
Ask HN: Should I go for the job with more money but less passion? - empty-throwaway
I have two choices:<p>A: Stay where I am, or find a new similar role for same&#x27;ish pay (I&#x27;m near the top of salary in my specific niche) in an industry I like&#x2F;enjoy.<p>B: Leave, take a new job, immediate 25% more in salary plus shot at large bonuses - but in a area (ads) that I&#x27;m less enthused about<p>Background: I do well but in an expensive city I rent, have zero savings, and a family to think about.<p>Part of me just wants to say yes to &quot;B&quot;, ignore that is ad-centric, work hard for two years, get a solid financial base behind my family, and then reassess.<p>I appreciate its a good problem to have in comparison to many other decisions life could throw at me.<p>Anyone here face similar dilemmas?<p>(Throwaway account)
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jasonkester
Don't think of it as 25% more money. Think of it as 20% fewer work days before
you can retire.

It's actually more than that, since salary increases compound on each other.
If you get another 10% bump next time you switch jobs, you'll want it to be
10% of the higher number, further shortening the time you need to sit in that
Aeron before you can pack it in and do what you want with your life.

In the end, a lot depends on why (as somebody else hinted) you have that zero
savings. If you're just going to ramp up your spending to match your salary
regardless of where it is, you're better of staying where you are. If you're
smartly living to your needs rather than your means and sacking away as much
as possible, then it seems a pretty straightforward decision.

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dyeje
If you have no savings now, a 25% raise isn't going to help you. You'll just
figure out new ways to spend the money. You need to make a budget and get your
expenses under control.

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Artlav
Depends.

In my case, i moved from a job where i worked on high-performance
computing/driver-level stuff and got to play with some TOP500 machines
unconstrained, which was rather fun.

The new job was in telecom, and i worked on a somewhat higher level, doing
with data processing and networking stuff. Not quite to my taste at first, but
it paid 3x as much.

Key words are "at first" \- the more i dived into it, the more i liked it, and
i learned a lot along the way.

So, if the new job is something that you see you could eventually enjoy or get
use out of, pick B. If you desperately need money, pick B. If you are
reasonably sure you would hate it over there, pick A.

Something like that...

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jakobegger
I've worked in areas that I wasn't enthusiastic about, and I just couldn't do
it. I spent all my time taking breaks and slacking off and felt like I was a
pretender.

I decided to pursue "my passion" instead; I took a pay cut; but now I make
more than I ever did.

I don't think I could have grown as much in a field I wasn't passionate about.
If you want to become great at your job, you need to love it. And if you want
a well-paid job, you better be great at it.

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mswen
Where are you at in the lifecycle of family?

What does your partner/spouse think?

Are you disciplined enough that the extra 25% plus will actually go toward
building savings and retirement funds or will your day to day lifestyle
increase to absorb most of the additional funds?

In addition to industry comparisons which you have already articulated - what
are the differences in learning opportunity in the two companies?

How do you think the quality of the two teams compare? Although obviously you
know your current team a lot better.

I have been in similar situations: sometimes I picked the path that I was more
passionate about, other times life's demands were greater and I went down the
path of a more profitable but less intrinsically interesting industry.

Unfortunately there are no easy answers.

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drallison
If you are at the top of your niche, it is time to move on; and do it before
your passion is gone. Position B may not feed your particular passions, but it
will provide challenges and new experiences as well as financial rewards and
stability.

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nicholas73
Does +25% meet your financial goals?

Will you be busier in your new role, thereby having opportunity costs such as
building a side project or learning new skills?

Does this new role have risks (industry, company, whether you will perform
well)?

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corecoder
Hi,

You don't mention the industry you're in right now, so it's hard to make
comparisons.

Perhaps even more importantly, you didn't say what you do.

I think these questions are relevant, because in my experience satisfaction in
one's work comes more from what one actually does than from the industry
he/she is in.

Boring industries have some very interesting problems, so it is not rare to
find a stimulating job in any industry.

How different would your work be at B?

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pyb
YMMV, but generally, 25% is nowhere near enough to justify sacrificing your
work satisfaction.

