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Businesses The Almighty Buck

A Pay Cut for Personal Growth? 89

Posted by Cliff from the money-isn't-everything dept.
As as follow-up to an Ask Slashdot from earlier this week hatch815 asks: "I have recently been extended an offer to come work as an engineer for one of the internet search companies. In responsibility, this will be a step back, as I am currently in a management role, but as a career direction, it will provide me with unlimited exposure, learning, and advancement. The place where I work now is a small non-IT centric shop. Although I am management, I am at the top of the ladder. The tough decision is the pay decrease I would take if I did take this new position. Is the prestige and exposure worth giving up responsibility? I am too stuck in the big fish small pond mentality? Is going back to the forefront better than the psuedo-management I do now?"
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A Pay Cut for Personal Growth? More

A Pay Cut for Personal Growth?

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  • Go with what will make you happy (Score:5, Insightful)

    by Morgalyn ( 605015 ) <slashmorg@gmail.com> on Friday September 30, 2005 @12:19PM (#13685727) Journal
    If you are happy with your current position, I'd say stay. If you are yearning to be more hands-on and less managementy, and your lifestyle won't take a major hit by the move, then totally go for it. If you have family to consider, make sure you talk to them about it first, especially if you will have to move / make major spending changes (depending on the difference in pay).

    • Re:Go with what will make you happy (Score:4, Interesting)

      by Atlantic Wall ( 847508 ) on Friday September 30, 2005 @12:30PM (#13685863)
      I agree. I left a high paying management Job, for an IT job that i love. In the end i am happier because i am learning more and growing as well. Being at the same job, postion, and state everyday gets boring and eventually the money will not matter, Take the chance now. Eventually your new job will pay you more in money and peace of mind. Make a mistake now is better than making one later
    • Best advice. Don't worry about career or money, unless those are what make you happy. Just do what you enjoy, and the rest will fall into place.

      • Re:Happiness Myth (Score:4, Insightful)

        by mpapet ( 761907 ) on Friday September 30, 2005 @02:38PM (#13687304) Homepage
        What happens if everyone in America suddenly decided to follows this advice?

        Some of the more immediate impacts would be:
        -Would anyone work at a retail chain?
        -How may garbage collectors find driving a truck around the city their eternal source of happiness?
        -Do you think postal workers get their happiness needs met at work? I believe the term "go postal" pretty much makes my point.
        -What about air traffic controllers? Managing airspace would have to be another eternal spring of happiness.
        -In a serious blow to most /.'ers the pool of available talent for pornography would likely get a great deal smaller. Because, every woman I've met *really* wants to be in porn for the artistic value rather than the money.

        The vast majority of jobs are just that, jobs. Do your work, get your pay and go home. Now, if you have the financial resources to wait until your perfect job comes, then you are indeed part of a small group of luxury workers.

        I'm not saying don't seek happines and fulfillment. But just casually throwing out feel-good statements in this context is potentially damaging.

        Please STOP spreading this myth.
        • Society will adjust. Maybe we can automate some of the tasks or maybe we will do without. Anything is "potentially" damaging. Your own post is "potentially" damaging. so I'm curious to know why you aren't taking your own advice?

        • Re:Happiness Myth (Score:1, Insightful)

          by Anonymous Coward
          What happens if everyone in America suddenly decided to follows this advice?

          Nothing. Many people enjoy money more than doing a specific task. They will still carry out the jobs that most would not enjoy doing.

        • Re:Happiness Myth (Score:4, Insightful)

          by Jjeff1 ( 636051 ) on Friday September 30, 2005 @05:04PM (#13688717)
          I've read comments like this twice this week. Am I as an IT person unfulfilled because I'm not a concert pianist? No, I don't have the desire or ability.

          A lot of people just don't have the IQ to do anything more than sling burgers. They do what they can. Maybe they think their job sucks and want to do something else, but that kind of thinking isn't limited to just janitors. Frankly a job I don't ever need to think about unless I'm punched in doesn't sound so bad.

          Garbage collector - decent pay, paid overtime, drive to/from work not during rush-hour, no on-call pager, no hair-thinning level of responsibilty. I wear gloves and take a shower end of the day. It's just trash, it won't kill me.

          To each their own.

          • Re:Happiness Myth (Score:3, Insightful)

            by mpapet ( 761907 )
            What if your source of happiness was playing the piano? According to the original post, it's recommended you quit your IT job and immediately try to find work playing the piano because as he states, "do what you enjoy and the rest will follow."

