'Never quit your job, get laid off'

Earlier this year, Sam Dogen quit his job.

For most people, that wouldn’t be much of a story, but for the millionaire founder of Financial Samurai, a couple of details stand out.

For one, it was his first gig since 2012.

Dogen, 47, has lived as a retired, stay-at-home dad since 2012, boosting his annual passive income to about $380,000 by 2023 through a mix of stocks, bonds, real estate and other investments. He returned to work late last year after selling a big chunk of his portfolio to fund the purchase of a new home.

That he stayed only four months at the new gig is its own story — but it’s also worth noting that by leaving so abruptly, he bucked a piece of his own advice: “Never quit your job,” Dogen says. “Get laid off.”

That’s what Dogen did more than a decade ago. Rather than leaving, he engineered a layoff that netted him three months of his base salary plus a low six-figure severance check. That money, combined with the $80,000 a year he was earning in passive income at the time, allowed him to transition into early retirement.

If you’re considering leaving your job, here’s Dogen’s best advice to follow in his footsteps.

How to negotiate a layoff when you leave your job

How you manage leaving your job is going to depend on your specific circumstances. For Dogen, 2012 marked the end of his rope after 13 years in the investment banking industry. He’d built enough passive income outside the office to feel comfortable leaving, and he knew he wanted to go.

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He also knew the kind of power he wielded as an employee on his way out the door. “As a previous boss myself, the worst thing that can happen is when an employee of value quits and gives you two weeks notice or less,” he says.

Here’s how to leverage that power into the job departure you want.

Communicate your unhappiness

Get the ball rolling by letting the right people know that you are unhappy with your current role, Dogen says.

“You basically have to talk to HR or talk to your direct supervisor, say, ‘I’m not happy here, I’d like to make some changes,'” he says. “Ultimately, I’d like to leave if these changes are not met.”

In doing so, you create a win-win situation, Dogen says, because there’s a chance that your superiors are willing to meet your needs.

“They might give you a raise. They might give you more flexible hours. Sweet!” he says. “No employer wants someone whose heart is not in it anymore.”

Offer to ease the transition

If your company can’t meet your demands, pivot the conversation toward the possibility of you leaving while making life easy on your employer.

“Let’s figure something out,” Dogen says you might say. “I’m willing to stay as long as possible to help make the transition. But in light of that, let’s talk about a severance package.”

Dogen stayed on for two months after having this conversation with his boss in 2012, spending that time training his junior hire and introducing him to his clients.

If you’re willing to do something similar, “more often than not, your employer will work with you — especially if you’re a better than average employee,” Dogen says.

Negotiate a layoff

Ask if your company is planning on doing a round of layoffs, and if you can be included. Under the WARN Act, companies with 100 or more employees (fewer in some states) must provide 60 days warning before conducting a mass layoff. In lieu of that warning, firms owe compensation to the affected employees, generally equivalent to 60 days of base pay.

On top of any WARN Act pay you may receive, Dogen suggests negotiating further for a severance payment. “The standard is one to three weeks of pay for every year served,” he says.

And negotiating a layoff, rather than quitting, goes beyond a cash payout, Dogen says.

“If you get laid off, you get unemployment benefits. You get a severance package, deferred comp, subsidized health care. You get tons of stuff that gives you a huge financial runway for your next endeavor.”

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