical as we jumped in. I'm talking about 10 people who could have done what I and few of my co-workers did.
I retire this year. All those people with decent jobs, 401k's, and benefits are still working and will be til they are 65.
'If I were to lose the money, it's only 10%'. The rest is what I have learned. I can get it back, but faster this time.


Congrats on your lottery winnings but you will probably lose it all based upon the way you think.
Anonymous
Post 08/21/2025 19:16     Subject: Feeling so stuck in current fed job
OP, former Fed just jumping in to say I am so sorry you are going through this it is truly awful. Are you doing everything you can to take care of your health right now? Sleep, exercise, taking a mental health sick day every 10 days if you can? Also you have made it this far, it’s no small feat. Try to think in increments, get to the end of the year, then the summer, etc. I’m the meantime, if you have the energy to face a very tough job market then do it. But if you don’t, that’s OK too. There is no manual for how to navigate this epic shitstorm. Good luck.
Anonymous
Post 08/21/2025 19:02     Subject: Feeling so stuck in current fed job
Anonymous wrote:No, everyone is not right there with you. We worked low wage jobs with no benefits or even a contract. We all bought growth stocks and crypto in 2020 and we thought we were late. We had nothing to lose. I put my $800 a week unemployment into them. I had previously made only $400 a week.
Everyone with a fancy job seemed skeptical as we jumped in. I'm talking about 10 people who could have done what I and few of my co-workers did.
I retire this year. All those people with decent jobs, 401k's, and benefits are still working and will be til they are 65.
'If I were to lose the money, it's only 10%'. The rest is what I have learned. I can get it back, but faster this time.


You worked low wage jobs and....what? Bought enough crypto to retire? Get out of here
Anonymous
Post 08/21/2025 18:06     Subject: Feeling so stuck in current fed job
Anonymous wrote:No, everyone is not right there with you. We worked low wage jobs with no benefits or even a contract. We all bought growth stocks and crypto in 2020 and we thought we were late. We had nothing to lose. I put my $800 a week unemployment into them. I had previously made only $400 a week.
Everyone with a fancy job seemed skeptical as we jumped in. I'm talking about 10 people who could have done what I and few of my co-workers did.
I retire this year. All those people with decent jobs, 401k's, and benefits are still working and will be til they are 65.
'If I were to lose the money, it's only 10%'. The rest is what I have learned. I can get it back, but faster this time.


Completely irrelevant to the discussion.
Anonymous
Post 08/21/2025 18:03     Subject: Feeling so stuck in current fed job
No, everyone is not right there with you. We worked low wage jobs with no benefits or even a contract. We all bought growth stocks and crypto in 2020 and we thought we were late. We had nothing to lose. I put my $800 a week unemployment into them. I had previously made only $400 a week.
Everyone with a fancy job seemed skeptical as we jumped in. I'm talking about 10 people who could have done what I and few of my co-workers did.
I retire this year. All those people with decent jobs, 401k's, and benefits are still working and will be til they are 65.
'If I were to lose the money, it's only 10%'. The rest is what I have learned. I can get it back, but faster this time.
Anonymous
Post 08/21/2025 18:02     Subject: Feeling so stuck in current fed job
Anonymous wrote:I'm concentrating on the countdown clock for 20 years and planning to "retire." May start applying for other positions in about a year and half and hopefully have some interest before my three years are up.

Everyone is right there with you OP. I put in my 8 hours, take my whole lunch and both my breaks. No more working overtime or skipping breaks. It's now a job only and doesn't offer the satisfaction of actually being able to help the American people because layoffs have ground everything to a halt.


But if you get to the 20, you aren’t automatically guaranteed to be eligible for VERA are you? I thought the agency still has to authorize it.
Anonymous
Post 08/21/2025 18:01     Subject: Feeling so stuck in current fed job
Anonymous wrote:I left as a GS-15, but it was with far fewer years of service and I knew I could get a job. If I were in your position, I would really try to stick it out. Use your annual and sick leave. Leave your work at work. Remind yourself that you're not the one who created a situation in which it's impossible for your agency to achieve its objectives, and you can't care more than leadership does.


I am trying. Every day is miserable. I feel like I’m dying a slow painful death - obviously my mental health is declining, but so is my physical health. Thanks for the input.
Anonymous
Post 08/21/2025 17:55     Subject: Feeling so stuck in current fed job
I left as a GS-15, but it was with far fewer years of service and I knew I could get a job. If I were in your position, I would really try to stick it out. Use your annual and sick leave. Leave your work at work. Remind yourself that you're not the one who created a situation in which it's impossible for your agency to achieve its objectives, and you can't care more than leadership does.
Anonymous
Post 08/21/2025 17:51     Subject: Feeling so stuck in current fed job
I'm concentrating on the countdown clock for 20 years and planning to "retire." May start applying for other positions in about a year and half and hopefully have some interest before my three years are up.

Everyone is right there with you OP. I put in my 8 hours, take my whole lunch and both my breaks. No more working overtime or skipping breaks. It's now a job only and doesn't offer the satisfaction of actually being able to help the American people because layoffs have ground everything to a halt.
Anonymous
Post 08/21/2025 17:44     Subject: Feeling so stuck in current fed job
GS-15 with 16 years in. I don’t hate the work (and at times find it mentally satisfying), but the current environment, working with a 20% decrease in workforce, full-time RTO, zero flexibility, no designated office space (so we are hoteling and shuffling our things back and forth everyday), make the current job miserable.

But with so much time invested, including the pension plan that I’ve been working for all these years towards, lead to feeling stuck. Not to mention I keep hearing the job market is terrible.

How is everyone managing?