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tl;dr: Everyone is different. Don't be that weirdo who tries to push advice from random internet listicles on people. Aside: if a board member tells you that y

tl;dr: Everyone is different. Don't be that weirdo who tries to push advice from random internet listicles on people. Aside: if a board member tells you that you don't need a raise because you can use fucking coupon books, and you don't immediately get extremely offended, then maybe you're under-rating common sense and over-rating "rationalism"...

Bjartr 8y ago
What is the value in being offended, like, ever? Surely if you could genuinely acheive your goals by leveraging coupon books, wouldn't that be worth considering? And, if after consideration, you Vickie it's not a viable substitute to a raise, you'll have an understanding of why it won't work beyond "well it offended me". Assuming that the math work or such that using coupons would result in the same outcome from the perspective of your bank statement, the most likely reasons I can think of are either status (you don't get any from using coupons, but you do for having a higher salary), or the externalities if putting a coupon book habit into place and the overhead of actually using them. Of course the problem in the article was really one of communication. If the only problem to be solved was "keeping up with inflation" then coupon books could be a solution... once, until inflation continues and overcomes the buying power provided by the coupons. However it's a communication problem because the problem isn't "keep up with inflation", it's "maintain a consistent quality of life despite inflation". The latter would have meant the overhead of the coupons was a non starter unless they actually increased QoL beyond merely overcoming the impact of inflation on my back statement, which, they don't. It's a bit of a ramble as I've written it here, but this is the approach I find valuable (not saying you should do the same, only that I find it works well for me), and I would never take the time to do this kind of thinking if I rejected ideas that "should offend me" without consideration.
- throwawayjava 8y ago
  > What is the value in being offended, like, ever? It's a good bullshit detector. Instead of wasting time dealing with my board member's asinine suggestions, I can study interview questions and get a job at an employer that doesn't suck. An employer who suggests coupon books in lieu of CoL adjusted salaries is probably out-of-touch or manipulative in a lot of other ways. Call me irrational, but I don't want to spend my days working for a super manipulative employer... > Surely if you could genuinely acheive your goals by leveraging coupon books, wouldn't that be worth considering? Sure. But in lieu of raises that keep up with CoL? Hell No. > you'll have an understanding of why it won't work beyond "well it offended me". Again, I suggested common sense! Until I start seeing 2 for 1 mortgages, 1/2 off gasoline, BOGO surgeries, and 25% off tuition in coupon books? Well, it doesn't even take a spreadsheet for me to know that the things moving my CoL up aren't stocked in the Target or grocery stores... Again, hyper-rationalism that distracts you from using common sense is silly. > However it's a communication problem because the problem isn't "keep up with inflation", it's "maintain a consistent quality of life despite inflation". CoL is a quantitative measure of QoL. I'm having a really hard time imagining situations where inflation in the face of stagnant wages doesn't translate into lower QoL. Especially for folks who work for a living. > and I would never take the time to do this kind of thinking if I rejected ideas that "should offend me" without consideration. So you would really response neutrally to your employer handing out coupon books instead of annual raises? Then you're being had.
  - Bjartr 8y ago
    > I suggested common sense! Common sense is far from infallible and in the face of an apparent in-good-faith suggestion I'm willing to question my common sense rather than follow it blindly. Note that this isn't the same as ignoring it, I'm just willing to admit that I might be wrong to start with. > Until I start seeing 2 for 1 mortgages, 1/2 off gasoline, BOGO surgeries, and 25% off tuition in coupon books? If I were really offered coupons as a solution to CoL, I would look into if such things existed. Sometimes what exists if you care to look for it can surprise you. > So you would really response neutrally to your employer handing out coupon books instead of annual raises? Realistically I would react as follows: A) Immediate surprise and perhaps some incredulity depending on how the suggestion was delivered, but still thank them for the suggestion and let them know I would consider it. B) Knowing basically nothing about using coupon books in this context, I'd take a few tens of minutes to look into how viable such a solution would be. C) Conclude that while potentially useful in isolation, the overhead involved in implementing the suggestion wipes out the usefulness. D) Return to my employer and inform them that their suggestion is not a viable solution and that I wish to continue salary negotiations in good faith. This whole process would take less than a day.