            Based on my experience living in Los Angeles and working with countless musicians/actors that did and didn't make it in entertainment, The most likely turnout of "The rest" in this case would be debt, hunger and homelessness because you'll be in a very long line of u
        • I agree in general, but:

          -Would anyone work at a retail chain?
          I know several (single) people who are perfectly happy at their retail jobs

          -How may garbage collectors find driving a truck around the city
          -their eternal source of happiness?
          I know one man who does, but mainly because he loves fixing all the still useful things we throw away and makes sculptures of those he can't.

          -Do you think postal workers get their happiness needs met at
          -work? I believe the term "go postal" pretty much makes my point.
          No contest
        • Contrary to popular belief, some people enjoy doing things that you don't like. I have good friends that love their retail jobs. I personally love doing residential construction. I also happen to enjoy technology management, teaching, and volunteer supervision. I think your outlook is damaging to people, and by extension, horrible for society.

          My statement is not a feelgood statement. It's a truth of fact of what has worked for me, my family, and those people who are around me and happy. Deal with
          • I have good friends that love their retail jobs
            Married? Most likey not. Living at home? Possible. Working more than 1 job? Likely because retail doesn't pay well. Health Insurance with $100 deductable? I'd say impossible. Now it is possible that they live some place with low cost of living, but it's only a matter of time before they are priced out. Wait, don't tell me, they'll get by on Love right?

            I personally love doing residential construction. I also happen to enjoy technology management, teaching
          • Air Traffic Controllers are VERY well compensated. Bad example.

            I looked into doing that for a living, I actually enjoy stuff like that, but I was slightly too late in life.
    • Best advice: Take whatever pays the most. Houses, cars, vacations, dates, wives, children, food and hobbies are not free. If you're concerned about "prestige", what is more prestigious than money? Geek prestige only counts in certain circles. Money prestige counts everywhere. Plus, if you make a lot of money, you can afford to have fun rather than trying to pretend to be humble and enjoy things that aren't really all that fun.

      • Re:Go with what will make you happy (Score:4, Interesting)

        by Morgalyn ( 605015 ) <slashmorg@gmail.com> on Friday September 30, 2005 @01:30PM (#13686547) Journal
        Whoa dude slow down. All the money in the world isn't worth it if you don't enjoy your job. As long as you make enough to support yourself, you should always try and do what is going to make you happiest at the end of the day. If you are utterly shallow and can only focus on the 'prestige' that money can bring, then fine, whore yourself away at whatever job pays the most. That way you can become a bitter old person who never focused on what was important in the real world, and instead just focused on the bottom line. It's attitudes like this that make all these large corporations we all seem to love to hate.

        • Re:Go with what will make you happy (Score:1, Insightful)

          by Anonymous Coward
          > Whoa dude slow down. All the money in the world isn't worth it if you don't enjoy your job.

          If I have all the money in the world, and I don't enjoy my job, I can quit.

          > As long as you make enough to support yourself, you should always try and do what is going to make you happiest at the end of the day.

          I'm not a genius. Someday, my present skill set will be obsolete. Someday after that, there'll be more stuff to learn than I can pick up before it too becomes obsolete. When that happens, I wi

          • Except for a few s00per-geniuses, most of us are probably going to be unemployable at around age 45.

            Have you told Bill Gates he needs to retire? If employment ends at age 45 then being 43 and disabled I might as well drop out of college and roll over and die.

            Falcon
          • Except for a few s00per-geniuses, most of us are probably going to be unemployable at around age 45.

            BWAHAHAHAHAHA

            BWAHAHAHAHAHA

            Allow me to laugh my ass off.
            Sorry....couldn't help myself. Seeing as I just started a new job at age 48, that is just too damn funny.

            My dad, computer geek from WAY back, who was teaching computer classes for MicroCenter, quit his job just shy of his 81st birthday.

            My old shop, average age was around 40. New, bigger, shop, average age around 45 or so.

            Again....BWAHAHAHAHAHAHA

        • Give me all the money in the world and a job, I'll enjoy it.
        • Isn't the pursuit of total happiness even more shallow than the pursuit of money?

