Should I accept a position with same pay, longer commute, but greater opportunity to learn?
Asked by
soaper (
5
)
November 10th, 2019
In my current position, I enjoy the work, but there are several toxic co-workers. I have learned to put distance between them and myself, so they are reduced to a nuisance, not terribly stress inducing. The greatest benefit at my job is that I get every other Friday off and just work one hour more on all other days. That has worked great for me. Recently I was approached for a position within the same agency that has greater opportunity for learning, but it would be a lateral transfer with same pay, a longer commute and no Fridays off. My current role is highly specialized and not easily transferrable. My first thought before speaking with them was that I would only be interested if I could keep the flex schedule and get a raise. However, the position is one which would provide a great learning opportunity. My concern though is that I greatly value my Fridays off because my commute is long. In this other job, the commute is longer, but they said it could be arranged to work in the office close to my home one day per week. That would be the compromise. At first I was thinking I should take it, but after thinking it over, time is my most valuable asset right now, and these Fridays have been helpful in reducing stress. It would be hard on me to make the change, but I would get more experience. I am just not sure what to do right now. I am already mourning the loss of Fridays and I haven’t even accepted the position yet. The position is most definitely a career boost.
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7 Answers
Where are you in your working life? Are you in the career building stage, i.e., younger? If so, I would seriously consider taking the job but if not, it sounds like the hours are much better for you at your current place. If it’s the same agency, could you take on some of the learning responsibilities and stay where you are?
I am later in life (50) and not a player. If I were younger, I would have immediately jumped into it, and my first thought was that I should go for it since it would make it easier to eventually transfer to a position closer to home. My current job is not great, I really don’t like several of my co-workers, but the work itself is challenging and I have been enjoying the work for the most part, although my manager is not supportive career-wise. Sometimes I wonder if I am becoming too complacent, and I know that some of the co-workers get to me if I don’t put up strong boundaries. My Fridays off are like gold to me though and that is what I truly do not want to give up. Without going into too much detail, the agency overall is not one in which I have a lot of experience, so my current role is not easily transferable due to being so specialized, although my skills are strong and my experience from other companies is easily transferable in the private sector. My current commute is still long (the new position is a bit farther), and this commute took me a long time to adjust, with the fridays off being a recovery day for me.
If you’re 50, in my personal opinion, I would go for comfort and work/life balance rather than skills building. And you have no idea what the work colleagues will be like at the new place.
To me opportunity is one of the greatest gifts life can offer and good opportunities are far and few between. If this new job has as much potential then you may regret not jumping at it. You can always move closer. And also DO ask for the flex time and let them know why. HR or bosses don’t always think outside the box and may be open to your proposal.
Perhaps you’ll get another better offer that’s better for you. I’d hesitate too if it meant giving up Fridays off. Good luck.
I didn’t read your chapter but it depends. If “what” you will be able to learn is valuable to you and not knowledge that can be obtained from independent reading and study, sure, it might be the best thing. Don’t forget that we work for money and if your commute is longer you are making less money and using more of your time. Good luck. Life is full of decisions….some harder than others.
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No matter where you go or what you do, you’ll encounter jerks. Toxic people are an unfortunate part of life. There could be more or fewer such individuals at a new job, and you have no way of knowing until you get there. But, it sounds as if you deal with all of them in a mature, effective way, so this issue might not be significant factor for you.
PRO – I’ve always believed that there’s no expiration date on self-growth. Life never wants to stop teaching, so why should you stop learning?
CON – The longer commute sounds tiring and would reduce your personal time. It would be a huge adjustment to start working one additional day per week; personally, I haven’t had a full-time job since I was in my 20s, because I really hate being so tied-down to any workplace.
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