Financial Transitions with a New Job
I’m starting a new position in less than two weeks. I’m excited about the position and it’s more money, better benefits and a really cool company I have wanted to work with for a while. So all of that is well and good, but as I’ve turned in my two week notice at my current job (officially making me “the walking dead” around there), I realized there are a lot of things I should take care of before I begin this new job.
1) Figure Out Retirement Contributions
It seems like it will be a month or two before I can participate in the company 401(k). Whoa, whoa, whoa! What am I supposed to do with this money? I do not want to be trusted with my full paycheck. I am trying to figure out whether I can open a traditional IRA for those few months so that I can set aside pre-tax dollars that will then ensure I am still saving 15% annually for retirement. If not, I may just have to make a larger contribution to my 401(k) once I am eligible to make up for the lost time. Any advice or tricks anyone has in this department would be greatly appreciated. I will also have to rollover my existing retirement plan into my also-already-existing Rollover IRA. Goodbye Edward Jones. You won’t be missed. The balance of my Rollover IRA after this latest…rollover will be pretty decent. I need to sit down and decide how to allocate these funds.
2) Hit the Dentist
My dental coverage also won’t start for a few months. I wonder if my dentist can squeeze me in for a cleaning on Black Friday? I seriously hope I can use the last of my dental coverage before I say goodbye.
3) Use my PTO wisely
One of the funnest things about the American workplace culture is the way we formally sever our ties. One of my favorite things about this whole song and dance is getting your final paycheck the day you leave. There’s no waiting for the biweekly pay period, it’s like “Take your money and go! Just go!” With a good amount of PTO saved up, I think this check will be a double paycheck. I want to be very conservative with my spending for the next two weeks so that almost all of this can go to my credit card.
4) Transfer my iPhone data
My work phone has been my main phone for a while and I forward all my personal calls to it. I’ll have to turn on my old phone and use it until I get a new work phone and make sure I get all of my photos and contacts before I turn this one in. It’s a small hassle for how much money it has saved me not having a data plan on my own bill.
That’s all I can think of for now. I’ve never left one job for another (I used to just quit and go travel around for a while) so this is a new experience for me. I’m going from working to working, and it’s an entirely new experience that I haven’t even given much thought to yet. I’m pumped!
Do you have any tips for what you should be taking care of when you are leaving one job and starting another?
Congrats on your new position….I hope it’s an exciting new challenge!
Thanks Travis!
Congrats on the new gig!
Thanks friend, it was pretty much the perfect time to move…I just need to kill time until the middle of next week!
Good work. When you were negotiating your pay and benefits, did you ask if you could join the retirement plan upon start? Many times an employer will agree to this and it eliminates having to go through the waiting period. I think they put it in place because it’s a pain for them to set it up, and they want to make sure that you’re actually a fit, but if it’s important enough, I think they will sometimes go through the trouble of setting it up off the bat.
That would be sweet. I did ask about it and HR is supposed to get back to me. If they would let me join right away that would be sweet!
Congratulations! What is your new gig… or is that L.A. Confidential?
Just FYI: #3 is a legal requirement. The law says your employer has to give you all your money within 24 hours of leaving. Presumably this is to stop them from cheating you out of it.
And, oh, one other thing: for the next 6 months everything that goes wrong in your old company will be your fault, even if you weren’t within ten miles of the situation. This phenomenon lasts for 6 months or until the next person leaves, whichever comes first. I don’t know how that all works, but I’ve seen it happen tens of times. Just a heads-up!
Hahaha, I think you are right! I am sure I will get a few phone calls for the next few months asking where XYZ is…but I can handle it.
Congrats on the new job! How exciting!
Thanks!! It is exciting, just little stuff like having my own office is getting me pumped!
Congratulations on the new job!
It’s rather more relaxed over this side of the pond because pensions should be transferable at some value and we don’t generally have health benefits tied into work anyway.
I hope you enjoy the new position and it is everything you expect.
Congratulations!! Will you be doing the same type of work in your new job as you are now, or is it something completely different?
Enjoy your last 2 weeks!!
Congrats on the new job! I know you felt limited in your former position, so I hope this gives you lots of opportunities to grow.
One of these days, I’m going to plan a week off between jobs. I’ve always gone straight from one job to another (when it’s been something I’ve had control over), and I think next time, I’m going to give myself a week’s transisiton time.
Congrats on the new job!!! When I started my new job, I also had to wait a few weeks until my new 401k was set up. I didn’t open a Traditional IRA or anything. I decided that a few weeks wasn’t going to completely derail my retirement plans. I used the “extra” money from my paychecks to pay off other debt or to save.
Thanks Don! Except I think mine takes almost 2 months. It’s not a big deal, but I do want to do something productive with that money if I’m not putting it aside for retirement.
[...] Speaking of new beginnings, my friend at American Debt Project recently accepted a new job and is now considering Financial Transitions with a New Job. [...]
[...] Speaking of new beginnings, my friend at American Debt Project recently accepted a new job and is now considering Financial Transitions with a New Job. [...]
Oh, hey girl! Congratulations! Can’t wait to hear more — if we get to.
Interesting. I haven’t even thought about all the things related to being employed since the mid 90′s. Started my own business back then. Just can’t put up with the thought that I’d always be one ‘pink slip’ away from being unemployed.