I just had a meeting with HR. So for context, the past year or so has been kinda rough at work with anxiety, depression, and ADHD meds that no longer seem to work quite as well as they had been for the previous 20 years. So when stress got the better of me, I made some stupid mistakes, and made a snarky comment or two on Teams. I’ve actually been feeling burned out off and on for several years, but I do still get some satisfaction from coding, even after 13 years at the same company with glowing performance reviews.
Anyway, today I was given a choice: Take a severance package and leave, or stay with a performance improvement plan. Honestly not sure what I want. I feel like all I needed was was some time to recover from a particularly stressful project. I could’ve been fine. But instead I get an ultimatum and two fucking days to decide.
I’ve saved a decent amount of money over the years, so it might not be the worst thing for me to cash out and let someone else deal with the bullshit I’d be leaving behind. I would love to work part time and focus on my game dev project(s). On the other hand, health insurance is fucking expensive, and I’m going to miss being able to donate “a few thousand dollars” to my church’s food pantry without needing to worry about myself at all.
that’s a rough choice on a tight timeline
if you’re open to suggestions: take the severance package
anecdotally (including my own anecdatum) a PIP is just a step in building a case for constructive dismissal, especially if your workplace is a factor in your burnout. do you really want to have to work even harder for a chance at staying there?
take some time to recover from burnout (even if it means having less funds for a bit), then try and find something to do for employment thay doesn’t suck so hard
myself, I chose disappearing in the bureaucracy of a multinational enterprise for a reduced salary and title. getting away with only a few hours of work most days, and spending the rest of the time living my life