Restless
I went on a job interview yesterday afternoon. It was for an open job fair. I did ok. The screener was very nice and we talked about Oracle and Information On Demand, which is his company’s code words for business intelligence and all of its attendant technical work.
I honestly don’t know why I signed up for it, other than the fact that an email popped into my mailbox. I’ll have to pee in a cup for any of the jobs they offer since this is DC after all and all the good contracting jobs are with the government in some capacity. Have passport, will travel, but no, we aren’t sending people to Iraq or Afghanistan anymore. Dubai and Kuwait are still ok.
I know one of the reasons why I did this was a random IM from a friend of mine. A long time ago we talked about how we got from Point A to Point B and where Point C might be next for us. I seem to have this cheerleading squad of guy friends who like to tell me that I’d be a cracker-jack programmer if I really gave it a good whack. I take their advice seriously since most of them are self-made computer geeks and they love it.
Anyhow, earlier in the week he wrote me to tell me that he reads my blog. He said forget about stretching out a chicken to last for a week. (And I know he was serious because he specifically wrote ‘rotisserie chicken’ in the message.) He asked if I was interested in consulting and started dangling a carrot at me. I quickly brushed him off. I AM making more money now. I rather like the place I am at. My boss is cool. He totally picks up on my Dead Milkmen references. We drink beer together. He lets me *walk out of work a half hour early to go interview somewhere else*. (Well, he let me leave early. I didn’t tell him where I was going. But I don’t think that fact would have upset him.)
The opportunity with my friend’s firm is intellectually intimidating. It would be a serious challenge to stay one step ahead in technical savvy. So much so, that I’d really like to stick around with my cool boss and my cool salary for another year. I just don’t know why I have this itch. I always get the itch for a new job after a year. I’ve been employed at my company now for almost 2 years. It’s alright. The best part is the team I have. We’re all super friendly former co-workers who’ve created this great mix of talents to get the job done.
How many of you stay at your less than perfect job because the co-workers are totally awesome? How much is it worth to you to stay in terms of dollars? $5K? $10K? $20K?
I mean, in terms of dollars, today I gave myself nearly a 20% raise when they asked for my desired salary. I made a note of telling them my base salary and the bonus compensation I last received. hey asked for the former and I tacked on the latter just so they know my desired salary bump was very serious.
So tell me, what does it take to stay? What does it take for you to go?
Dean J wrote:
Once I have enough to get by at my standard of living, call it $10k/y, anything over the top is a bonus.
Out of that bonus, some portion goes towards fun, and some portion goes towards retirement.
I judge a potential raise, and the benefits and advantages, against the potential moving up (or back) of retirement. I try to ignore the additional fun, because spending another $10k a year in excess doesn’t necessarily balance working an extra ten hours a week.
Posted on 27-Sep-07 at 12:54 pm | Permalink
Megan wrote:
MapGirl,
Is there a place I can email you privately? I posted a while back about being scared to get my teeth fixed, and I really feel you can understand my dilemma. I wanted to email you with my situation and get your advice, if you are willing. Thanks, I really appreciate it.
Posted on 27-Sep-07 at 1:08 pm | Permalink
Megan wrote:
MapGirl,
Is there a place I can send you a private email? I commented a while back about needing to get my teeth fixed and I feel you can understand and offer insight into my problem. I’m really scared and no one else understand. If you don’t want to offer your advice, etc. please just say the word and I’ll understand.
My real name is not Megan, and I had to make up a bogus email because I do not wish to reveal my identity until I correspond with you directly. Thanks for everything.
Posted on 27-Sep-07 at 1:11 pm | Permalink
Escape Brooklyn wrote:
That’s a tricky question to answer. Once you’re above a certain income threshold (all your expenses are covered, you’re maxing out retirement savings, you have enough to build a cushion and/or pay down debt), it’s hard to put a precise number on how much is “enough” to justify changing jobs.
Other factors to consider include: What would the new hours be like? What about the commute? Benefits? Bonuses? Would you like your co-workers as much (although co-workers aren’t your friends)? Would you “fit in” with the culture of the new company? Would you be missing out on a pension if you quit your current job? Would this new job be something you’re more interested in? Would it advance your career in a way that your current job can’t?
Staying at a job too long can stymie your earning potential. 4% annual increases of 50k is a lot less than if your base salary increased to 55k, or 60k, or 70k. But that means jumping around to new jobs regularly.
For me, I made the greatest salary increases by jumping around every year, but now I’m ready to stay at my current job a few years because it’s (finally!) comfortable. Plus it’s nice not to change benefits providers and learn a whole new set of HR policies again. But my annual increases won’t be as much staying here as if I started actively interviewing and moved on. So that’s the trade-off.
Posted on 27-Sep-07 at 1:46 pm | Permalink
mapgirl wrote:
Megan - You can email me at mapgirlsfiscalchallenge at gmail dot com.
Escape Brooklyn - Yeah, there’s a lot of factors holding me back on the job happiness front. There are so many worse places I could work. But I love learning new things and the tech skills are what keep things lively for me.
Those are really great questions I think everyone should consider.
I don’t have a pension. My commute could get a lot better because it’s about to get worse with the Christmas holidays and as you know, my dental insurance sucks eggs. There’s no way I’d like my co-workers as much though. I’ve worked with this cast of characters for 4 years at two companies and I love ‘em.
Posted on 27-Sep-07 at 2:53 pm | Permalink
Aino wrote:
I’d put a price of about $20K worth to be able to stay at a less than stellar job with great co-workers.This is how much more I’d have to make to be able to leave my current job, or alternately, this is the paycut (well, maybe a little less than this..) I’d accept if I were to get the ultimate dream team to work with… I’d be down to the the bare essentials, with virtually no savings and no evenings out anymore, but it might be worth it to be able to say “I love coming in to work every morning!”
Posted on 27-Sep-07 at 4:51 pm | Permalink
Mrs. Micah wrote:
I know that I wouldn’t be able to stay where I am without my friendly coworkers. But right now I’m just happy to have a job, don’t plan to move on for a little bit, yet.
FrugalBabe was trying to figure out whether or not to apply for a promotion recently. She wasn’t sure the coworkers would be as friendly, but she took it and is saving the raise. I haven’t had to deal with that yet.
Posted on 27-Sep-07 at 6:26 pm | Permalink
chica wrote:
This post is exactly what I needed today. I am on the hunt for a new job and Escape Brooklyn’s response supplied me with the questions I need to ask myself.
My colleagues are nice but not nice enough to pass up a chance to ascend and earn more money.
Posted on 27-Sep-07 at 10:59 pm | Permalink
My Road to Wealth wrote:
It sounds just like me. I got the itch to move on after two years with a new job. I guess I like a new environmenth which means new challenge. After two years in the same job, it gets routine. But I will stay with my company for at least couple more years, I just love it too much. Sometimes, money is not everything. It is quite stressful to get new jobs and being judged at interviews.
Posted on 28-Sep-07 at 7:46 am | Permalink
Hector wrote:
Mapgirl,
Send me your latest resume and I will try to refer you to your company, Accenture.
I am analyst there, let me know!
Thanks.
Posted on 28-Sep-07 at 1:09 pm | Permalink