          Thinking that you're always going to be happy is retarded. No matter what job you have, you'll always have both good and BAD days, no matter how much you "love" it.
          • No no no no. I am not talking about some sort of crazy zen 'total happiness'. I'm talking about baseline happy. Like, the absence of unhappy - that is, you don't have to force yourself out of bed just to go to work. Have you ever had work that was so unfulfilling, so obnoxious, so whatever, that you didn't even want to leave the house, dreaded going in to work? It happens to some people with some jobs. They are unhappy, and not just 'oh I had a bad day' but UNHAPPY. This fellow in the article is not
            • So maybe the guy ought to figure out why he's unhappy and forget about changing jobs? (GRIN)

              That's all I'm basically saying. Happiness doesn't (usually) come from jobs.

              I think we generally agree.

              I was just taking that further to the extreme and saying that chasing jobs for happiness is silly.
    • From dictionary.com, the meaning of work:
      # Physical or mental effort or activity directed toward the production or accomplishment of something.
      1. A job; employment: looking for work.
      2. A trade, profession, or other means of livelihood.

      Hmmm, there is NO mention of happiness or pleasure in that definition. But there is something about livelihood though. Another common description "Exchange labor for money." No, no happiness mentioned there either.

      Maybe then, you
      • There is no reason for a skilled person (as this guy obviously is) to not make a choice that also includes his own happiness. There's no requirement for utter ecstatic joy in the workplace, but it is MUCH easier to go to work and not feel like a cog in a system if you enjoy what you are doing. He is being faced with two very diverse choices, that is, he has a choice. He can choose which work environment will make him happier. That was the point I was trying to make.

        As far as unspoken rules, they are o
    • Up to my most recent job, I was trying to balance both the expectation of a family in the near future, and the desire to learn more about my industry. I too worked in a job where there was little advancement opportunity, but where my salary was a little higher due to its management nature than I could get as an engineer. When an opportunity came along that would move me from a management path to an engineering path, I had to consider the long-term possibilties. And, I discussed it in depth with my fiance
  • Whatever. I wrote a big paragraph on the risk of staying vs leaving.

    It comes down to this. You have kids? Stay where you are at. As long as the company is not going to go under anytime soon its not worth putting your family through the stress of you working the ladder again.

    This is not a rule just an opion, responses to this can state their own opinion but cannot prove me wrong.

    • Re:The risk. (Score:4, Interesting)

      by killmenow ( 184444 ) on Friday September 30, 2005 @12:56PM (#13686144)
      It comes down to this. You have kids? Stay where you are at. As long as the company is not going to go under anytime soon its not worth putting your family through the stress of you working the ladder again.
      Well, I'll add my two cents. I do not necessarily agree. I have four children. I quit my job last year to start my own business. On a wing and a prayer. I have told my children more times than I can count: the only thing you can gamble on in this world is yourself. it's the only thing you have any control over. I thought it better to teach my children to follow their dreams, take risks, and try, try again to succeed...rather than to keep the safe job and work 30+ years taking orders from somebody else.

      Now, to be fair, had that job had any of a number of certain qualities...I might not've taken that risk even though running my own business has always been a personal dream of sorts. Anyway, I'm happier this way. Even if I fail and lose everything. It may make for some difficult times for my family, but it will not kill us and the risk is worth it, imho.
      This is not a rule just an opion, responses to this can state their own opinion but cannot prove me wrong.
      My head asplode.
      • "the only thing you can gamble on in this world is yourself."
        That's simply not true. You CAN gamble on many things. I think what you mean to say is that you should only gamble on yourself.

        Let's hope someone else is teaching your children how to communicate and use the language.

        ZING!

      • I'll agree with that. I have more respect for striking out your own dream buisness then working for the worship of a large corporation.
      • Kudos - if doing your own thing ethically and honestly is every bit as important to you as doing your own thing, I wish you success.
  • BATNA = Best Alternative To Negotiated Agreement

    Can you take your extra salary and go get an advanced degree somewhere?

    Or max out your 401K and retire 5 years earlier, at which time you can choose to work for yourself?

    Or can you work out an arrangement where you take 75%-80% salary for 4 days of work a week? How about EVERY Friday off?
  • Seriously, no-one here can offer you any useful advise. It's up to you.
    • Do you enjoy your current job?
    • Do you need the extra money?
    • Do you think you'll enjoy the other job more?