Bjartr 8y ago

What is the value in being offended, like, ever? Surely if you could genuinely acheive your goals by leveraging coupon books, wouldn't that be worth considering? And, if after consideration, you Vickie it's not a viable substitute to a raise, you'll have an understanding of why it won't work beyond "well it offended me". Assuming that the math work or such that using coupons would result in the same outcome from the perspective of your bank statement, the most likely reasons I can think of are either status (you don't get any from using coupons, but you do for having a higher salary), or the externalities if putting a coupon book habit into place and the overhead of actually using them. Of course the problem in the article was really one of communication. If the only problem to be solved was "keeping up with inflation" then coupon books could be a solution... once, until inflation continues and overcomes the buying power provided by the coupons. However it's a communication problem because the problem isn't "keep up with inflation", it's "maintain a consistent quality of life despite inflation". The latter would have meant the overhead of the coupons was a non starter unless they actually increased QoL beyond merely overcoming the impact of inflation on my back statement, which, they don't. It's a bit of a ramble as I've written it here, but this is the approach I find valuable (not saying you should do the same, only that I find it works well for me), and I would never take the time to do this kind of thinking if I rejected ideas that "should offend me" without consideration.

throwawayjava 8y ago
> What is the value in being offended, like, ever? It's a good bullshit detector. Instead of wasting time dealing with my board member's asinine suggestions, I can study interview questions and get a job at an employer that doesn't suck. An employer who suggests coupon books in lieu of CoL adjusted salaries is probably out-of-touch or manipulative in a lot of other ways. Call me irrational, but I don't want to spend my days working for a super manipulative employer... > Surely if you could genuinely acheive your goals by leveraging coupon books, wouldn't that be worth considering? Sure. But in lieu of raises that keep up with CoL? Hell No. > you'll have an understanding of why it won't work beyond "well it offended me". Again, I suggested common sense! Until I start seeing 2 for 1 mortgages, 1/2 off gasoline, BOGO surgeries, and 25% off tuition in coupon books? Well, it doesn't even take a spreadsheet for me to know that the things moving my CoL up aren't stocked in the Target or grocery stores... Again, hyper-rationalism that distracts you from using common sense is silly. > However it's a communication problem because the problem isn't "keep up with inflation", it's "maintain a consistent quality of life despite inflation". CoL is a quantitative measure of QoL. I'm having a really hard time imagining situations where inflation in the face of stagnant wages doesn't translate into lower QoL. Especially for folks who work for a living. > and I would never take the time to do this kind of thinking if I rejected ideas that "should offend me" without consideration. So you would really response neutrally to your employer handing out coupon books instead of annual raises? Then you're being had.
- Bjartr 8y ago
  > I suggested common sense! Common sense is far from infallible and in the face of an apparent in-good-faith suggestion I'm willing to question my common sense rather than follow it blindly. Note that this isn't the same as ignoring it, I'm just willing to admit that I might be wrong to start with. > Until I start seeing 2 for 1 mortgages, 1/2 off gasoline, BOGO surgeries, and 25% off tuition in coupon books? If I were really offered coupons as a solution to CoL, I would look into if such things existed. Sometimes what exists if you care to look for it can surprise you. > So you would really response neutrally to your employer handing out coupon books instead of annual raises? Realistically I would react as follows: A) Immediate surprise and perhaps some incredulity depending on how the suggestion was delivered, but still thank them for the suggestion and let them know I would consider it. B) Knowing basically nothing about using coupon books in this context, I'd take a few tens of minutes to look into how viable such a solution would be. C) Conclude that while potentially useful in isolation, the overhead involved in implementing the suggestion wipes out the usefulness. D) Return to my employer and inform them that their suggestion is not a viable solution and that I wish to continue salary negotiations in good faith. This whole process would take less than a day.