Universal Basic Income, Andrew Yang, and Me.
Andrew Yang is a "dark-horse" candidate campaigning to become the 2020 Democratic Presidential nominee. The first and largest plank in his policy platform is a version of Universal Basic Income (UBI) he calls the "Freedom Dividend".
Many view UBI as a non-starter issue. While the general notion is easily understood, detailed definitions and proposed implementations vary widely. Andrew Yang's reconceptualization of implementing UBI does add a solid dose of practicality, and deserves a closer look and ongoing discussion.
I believe my own story may be relevant to the UBI debate:
On my 60th birthday in October of 2016 I started receiving $1000/month from the government as a delayed result of retiring from the US Navy Reserves back in 1996. I'm from a family with a history of living active lives into their 90s. Several worked into their 80s. Getting a "retirement" at age 60 seemed a bit ironic to me, as I expect to work for two more decades (I've loved my career).
So I chose to view this income as "UBI", as an unconditional outside investment in me. Hopefully a good investment.
This stipend arrived during a prolonged period of unemployment where I felt agesim may have been limiting my opportunities. So I used the income to stretch my savings and double-down on my effort to shift my long tech career away from being an employee and toward becoming an independent consultant.
At that point, my consulting efforts had not yielded success. Far from it: I found I lacked the knowledge needed to start and run a business, the high-level contacts and communication skills needed to network and create leads, and the marketing skills needed to force my way into a "cold" market. Being good in tech wasn't nearly enough: Self-education had become my priority.
My determined pursuit of this goal still left me time for my hobby and volunteer efforts. I'm a triathlete and volunteer triathlon coach. I volunteer as an usher for plays at local theaters. I'm also a "Maker" involved in 3D printing, electronics and software.
In November of 2016 I heard about EnCorps, a non-profit on a mission to get STEM professionals into the classroom as volunteers and teachers. I immediately signed up and was soon being coached on teaching and the demands of the classroom. In January of 2017 I started volunteering full-time as a tutor at a local year-round "continuation" high school.
I could write endlessly about that time; how I experienced my greatest personal growth in decades, how I became able to reach and help the students, as well as support the faculty and staff. I wanted to become a STEM teacher. That $1000/month would just barely make it possible for me to live alone in San Diego on a junior teacher's salary (which is less than half of a typical engineering salary).
By June of 2017 my savings were becoming exhausted despite the "UBI". Since I still had no consulting clients, that meant I needed to return to the workforce. I told my industry acquaintances I was back in the job market. I also told EnCorps I'd like to pursue full-time teaching. Their LA-based staff immediately started advocating for me within local school systems.
By early August I had two simultaneous job offers: A part-time position teaching engineering in high school, and a full-time position as an engineer.
My heart passionately wanted to teach: Starting part-time felt ideal, as I could simultaneously attend college for my teaching credential. Unfortunately, the finances of part-time teaching are horrible: The meager income would not cover my living expenses even with my "UBI", much less cover the $25K tuition for my teaching credential.
Fortunately, the engineering job offer would also take my tech career in a new direction, one I was surprised I hadn't previously considered. More importantly, it would help me rapidly replenish my ravaged savings.
It was with a breaking heart and great regret that I turned down the teaching position. Two weeks later I was still in mourning from not taking that teaching opportunity. Not the best frame of mind for starting a cool new job.
I do enjoy greatly my new job, but my heart still longs for teaching. So I'm also preparing for the toughest obstacle to my becoming a full-time teacher: I've restricted my budget to the after-tax equivalent of a beginning teacher's monthly pay plus $1K, and shoving all the rest of my income into savings. I figure it will take about two years to get my savings to the point were I can afford to simultaneously pursue part-time teaching and two years of college.
That's what my "UBI" is enabling for me: A near-future career shift toward public service that I never could have otherwise afforded to consider. I'm already living the financial side of that life today: I know I can make it work.
Should UBI become the law of the land, I wonder what else it may enable. I think it's worth a try, and Andrew Yang's approach seems the most sensible.
What's also needed is to increase teacher pay to be commensurate with the unique demands of the profession as well as the local cost of living. Perhaps UBI should be tax-free for folks like teachers and first-responders. Every little bit will help.
