I don’t ask for more because I make enough to cover what I want/need. We are still hiring, though some skills/attributes are required, but we’re not huge, maybe 550 people worldwide. My Roth IRA is way down like everyone else, but due to a dispute with the German government, I don’t touch it anyway. Being a Roth IRA, I paid the taxes due at the time of conversion. But the double-taxation treaty was written before the enactment of the Roth IRA. The Germans don’t recognize its existence, and want to take ANOTHER 50% if I withdraw anything. So I don’t, even though I’m 70.
As station chief for Europe, I theoretically have about 25 or 30 people working “under” me, but they are all good people, and I give them a lot of autonomy. Worldwide we have close to no employee turnover. I doubt that many companies—in Texas or any other state—ask their lowest level employees, “you haven’t been on one of our business trips to Hong Kong to Europe yet. Do you want to go next time?” When I was recruited in 1975, we were maybe 12 people, and at 23, I was almost the oldest. Now, 47 years later, and with 550 people, I am no longer the oldest. One of my friends back at the office in Dallas is 82. Don’t even try to suggest retirement to him. The hours are long, and there’s shit to put up with, like any job, but it’s one of those unusual “do you have something else you’d rather do?” jobs. One guy we hired as a go-fer to make lunch runs maybe 30 odd years ago was really smart and personable. He is now head of logistics and makes a comfortable six figure salary. Our best year ever was the first half of 2021, so, yes we’re better off than three years ago—ALL of us. We spread the joy around when times are good, too. When they are not, the top guys reduce their salaries to $1, and the next tier (including me) take a 50% salary cut until the storm has passed. The people who can least afford that are never asked to. It doesn’t happen often, but it has happened. We know what to do if it happens again. Like I said, we ask a lot, but have very little turnover.
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