No bonus? No problemo.

Having left my fair share of companies over the years and spoken to numerous ex-colleagues who were planning to do the same, I've noticed a common refrain.

"Get your bonus, then leave."

At one of the companies that I left, my then-supervisor advised the same thing when I tendered my resignation one month before the annual bonus was to be declared. Apparently our CEO had given the standing order that staff who left during this period would not be entitled to the annual bonus that would be declared next month. No, not even a pro-rata amount. I was prepared for that. Knowing what a cheap bastard our CEO was, the annual bonus wouldn't amount to much anyway, I argued. My colleagues disagreed. The company had landed a substantial amount of moolah from selling off one of their subsidiary departments to another firm, and they were holding out hope that some of that wealth would trickle down to them.

In the end, when the annual bonus was declared, the most generous bonus given out amounted to an entire month's wages. The average was two weeks. There was much disappointment. I was bemused that experienced professionals who had invested so many years of their lives in the workforce, could be so naive.

The boss makes money from a sale, and you expect him to share? Really?!

As far as the boss is concerned, that's his money. He'll give you as much as it will take to keep you around a bit longer, and not a cent more. And fortunately for him, his company was full of hopelessly optimistic suckers.

If I had stayed behind and put up with another couple months' worth of his crap for a pathetic two weeks' worth of my equally pathetic salary, I would have been a damn fool. Especially when another company - with higher wages, a higher standard of work and hopefully less bullshit - was urgently looking for developers.

HAHAHAHAHA
suckers

So yes, I had the last laugh. And I laughed long and loud.

And if there was any doubt whatsoever that getting out of there was a smart move, the company in question just got fined by MOM for not paying CPF. And most of its staff have quit because they were being owed wages for months. Damn, I know I said the CEO was a cheap bastard, but this is a whole new level of douchebaggery, right there.

Why the promise of a bonus holds so much power

Some will argue that a bonus is extra money, no matter the amount. I can certainly understand why older staff hold that mentality - more money equals more security. At that age, there are fewer opportunities out there waiting. No harm in biding their time. What I don't understand is young people, in their mid-thirties or younger, many unmarried with no kids, who hesitate to leave due to the nebulous concept of an annual bonus. Especially when that annual bonus is by no means guaranteed.

Some will argue that it's your money - you worked for it, you're entitled to it. There's even this huge song and dance about how the Annual Wage Supplement is actually your money.

Nuh-uh. If you were entitled to it, it would be mandatory by law, which is obviously not the case. If you're entitled to an annual bonus, there wouldn't be the question of waiting to get your bonus before leaving, would there? The fact that you need to wait till you get your bonus for fear of it being forfeited if you should tender your resignation beforehand, is already an indication that the decision is out of your hands.

If you leave, you will still be paid your wages because you're entitled to those legally. The bonus is something else entirely. I know emotionally, it feels like your money, but this being the real world, your feelings have no bearing on the cold hard truth.

Am I belaboring the point, or has it sunk in by now? The bonus. Is. Not. Your. Fucking. Money. Deal with it!

Some companies hold employees to ransom with the threat of withholding a forthcoming bonus if these employees leave. I don't blame the companies or the bosses - any leverage is good leverage. If I had to blame anyone, it would be employees who allow themselves to be held to ransom.

Money can always be earned, but you can never get time back. Time that could have been spent furthering your career. In all fairness, I acknowledge that different people have different concerns. Some people work purely for the money, not a career. They take no pride in what they do, only in how much they earn. That is their primary and overriding concern. And if that's the case, nothing I say will ever help them understand why I don't want to wait.

To each his own, amigos.

Living without a bonus

Despite not having received a bonus in years, lack of it has not bothered me. It makes no sense to slog year after year, waiting for the one lump sum of cash that you can use to, what? Pay off outstanding bills? Go on a holiday? Buy nice things?

Here's a tip: live within your means, and don't count on your boss giving you money he isn't legally obligated to.

Live in such a way that you can afford to show the promised bonus your middle finger and ride off into the sunset. This is your life, your career; and the promise of an extra month's worth of wages should not hold you back. Promises are easy to make. Keeping them? Not so much.

I once spent six years of my youth in a job I hated, just because of the promise of annual bonuses and an unhealthy dependency on booze money. I can never get my youth back. What I can do, is to never again be this stupid.

Now that's a promise.

$ee you again soon,
T___T