
Ask HN: Job I love but with poor career progression vs. new job with higher pay? - jobdilemma
I&#x27;m currently dealing with a career-related dilemma, and I&#x27;m hoping some people here have gone through similar a similar experience.<p>I work at a company where I feel stuck in terms of career progression. I feel like I&#x27;m under my level, and my manager doesn&#x27;t seem to care about helping me get promoted. He also doesn&#x27;t seem to trust me very much, for whatever reason (I really can&#x27;t figure out why). Also, my current company doesn&#x27;t pay as much as other companies in the area, but the benefits are superior.<p>However, I love the work I&#x27;ve been doing there lately. I haven&#x27;t felt this excited about the code I write in almost a decade. I get into that flow state when working on it, and I feel engaged with it to the point that I go to bed thinking about it.<p>On top of that, my current job is just comfortable. Crunch is unheard of. I have lots of vacation time and the company is very generous about paid holidays. I can work at home whenever I feel like it. You get the idea.<p>I wasn&#x27;t feeling this excited about work until recently though, so I went looking for a new job elsewhere. And now I got feedback from one of my interviews, and I am being offered a crazy amount of money plus a position at a higher level. I know someone at the company and they like working there. It would be a great opportunity to learn new things.<p>But I don&#x27;t know what to do. It comes down to deciding between staying at a subpar job where I&#x27;m comfortable and in love with my code vs. moving to a new place that pays way more and has better career progression, but where I have no idea what it&#x27;s going to be like in terms of stress, hours, etc.<p>If anyone has been in a similar situation, I&#x27;d love to hear what you decided to do.
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dontJudge
Unless you're hyper sensitive about work environment, go for the money. It's
nice to enjoy your work, but don't screw yourself out of career advancement.

Compare pay + benefits - cost-of-living.

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shoovi
If your manager doesn't care about you then he doesn't deserve for you. From
the other side, I think that you just got used to this job and probably afraid
of going out of your comfort zone. I was in the similar state of the mind,
once. After all, it appears that the best way to progress is to MOVE YOUR ASS
:D before you'll be forced to do so.

Be brave.

Good luck bro!

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soneca
I would say change jobs. If your manager don't trust you, this current
situation of loving your day-to-day activities will change with no regard to
what you would say on the matter. You actually mention it is just a very
recent situation. So I believe it is safe to assume it wont last.

I value _a lot_ a healthy, enjoyable work environment, but I don't trade good
longterm prospects for a short time only, temporary benefit.

Not only for the money, but a carreer progression is very satisfying for
itself. And if you have good references for this new company, this is
something.

And, if you don't enjoy the next work environment, you can change again.

Do it. Your future self will thank you

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akulbe
Let me depart from the hive mind here. You have another alternative I haven't
yet seen in the comments here.

Stay at this job for a time, and use it as an opportunity to explore side
work, and other ways to make money. Multiple streams of income is always a
good idea.

It was a similar situation for me that led to one of my side gigs turning into
full-time freelancing and leaving my job of 9 years.

The new work is challenging, I'm making great money, and things are growing.

Being in a situation like yours could be made to work to your advantage, and
it could be a blessing in disguise!

Good luck.

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hamstercat
You can either change your job, or you can change job.

There are no perfect jobs, so you have to find one where you'll be able to
live with the downsides. Is having no career progression a downside you can
live with or not? How about having to do lot's of overtime? Or being
underpaid? They are all questions only you can answer.

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cblock811
When I went through this I tried to weigh how much money I was leaving on the
table vs how much I valued: already knowing the culture where I work, mostly
enjoying the job, loving the people I work with. In my case I got promoted
right as I was about to start the job hunt, so it worked itself out.

In your case, it sounds like you're comfortable yet unhappy. Sure you're
excited about your current work, but you probably wouldn't be posting on here
if you were really happy at that job. It sounds like you have a new
opportunity. I would jump on it, but that's just me. Maybe you can learn more
about the company you mentioned by talking to your contact there?

Either way I wish you luck!

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bradknowles
It has taken me a while, but I finally figured out what really matters to me
with regards to job satisfaction:

1\. Do I like the people I’m working for and with?

2\. Do I like the work?

3\. Am I making enough money?

You need to figure out what your most important factors are. I don’t need to
be making the maximum amount of money I can, but you might not feel the same
way.

For me, if I were in your position, the satisfaction from the work itself
would most likely not overcome the fact that my boss wouldn’t seem to trust
me. Your situation would violate my #1 item above. So, in that case I would be
more inclined to move.

But you are not me, and I am not you. You need to figure out what is most
important for you, and then move forward from that position.

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marktangotango
So what are the things at your current job you can't live without? For
example, leave early to beat rush hour, quiet cube or office, window seat,
being the go to person on projects or processes?

If you get a manger that expects you butt in seat till 5 when you're used to
leaving early, or going to a noisy open floor plan surrounded by extroverts
when you are used to a library like office can truly suck and make no amount
of money worth it.

If you can figure these things out and talk to your potential new manager
before accepting the offer, could really help with your decision.

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JSeymourATL
> I feel stuck in terms of career progression.

Professional growth is a pain point you have complete control over. It's not
your managers responsibility. That job offer is market validation, your
expertise is in demand.

Suggest getting some clarity about what you want to accomplish/achieve >
[https://hbr.org/2016/12/think-strategically-about-your-
caree...](https://hbr.org/2016/12/think-strategically-about-your-career-
development)

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simulationimin
I hear that the scariest place to be in life is comfortable. Getting out of
your comfort zone is the only way to grow.

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sjg007
You must decide for yourself. Remember that the only constant in life is
change.

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chuck32
Have you even asked for a raise at your current job? Having been made offers
from other companies that puts you in a very strong position to ask for a
raise.

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hmschreck
It's also possible that you began feeling better about your job precisely
because you were looking.

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thiagooffm
change jobs

your current environment might change tomorrow and you'll regret not making
the choice

whenever you have a choice which would leave in regret, you need to make it in
favor of what wouldn't.