Many view UBI as a non-starter issue. While the general notion is easily understood, detailed definitions and proposed implementations vary widely. Andrew Yang's reconceptualization of implementing UBI does add a solid dose of practicality, and deserves a closer look and ongoing discussion.
I believe my own story may be relevant to the UBI debate:
On my 60th birthday in October of 2016 I started receiving $1000/month from the government as a delayed result of retiring from the US Navy Reserves back in 1996. I'm from a family with a history of living active lives into their 90s. Several worked into their 80s. Getting a "retirement" at age 60 seemed a bit ironic to me, as I expect to work for two more decades (I've loved my career).
So I chose to view this income as "UBI", as an unconditional outside investment in me. Hopefully a good investment.
This stipend arrived during a prolonged period of unemployment where I felt agesim may have been limiting my opportunities. So I used the income to stretch my savings and double-down on my effort to shift my long tech career away from being an employee and toward becoming an independent consultant.
At that point, my consulting efforts had not yielded success. Far from it: I found I lacked the knowledge needed to start and run a business, the high-level contacts and communication skills needed to network and create leads, and the marketing skills needed to force my way into a "cold" market. Being good in tech wasn't nearly enough: Self-education had become my priority.
My determined pursuit of this goal still left me time for my hobby and volunteer efforts. I'm a triathlete and volunteer triathlon coach. I volunteer as an usher for plays at local theaters. I'm also a "Maker" involved in 3D printing, electronics and software.
In November of 2016 I heard about EnCorps, a non-profit on a mission to get STEM professionals into the classroom as volunteers and teachers. I immediately signed up and was soon being coached on teaching and the demands of the classroom. In January of 2017 I started volunteering full-time as a tutor at a local year-round "continuation" high school.
I could write endlessly about that time; how I experienced my greatest personal growth in decades, how I became able to reach and help the students, as well as support the faculty and staff. I wanted to become a STEM teacher. That $1000/month would just barely make it possible for me to live alone in San Diego on a junior teacher's salary (which is less than half of a typical engineering salary).
By June of 2017 my savings were becoming exhausted despite the "UBI". Since I still had no consulting clients, that meant I needed to return to the workforce. I told my industry acquaintances I was back in the job market. I also told EnCorps I'd like to pursue full-time teaching. Their LA-based staff immediately started advocating for me within local school systems.
By early August I had two simultaneous job offers: A part-time position teaching engineering in high school, and a full-time position as an engineer.
My heart passionately wanted to teach: Starting part-time felt ideal, as I could simultaneously attend college for my teaching credential. Unfortunately, the finances of part-time teaching are horrible: The meager income would not cover my living expenses even with my "UBI", much less cover the $25K tuition for my teaching credential.
Fortunately, the engineering job offer would also take my tech career in a new direction, one I was surprised I hadn't previously considered. More importantly, it would help me rapidly replenish my ravaged savings.
It was with a breaking heart and great regret that I turned down the teaching position. Two weeks later I was still in mourning from not taking that teaching opportunity. Not the best frame of mind for starting a cool new job.
I do enjoy greatly my new job, but my heart still longs for teaching. So I'm also preparing for the toughest obstacle to my becoming a full-time teacher: I've restricted my budget to the after-tax equivalent of a beginning teacher's monthly pay plus $1K, and shoving all the rest of my income into savings. I figure it will take about two years to get my savings to the point were I can afford to simultaneously pursue part-time teaching and two years of college.
That's what my "UBI" is enabling for me: A near-future career shift toward public service that I never could have otherwise afforded to consider. I'm already living the financial side of that life today: I know I can make it work.
Should UBI become the law of the land, I wonder what else it may enable. I think it's worth a try, and Andrew Yang's approach seems the most sensible.
What's also needed is to increase teacher pay to be commensurate with the unique demands of the profession as well as the local cost of living. Perhaps UBI should be tax-free for folks like teachers and first-responders. Every little bit will help.
Thank you for sharing your story and plans. I can see how so many people could benefit from the Freedom Dividend!
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