    I'm currently working out my notice at a software development and management job, and I'm taking a university research post. It pays less, but I don't really need the money, and I know I'll enjoy the research job more. It really is as simple as that. That doesn't make the decision any easier if there are complications - in my cas

  • I took a cut to escape management and be on the front lines. At the end of the day, I was more interested in doing the tech role and gaining the approval of technicians and not "suits". Bottom line: what do you love, working with technology or having technology work for you. The former would be the techs, the latter sales & management.

    It's all about personal choice. I'm happy with the choice I've made.

  • Google! (Score:2, Funny)

    by Anonymous Coward
    <soapbox>
    Why don't you stop being lazy and just type "Pay cut for personal growth in Google"
    Damn, people just don't know how to research their proble...

    <embarassment>
    oh, wait...

    (come on, you know someone did this ;)
  • Responsibility:
    Top manager at a small shop.
    Engineer for one of the internet search companies
    To value this situation, first you have to decide how much responsibility both businesses have in the overall scheme of things, then your responsibility in the business.

    You are overlooking the potential for pay raises and promotion.
    Look at your choice of words: pseudo-management? Is the company you are working for now going to be around much longer? Do you really want it to be around for much longer?
    Does the

  • I did this twice, never again (Score:5, Insightful)

    by gruntvald ( 22203 ) * on Friday September 30, 2005 @12:43PM (#13685995) Homepage Journal
    I thought I was getting some excellent experience, and I was, but I could have achieved the same result if I'd spent my extra income on some targetted certification. The pay cut just wears at you. I'd recommend confirming this by making an accurate cash flow for yourself. Once you've got your bottom line "I must make this much to operate my household" dollar figure, see if the offer covers that. Then think about how much excess cash is left over for "fun". If there isn't any, it's unlikely to work out.

  • Personal Satisfaction (Score:3, Informative)

    by bleaknik ( 780571 ) <jamal.h.khanNO@SPAMgmail.com> on Friday September 30, 2005 @12:56PM (#13686152) Homepage Journal
    My personal advice: Money is not everything. Ask yourself these questions:
    • Does this new job pay your bills?
    • Does your current job offer you a greater sense of self-satisfaction when the day is over?
    • Do you like Psuedo Management roles? I personally, do, but it may not be for you.
    • Is there room for growth? If you don't like your new job title as well as you could, are there promotion opportunities?
    I guess the biggest thing you have to worry about is your bills. Sure everyone likes a fatter paycheck, but all in all more money doesn't make you happy. Money only keeps you happy for a short while, after that happiness expires it becomes a question of personal satisfaction. Without personal satisfaction in your career choice, you're always going to dislike going into work. You're always going to dislike your job.

    What do I know, though?
    • Along the pseudo-management line, what exactly do you mean by this? If you mean you manage less than five people, but have complete or near-complete control the direction of the company's IT business, then I'd say stay where you are until you run out of new ideas. Think about things like increasing productivity, automation, VoIP, and B2B e-commerce. If you have an interest in things like that, you can still grow in the position you are in, and will have an easier time quantifying your value to the compan
      • You raise some excellent points!

        Once your bills are paid, it doesn't matter if you make $5,000 more at one job than the next. What does matter if you're happy with what you do.

        Some people, as you've pointed out, enjoy working on several different projects and being able to manage a wide array of resources.

        Other people prefer to work the "Code Slave" jobs for all eternity.

        When it comes down to it, do you enjoy what you'll be doing? Forget any office, title, or salary--those don't give y
    • What you say about money is true to a certain extent, but most jobs in the same industry are not *that* much different. It'd have to be a special job indeed for the magnitude of the "greater sense of self-satisfaction" from doing your work to outweigh the "greater sense of self-satisfaction" from being well rewarded for doing your work. I am dubious whether there are many jobs in the sw industry that are that much special. They all seem pretty similar to me once you get past the superficial differences.
      • You're very right. A programming job is a programming job, and it doesn't matter where you're working. I would like to point out, though, that corporate values also play a role into this equation. There are places that the environment is a wonderful place to work thanks to great management or great corporate philosophies. There are also places that the environment is generally negative. When you are looking for a new job, it's generally a good idea to ask questions about the corporate culture, the work envi

  • Dear Slashdot (Score:5, Funny)

    by bcrowell ( 177657 ) on Friday September 30, 2005 @12:57PM (#13686162) Homepage
    Dear Slashdot,

    I've been going out with this one woman, Sara, and I really like her, but recently I met this other women, Gina, and she's really cool too. Which one should I pick?

