4 ms·
This is neat in theory, but unworkable in practice. The hard line trigger almost always happens in a wider context. You often want the wider context, but it's
by groby_b 7mo ago
This is neat in theory, but unworkable in practice.
The hard line trigger almost always happens in a wider context. You often want the wider context, but it's impossible to fully define. Let's try a few examples from the article:
"Hard line: Annual raise is 0%" -> What if it comes with a much larger stock grant? Or additional paid time off? Or something else you value? Will you really just mechanistically quit?
"Hard line: A friend doesn’t repay an $X loan" -> really? What if, say, they lost their job? You want to make friendship contingent on your friends employed. There's a reason there's an adage saying "Don't loan money to a friend, you might need to decide whom you like more".
"Hard line: A government blatantly violates a constitutional amendment" -> Not even waiting for a court decision? What if it's Abraham Lincoln suspending Habeas Corpus? Or Wilson enforcing the espionage act, if that's more your political leaning? What if the government first repeals the amendment - will you be pro-slavery if it's made legal?
The world isn't a series of if-then statements. Even a hard line requires more than a single condition - at best, that condition reminds you to re-evaluate where you are.
- triceratops 7mo ago> "Hard line: Annual raise is 0%" -> What if it comes with a much larger stock grant? Or additional paid time off? Or something else you value? Will you really just mechanistically quit? I don't want to be a pedant but more stock or time off are raises by another name. They're literally money the company gives you.
- groby_b 7mo agoYou might value it differently, though. The company also would be giving you money if they, e.g. , gave you sets of annual Disney tickets, or a family membership in a luxury gym. That's the whole point - there's an unlimited amount of potential outcomes that your original hard limit doesn't cover. Of course your final decision can be targeted towards "net value to you", but fundamentally, you can only assess net value once you have the facts. Your hard limit becomes "I'll quit if I don't like it". Which, really, you don't need a "hard limit" for.
- triceratops 6mo ago> The company also would be giving you money if they, e.g. , gave you sets of annual Disney tickets, or a family membership in a luxury gym. There are degrees of liquidity and "cash-like"-ness. Converting stock in a publicly traded corporation into cash is trivial. Companies with RSU plans have an auto-sale option so you never have to deal with the stock yourself if you don't want to. You just get cash in your bank account. Paid vacation is literally cash (they pay you money but you don't have to work), or is paid out as cash if left unused. That's not the same Disney tickets or membership in a gym. If you don't need those things then turning them into ready cash takes a bit of work.