2 months ago, I shared that I've thought about leaving my first job. 2 months later, I received an offer and I'm torn.
I'm a practical person. At the end of it, a job is just for me to survive - I need a monthly stream of income to build a home, build a family, feed myself and my family, and to save enough for retirement.
So when the offer came, theoretically I should without a doubt accept it, since there was a pay increase. The pay increase isn't a lot though, but it would still be one two hundred more than what I'll get next year. But I asked for some time to decide.
The new place would be extremely challenging. The team is practically new because of high turnover. They are still busy filling vacancies. To think positively, a new team might mean everyone starts afresh (or starts equally blur); but there must be something wrong within to cause high attrition. Even the bosses are new. The people there also don't seem friendly either.
Next, I usually don't OT much. Sure there were instances where I had to burn my weekends on projects, and then questioning myself why do I have to work so hard; but generally, I rarely had to work late into the night. Each time I worked till the sky is dark, and my dinner time had passed, I feel so dejected. But, from what I know, people in the new place works late. Even HR called me at 7pm. I know I have it too good at my current place :(
Also, I have a lot of flexibility in my current place. I book my overseas trip as and when I like. My bosses don't disturb me when I'm on holidays. I'm not so sure if this would still be possible in the new place.
Anyway, funny as it sounds, I'm retorting to Google to help me decide if I should accept that offer or not.
Adapted from 7 Career Questions That Will Help You Decide Whether to Stay or Go
.
.
.
My answer is pretty clear. Still, let me think about it.
I'm a practical person. At the end of it, a job is just for me to survive - I need a monthly stream of income to build a home, build a family, feed myself and my family, and to save enough for retirement.
So when the offer came, theoretically I should without a doubt accept it, since there was a pay increase. The pay increase isn't a lot though, but it would still be one two hundred more than what I'll get next year. But I asked for some time to decide.
The new place would be extremely challenging. The team is practically new because of high turnover. They are still busy filling vacancies. To think positively, a new team might mean everyone starts afresh (or starts equally blur); but there must be something wrong within to cause high attrition. Even the bosses are new. The people there also don't seem friendly either.
Next, I usually don't OT much. Sure there were instances where I had to burn my weekends on projects, and then questioning myself why do I have to work so hard; but generally, I rarely had to work late into the night. Each time I worked till the sky is dark, and my dinner time had passed, I feel so dejected. But, from what I know, people in the new place works late. Even HR called me at 7pm. I know I have it too good at my current place :(
Also, I have a lot of flexibility in my current place. I book my overseas trip as and when I like. My bosses don't disturb me when I'm on holidays. I'm not so sure if this would still be possible in the new place.
Anyway, funny as it sounds, I'm retorting to Google to help me decide if I should accept that offer or not.
Adapted from 7 Career Questions That Will Help You Decide Whether to Stay or Go
- Do I want to do this for the next five years—or does the thought of that make me panic? Yes and no. Yes because I'd likely be rotated around and doing new things. No to working under the same bosses for the next five years.
- When I look at the opportunities ahead of me at my job, am I excited—or do I feel stressed, anxious, or bored? Stressed to be handling the projects. I find work a chore. Then again, I'd feel the same if I go elsewhere.
- Are there other roles, opportunities, projects, or clients I could work on at my current job that are interesting to me—or not? Probably not.
- Am I still excited about my work—or am I holding onto this job because it’s what I’m used to, because it’s what I thought I wanted to do, or because I’m afraid to make a change? I'm just cruising along in my current job. I get to end work on time, telecommute, and rarely work over the weekends. I don't feel excitement, but I do get excited on payday!
- Does this job make use of my best skills—or am I feeling frustrated that my abilities aren’t being put to good use? It's a problem when I don't even know what my skills are. If I stay on, could I find it difficult to make a move next time?
- Does my current employer value growth, learning, and new opportunities for employees—or would I have more support elsewhere? There are no real career development in my organisation. At the end of it, I'm just a cog in a wheel.
- Is my work still aligned with my values, interests, and goals—or have my needs changed over the years? The things my organisations are doing, doesn't excite me.
.
.
.
My answer is pretty clear. Still, let me think about it.
Hi Cherry,
ReplyDeleteChanging job should allow you either an advancement from your current role or you get to learn new things so that you deepen your skills for the career you want to build. I would also ask myself if I feel the boss who interviewed me is good or do I dislike him or her? I feel that having a good boss is very important. Lastly, maybe you can think whether you like the new job scope. If its similar to what you're doing now, then you'll roughly know what its like. If its not the same job scope, I think its better to at least not hate the role else its quite hard to survive in the long term.
I've changed job for roughly 1 year plus now where I stayed 6 years in my previous company. To be honest, I still miss my previous workplace but I do not regret because I did learn much more things and also get more money from a new job. If you have this 2 factors, most likely you won't regret the choice. Hope you will be able to make a good decision for this job offer :)
Thanks for your sharing! I've made up my mind :)
DeleteSomeone once advised me: if you have to think about something before doing it, then you probably shouldn't be doing it (unless desperation kicks in)...
ReplyDelete