    • Re:Dear Slashdot (Score:4, Funny)

      by SwimsWithTheFishes ( 842420 ) on Friday September 30, 2005 @01:11PM (#13686329)
      I you are posting on Slashdot, then both those women are blow-up dolls. Keep them both.
    • I don't know the answer to your question, but I can tell you that you should keep them both for now, and try to have sex with each one of them in a single day. If you don't, you'll always regret not being able to say that you scored with two different chicks in one day.

    • In the words of Al Bundy: (Score:4, Insightful)

      by mckwant ( 65143 ) on Friday September 30, 2005 @02:15PM (#13687069)
      It doesn't matter. Eventually, whichever one you pick will have her flaws exposed. At that point, you will find yourself thinking wistfully back to the one you didn't pick, and the ideal, if totally fictional, life you and she would be leading.

      As such, which one you pick makes no difference whatsoever.

    • Re:Dear Slashdot (Score:5, Funny)

      by killmenow ( 184444 ) on Friday September 30, 2005 @02:47PM (#13687411)
      This reminds me of an old joke about men:

      A man had been dating three different women, all of whom he enjoyed very much. He actually felt he was in love with each of them, but he realized he could not keep up seeing all of them and he needed to pick just one to marry. The problem was: he couldn't decide. After a great deal of thought, he finally came up with an idea. He would give each of them $1000 and see what they did with it.

      So, he gave each the money and waited. The first woman spent the money on herself, bought new clothes, had her nails and hair done, etc., and said she wanted to look good for him. The second woman spent the money on him, bought him gifts, etc., and said she just wanted to show him how much he meant to her. The third woman took the money and invested it, tripling it to $3000 in a week.

      After he saw what each woman did with the money, he thought for a while, then disregarded the whole thing and married the one with the biggest tits.
    • Dear Slashdot,

      I've been going out with this one woman, Sara, and I really like her, but recently I met this other women, Gina, and she's really cool too. Which one should I pick?

      Ideally ... ply them both with alcohol and suggest a threesome. Then stand back until it all goes to shit and you're left with neither. It's a self-correcting problem.
  • I'd tend to think that if you are 30-40 go ahead and job hop. It'll be your last move. If you are 38+ with a wife and kids just out of college or entering college, I'd stick with your current job with more money.

    If you are 20-30, unmarried without kids, go ahead and switch jobs. You are free at the moment anyway. If you are 18-23 and some how got into the top job, I'd stay there if I were you. But that's me. It's your life; it's your decision; we slashdot posters have our own lifes to play out. Go ahead and
  • I'm assuming from your post that you're single, and don't have a family to support or other obligations. Therefore, it essentially comes down to whether you're happy with your current job, and whether you are happy staying in your current position. Do you foresee moving to the new job, learning the ropes, and then climbing the ladder to the same place you are now?

    Also, don't forget to look at things like benefits (ie, vacation, insurance, 401k, etc.)

  • ...the money will follow.

    Two years ago had almost this same decision to make.

    I switched. I love it. Now as just a nerd, I make more than I did as the "big fish in the little pond" manager.

    • ...the money will follow.

      Unfortuneately, the money seems to have lost the scent. Maybe if I sit still for a while it'll catch up to me? I'm over here!

      Serioulsy, though, I think this tired old platitude should either be retired or modified:

      "Do what you love and you'll be happy even without much money"

      That seems a lot more realistic. Why is it that people want a lot of money? Because they think it'll make them happy. Better to learn to be happy in any situation whether you have no money or a lot of it.

  • Managerial vs Engineering responsibility (Score:5, Insightful)

    by Morgaine ( 4316 ) on Friday September 30, 2005 @01:10PM (#13686320)
    In responsibility, this will be a step back, as I am currently in a management role

    That is a stunning statement from my perspective, stunning in the worst possible way. It presupposes that a technical role carries less responsibility than a managerial one, which is a terrible indictment of how you perceive relationships in the workplace. It certainly doesn't reflect my approach to responsibility in software and systems engineering in any place where I have worked professionally.

    Perhaps it reflects the outlook of some hypothetical 9-5 techie who couldn't care less what he does in the office, but it's not an outlook that is at all common. Quite the opposite: it is usually the middle management that is 9-5, and the technical people slug their guts out around the clock. While hours beyond the call of duty do not mean everything, nevertheless they do imply dedication and responsibility.

