The Gun Counter

Need to get my thoughts together here...

I'm about 10 months out from being able to retire from the Federal Government. Since I was hired under the old Civil Service Retirement System, that means I can pull the plug at 55. I'd be retiring on about 70% pay (just over 38 years creditable service). A comfortable retirement.

The real question is, do I really want to? I've got three real options.

Option 1 would be to remain in Federal service. I max out my retirement in another 4.5 years (end of 2022). Pro: More retirement, retain influence as a Subject Matter Expert. Con: It's not that much more money - about $12K/year.

Option 2 would be to turn my coat and become a contractor. Pro: BIG money. I'm not sure exactly how much, but would bet the bidding would start at $150k/year and go up from there. Plus retirement pay. Con: I'm career Navy Civil Service, not sure I could entirely turn my loyalties. Also, the major DOD contractors like to burn flight test personnel out...and I'm getting too damned old for 60-70 hour work weeks.

Option 3 would be to hang it up entirely. Go shoot. Maybe write a couple of books. Pro is that my time would be my own. Con: It's a surrender. A withdrawl. And I don't like that feeling. I'd have to find something to do, or you guys could get a pool on when I went nuts. I would not bet over 24 months.

Thoughts?

1) Do you have any debt?

2)Will you be able to pay it off before you retire?

If the answer to 1 is no, stick with the fedgov gig for another 4 years. If the answer to both questions is yes, then I'd suggest sticking with the fedgov gig.

If the answer to 1 is yes and 2 is no, retire from the fedgov ASAP, and work for a contractor until your debt is paid off.

I cannot stress this enough. Pay off any interest bearing debt that you have BEFORE you retire.

Work while you can if there is any doubt. The guys I know who retired and had to go back to work later were in a very suck place.

FWIW, I have zero debt. And a fat 401k.

Are you enjoying what you do now?

By the way you wrote them, options 2 and 3 don't sound like they appeal to you. I'd think hanging on while you cogitate might be the best thing for now.

The way you wrote 1 sounds like you enjoy at least certain parts of your job. Plus, after you CAN retire maybe other stuff about it will feel more comfortable.

It's your call, but you don't seem ready to hang it up.

So - could you keep living your current lifestyle, take the contractor gig, and put the increase in your 401K, and end up getting more than a 12K/year return in 4.5 years?

Can you take a contractor gig but insist on no overtime?

You shouldn't be afraid of the private world - we're the ines that make the tax dollars you've spent your career spending

If you like what you're doing, and having a little fun with it, you might as well stick with it, until you no longer like it, or it stops being fun. You've got to have an excuse to get out of bed in the morning, and even if it's nothing more than "Let's see what those idiots came up with yesterday" it's still worthwhile to get up and go.

When it stops being worth the effort, pull the pin and go to the house. (Says someone with no debt, who could have retired two years ago.)

Right now, the job has its good days, and its bad ones. And the dull ones - a lot of those the last year or so. I'm in a "graybeard" position for my organization, with a bit of a roving brief. Not sure which way I'm going to go...and realistically, I can't pull the plug until late in 2018. I take most of my leave the second half of the year, so retiring at midyear would be a poor idea. Especially when I'm expecting to go to the World Muzzle-Loading Championship next August...which will be three work weeks of leave.

I'm not planning on making a decision for a while yet.