Know your options
The benefits you're paying for — finally in plain English.
Part of the HR you own — straight answers about your benefits when there's no one else to ask.
Decode what you're actually entitled to, from health plans to equity to leave. No portal maze, no jargon, no agenda but yours.
The problem
Benefits are confusing by design
Open enrollment shows up once a year with dense PDFs, jargon, and decisions that move real money. Most people copy last year's choices and hope. Hope is not a benefits strategy.
The wrong health plan costs thousands. Skipping the HSA leaves tax dollars on the floor. Missing the 401(k) match is unpaid compensation. None of this is your fault — the materials are written to confuse.
You get plain answers on what each option does, what it costs, and what to pick.
What's inside
What we cover
- Health insurance
- Understand your options: HMO vs PPO, deductibles, out-of-pocket maximums, and how to choose the right plan.
- Retirement plans
- 401(k), IRA, Roth options, employer matching, and how to maximize your retirement savings.
- FSA and HSA accounts
- Flexible spending vs health savings accounts. How they work, contribution limits, and when to use each.
- Life and disability insurance
- Understanding coverage amounts, short-term vs long-term disability, and what you actually need.
- COBRA and transitions
- What happens to your benefits when you leave a job. COBRA costs, deadlines, and alternatives.
- Equity compensation
- Stock options, RSUs, vesting schedules, and tax implications. Know what you are getting.
Who this is for
Who this is for
Anyone facing open enrollment
Pick the plan because it's the right plan, not because it's the one you picked last year. Walk in knowing what you're signing up for.
New employees navigating benefits
First real job, or starting somewhere new? Day-one decisions stick for a year. Don't guess.
People changing jobs
What happens to your 401(k), what COBRA actually costs, what's portable, what isn't. Before HR walks you out, not after.
Workers without benefits expertise
Nobody taught this in school. Nobody at work has the time to teach it now. So we did.
Questions
Questions
Benefits are the most expensive choice you make all year, made in 20 minutes with bad copy. The wrong plan costs thousands. A missed enrollment costs a year. Worth getting right.
No. The guides explain how things work and help you reason through them. For advice tied to your specific situation, talk to a qualified financial advisor.
Covered. Marketplace plans, self-employed retirement accounts, and the alternatives people without employer benefits actually use.
Open enrollment (usually Q4), after a life event (marriage, kid, job change), or anytime your situation shifts. We nudge you when those moments come.
Yes. They're built to print and share. Take them into the benefits meeting on paper.
Get started
Make smarter benefits decisions
Know what each option does — before the form is in front of you.
Browse
All benefits guides
Every guide in the library — free to read, no login required.
- 401(k) Rollover After a Layoff
- Acquisition: What Happens to Your Benefits + Equity
- COBRA Basics After a Layoff
- FSA vs HSA — Which to Fund and How Much
- HDHP vs PPO — When Each One Wins
- Maxing the 401(k) Match Without Leaving Money on the Table
- Negotiating Sign-On Bonus Structure + Clawbacks
- Open Enrollment Week — A 30-Minute Checklist
- Reading Your Equity Grant — RSUs, ISOs, NQSOs
- Stacking Short-Term Disability + Parental Leave
- What 'Vesting Cliff' Actually Means for Your Equity