    Of course, management always thinks that it is at the top of the pyramid of responsibility and authority, even in a company whose business is entirely technical and where the actual wealth creators are the technical people. Well, it's up to every professional technical person to disabuse them of that. It can be tough and confrontational, but it is also rewarding in the long run to be recognized for carrying out a key and indispensible engineering role.

    My answer to your question is simple: do the job that you find most rewarding and fulfilling. If you were a bum-on-seat tech laborer with zero authority and no responsibility in a company run by managers who treat their techies as menial labor, then not only should you flee the technical positions, but abandon the company in its entirety.
    • It's more about the glass celings and invisible lines between management and 'labor'. Obviously management can have a very high upside in terms of "pre$tige", as well as open up a much broader range of possibilities for you, as well as making you less prone to skill obsolesence. That's not to say technical work can't be rewarding, but he enjoys an management role going to be a lot harder for him to go back if his last position was "network engineer" or something.

      Anyway, you seem bitter about something ... t
    • A _good_ manager takes responsability for not only his own job, but the jobs of the people he manages. In effect, their responsabilities become his responsabilities.

      It's an easy mistake to make. Most people never get to experience what it is to work for a good manger.

    • Management and Technical are real forks in the engineering field. While it is quite possible to be a well-paid and respected "senior engineer", it is not a lateral move between senior engineering and senior management. From a career standpoint, a good engineer that can manage people, projects, and clients should focus on the management side. It does not belittle the technical side, but it respects the fact that a renaissance person skilled in several areas makes the most effective manager for a technical
    • I'm going to have to disagree with you - somewhat. Let me preface by saying that I enjoy working at medium sized, non-tech companies. That may be a core element of my point.

      I've been a professional software engineer and and electrical engineer. I've been a one-man-do-it-all IT guy, and I've been a help desk employee. I'm currently an IT Director (management), and I thoroughly enjoy it. I get to help my team in a hands-on way, and I get to use _all_ of the skills that I've acquired. I'm not a typical P

  • A bad Haiku (Score:5, Insightful)

    by Vodak ( 119225 ) on Friday September 30, 2005 @01:19PM (#13686412)
    Asks help from strangers,
    For answers allready there,
    Look into one's soul
  • "I have recently been extended an offer to come work as an engineer for one of the internet search companies"

    If that search company is Google, go for it.

    Although, with all the cash they continue to harvest, you certainly could go back to the bargaining table and request more. :->

    Seriously though, I'd be interested in hearing what qualifications you have, the details of how you were approached, and what pay differences were talking about.

    Otherwise, you might as well be asking a technical question without
  • From Boston's "Peace of Mind"

    Now you're climbin' to the top of the company ladder
    Hope it doesn't take too long
    Can'tcha you see there'll come a day when it won't matter
    Come a day when you'll be gone

    Now everybody's got advice they just keep on givin'
    Doesn't mean too much to me
    Lot's of people out to make-believe they're livin'
    Can't decide who they should be.

    I understand about indecision
    But I don't care if I get behind
    People livin' in competition
    All I want is to have my peace of mind.

    • You forgot the best part of the boston lyrics (and probably the most relavent part of this discussion)...

      TAKE A LOOK AHEAD!

      Making a decision based on current money or current position is a sure sign of premature-optimization...
  • Pedro, just listen to your heart. That's what I'd do.
  • The money is the easy part. Do what you like and you will be good at it. From there you should be able to figure out how to get paid for it.

  • Not to sound too corny (probably impossible given what I'm about to say), but to me, it sounds like you don't know how you want to help your fellow man. At some point I decided that my life was about helping put a smile on people's faces when they sit down in front of a computer. At a job I was working in the past, my next step up the rung was to go into management. I decided there to become a trainer, and I have never looked back. Maybe it was a step down, but for me it was also a step forward.

    If you k

  • I'm probably heading for a troll here, but does the angst and hand wringing of some manager considering taking a job in programming have that much import? Be glad you got a job buddy, be blessed you have opportunity in abundance. And be a bit humble about it.

  • We live in a world where you need money to do pretty much anything. In North America it is next to impossible to survive with out money. As much as money is needed it is not everything. Anyone's decision about taking a pay cut or a pay increase for varying responsibilities should take the time to consider:
    1) Is this something that will make me happy?
    2) Can I continue my current lifestyle? (If the current lifestyle is important.)
    3) Can I pay my bills?
    The most important one of those I think is, will it mak
  • I'd say you need to take a step back, and really think about your life. What do you want to accomplish with your life? What do you enjoy?

