This is an ill-posed question. People's answer could change dramatically depending on which of the following interpretations they take.

Interpretation #1. What is the minimum amount of cash you would have to be paid today in order for you to agree to quit your job? In this case, the implication is that you must quit your job as a condition to receiving the cash.

Interpretation #2. Suppose you found $X dollars (say laying on the street). How large would X have to be to induce you to quit your job. In this case, the money given does not come with the precondition of quitting.

Why does it matter? For most people the answer to the first question will be significantly lower than the answer to the second question. Take, for example, someone who neither loves nor hates their job. The answer to the first question would simply the quantity of cash which replaces the expected present of their future earnings in their current job. Suppose for someone with 100K income, that number is $2M. However, if you simply gave that person $2M, would they necessarily want to give up their job (and pass up what is essentially another $2M PV of future earning)? Probably not. It is easy to imagine that such a person's answer to second question could be two or even three times higher - $4M or even $6M.

Joseph Guse
Department of Economics
W&L University