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ericgeater
Community Champion

Long commute means good opportunity...

If an opportunity to commute 140 miles per day also presents a great chance at learning and team membership, and includes at 25% increase in pay, would you take it?

 

Asking for a friend.

--
"A claim is as good as its veracity."
22 Replies
CISOScott
Community Champion


@ericgeater wrote:
The 25% was a miscalculation. Starting out, it's only 20%. But at the end of the graduated increases in a few years, it will be an overall lift of 40% from current.

Plus, mandatory comp time for everything worked after-hours. Overtime is verboten.

Plus, education for any subject made available through Global Knowledge.

Plus, the two interviewers are both CISSP certified. The new org is already prone to security in strategy.

Well that adds a few more to the "pro" column. If Education is free then that is built in career advancement. It will give you greater future options. The increase in pay should also help with your retirement deductions. If they match any of your salary, then an increase in salary means an increase in matching. It helps your retirement fund grow faster. So add those to the pro column and see how it stacks against your con column.

RRoach
Contributor I

Long commute will only last so much. Sure you might get more pay, more experience but the negative side will be longer days (work + commute), more time in a seat, and traffic delays so by Thursday/Friday you will be mentally and physically drained and under more stress.  It adds up (even if you take a train or metro).  If needed to pay the bills or level up, make it part of your short term plan while keep searching for other positions and maybe look into the area to see if relocation is worth for the long term.

dcontesti
Community Champion

@ericgeater 

 

Let us know what your friend ultimately decides 😉

 

d

 

ericgeater
Community Champion

This thread has been amazing.  It's great to read everyone's responses.

--
"A claim is as good as its veracity."
CISOScott
Community Champion

Some of have made the same move and can share our experiences. I remember working for the Federal Government (US) in the DC area. I moved to the DC area just for job promotion opportunities because there were so many (5 to 25 a day) versus the small town I was in (lucky to be 5 opportunities A YEAR!).  I went from a GS 9 to a GS-14 in 7 years, where I may have never had that opportunity if I had stayed. The problem with fed gov hiring is that even thought I may have been qualified to work at the GS-12 level, If I had never been a GS-11 in the federal government, according to HR I wasn't qualified. So my career advancement would have been stalled if I stayed. So I moved my young family and made it work.  I did the "Make a list of pros and cons" and it helped me make the move decision. More long term pros than short term cons. I went from making 35K a year to 75 K a year in three short years. That salary jump affected all of my future positions by setting a new high for me. I eventually moved back to my home town as a GS-14 making $105K a year. Ten my daughters decided to go to college in another state, so we moved again. I still do the pro vs. con list every time I come across an opportunity. I am now at my highest pay ever and have even had some offers for 130 to 145 a year, but the cons outweighed the pros so I didn't jump at those opportunities.

 

The move I made 15 years ago has had a positive ripple affect on my career. Not only was I able to get  higher paying jobs, but they started coming with C-level titles, which has allowed me to continue to demand a high salary. 

 

I also took a huge drop in my salary at one time (45K to 29K) to chase a career I love. I went from working everyday to enjoying everyday. I now make more than I ever could have at that dead-end job, even if I made Supervisor (which I was on track for). But my health is better (it was aircraft painting), my knees and wrists don't ache and I am enjoying work instead of dreading it. Good luck with your decision and do let us know how it goes.

GerryS
Contributor II

it really depends on the situation.

 

In my case it would be a pass.

 

I'm at the point in my life where time with the family far outweighs the pay increase.

 

I only have about a 22 mile commute each way and that is over stressful most days.

 

Need to sit back, weigh the pros and cons and let that make the decision.

Steve-Wilme
Advocate II

In many parts of the world the pandemic's making this a moot point.  Here in the UK we're back under lockdown from Thursday.  I can't go into work and work normally and some of the offices are shuttered.  It looks like we'll be told to work from home on a more permanent basis and the offices will be disposed of as their leases expire.  There are restrictions on travel too!  Still at least I'm not working out of my bedroom like some.

 

 

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Steve Wilme CISSP-ISSAP, ISSMP MCIIS
cindelicato
Contributor I

I get your point, sadly. However, on Monday I will begin a new position which involves me on-site 1 day per week and remote for the balance of the week. The drive will take me 2-2.5 hrs to get there; not at all ideal, but easy to do once/week.
RRoach
Contributor I

good luck and maybe there is a commuter train option.
cindelicato
Contributor I

The mixed blessing of living in a rural area: it would take me 90 mins to drive to the nearest station. Even still, it would take an Uber or two buses to get from the rail station to the office. I used to drive 2 hrs each way, every day, so this will be a cakewalk in comparison.