    If continuing in your current position (you can't go up unless the company expands) gives you the professional satisfaction you need, and sufficient pay to afford to do the things you enjoy, then there's no reason to change.

    If you feel like your current position is just work, and it intrudes on your ability to do things that you find personally rewarding ... take the new p

  • Apply the Doug Lang Formula (Score:3, Insightful)

    by zenbanana ( 781223 ) * <jthompson@telecomsys.com> on Friday September 30, 2005 @01:55PM (#13686869)
    Why do people stay at jobs, or choose to switch to another job? I asked a colleague, Doug Lang, this question in 1994 when he chose to quit rather than start commuting 20 miles instead of 1 mile despite being the second highest paid employee (after the company president). He said "There are three things you get from working: money, learning and fun. Everyone decides for themselves what ratio between those three variables they want to have at any given time by either staying or leaving. If you're making a lot of money but not having fun or learning anything, maybe it's time to make less money and learn something."

    Ever since, I've applied those three variables to every job I've had, and it's helped me leave boring, plateaued jobs that paid well.

    • "There are three things you get from working: money, learning and fun. Everyone decides for themselves what ratio between those three variables they want to have at any given time by either staying or leaving. If you're making a lot of money but not having fun or learning anything, maybe it's time to make less money and learn something."

      That's about the best way I've heard it put, and will try to recall it. Thanks.

      Falcon
  • Ask yourself - do you want to be mucking with computers in a few years, or do you want to use IT as a springboard for something else?

    If you know the IT systems at a non-IT centric shop, your knowledge of how things work could help you as a manager of some other part of the organization. It all depends on what you want.

    I have friends who are/were talented engineers who transitioned to other roles because they became sick and tired of the work. One guy is the Director of a non-profit and another is a muckety-

  • Are you happy and content, and believe your job will still exist in 1, 2, or 5 years? If so then stay, but if you're not really happy, are restless, or are concerned about job security then if you can still get by on the lower pay go for it. It may be that job satisfaction may make up for lower pay, or the offered position may lead to a higher paying position later. Basically it boils down to whether or not you are happy with your job.

    Falcon
  • You must not be looking very hard at the numbers... From my perspective, the management track will probably be more profitable. Once you hit the director level and up, options, bonus programs, and other perks are more or less standard fare. You may be top of your food chain at the current company, but there are other companies out there. It is much harder for a technologist with 'business' skills to become management than it is for management to be savvy in the craft. If it is a technology based company,

  • eh (Score:2)

    by wikinerd ( 809585 )
    If you want to gain technical experience and prestige, work in free/libre open-source software projects.
  • I took a job at a substantial pay cut (30+%) in order to get onto a cool project with a cool team with good growth prospects. The problem? I found that the salary you're paid sets management's expectations of your performance. I found that since my experience wasn't acknowledged when I was hired (they couldn't), it was very hard to move up afterwards. You not only have to prove yourself in your existing position, you have to prove yourself in all of the internening ones.

    I could have very easily slowed d
  • I generally would recommend against a pay cut unless one of following expections hold:

      (a) you are currently overpaid

      (b) you are moving to academia or

      (c) you are given extremely juicy and promising stock options
  • The fact that you're even considering the switch means that the extra money you're earning doesn't mean all that much to you.

    You only live once, if you learned anything in your management role you may quickly rise through the ranks at the new company and be better off than before. Don't play it safe.
  • A couple of years ago I was in a very well paying job but was absolutely miserable. Hated it. Hated going.

    I decided to leave and go with a smaller company. Took about a 10% hit in pay. But, I couldn't be happier with the decision to switch jobs. Absoluelty love the new gig.
  • It's better to be at the bottom of a ladder you want to climb than halfway up another you don't.
  • If you have any inclination at all to get back into development you should jump at this chance. The longer you stay in management, the less likely you will ever get back to development/design work.

    Besides, it sounds like you've reached the local maxima of income where you currently are anyway.
  • sometimes we stick to something just because we are comfortable and do not want to disturb anything that is going just fine. but as it goes, highest dividents are paid for highest risks. it doesn't mean we have to gamble with life, but if every instinct tells you to take that job and only money is pulling you back, probably you should take it. in my experience, psuedo-managerial jobs will only dumb you down.
    every cliche in this world will ask you to go for happiness when faced with such choices. so that i

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