#WorkLifeBalance #CareerChange #JobSatisfaction
Hey everyone! Iām in a bit of a pickle and could really use your insights. š
Here’s the situation: back in 2022, I was earning about $67K in a job I liked, but I felt stuck. Fast forward, I jumped to a new position in the financial services sector with a nice pay bumpāclose to $100K with bonuses! š But honestly, itās been two years of dread. My boss is a micromanager, and the entire vibe at work feels pretty toxic. Long hours, no energy for life outside of work, and my social life has completely taken a hit. Iām even struggling to keep up with basic home stuff!
After over a year of searching for a new opportunity, I recently got an offer in the nonprofit sector with a pay of $65Kāaround a $35K pay cut. Hereās whatās leaving me torn:
- Current Struggles: The stress, anxiety, and lack of work-life balance are really getting to me. I dread Mondays and I miss enjoying life outside of work. š
- Financial Concerns: Sure, I used to make ends meet with a lower salary before, but Iāve also managed to save more with my current role, which has been a silver lining.
- Opportunity Cost: Should I take this new role as a stepping stone toward a healthier work-life balance? Or should I hold out for a better-paying job that allows for more personal time?
Iād love to hear your thoughts! Here are a couple of specific questions that might help our discussion:
- Do you think Iām being foolish for considering such a large pay cut just for better mental health?
- Have you ever made a decision like this? What was your experience, and how did it play out?
Looking forward to hearing your experiences and any tips you can offer! š¬āØ
You can never get time back to spend with friends and family, but you can always make more money. Also for your overall health, the stress of your current job is not paying off in the long run. Having constant stress and anxiety, missing the gym, not having a healthy social life and social support around you will have you suffer in the future.
As long as you donāt have an excessive amount of debt or lifestyle inflated too much where living on $65K is almost impossible or would put you into debt, I think taking the pay cut is worth it especially if you are able to work from home. Plus you already were able to save significantly more while you had this high paying job, as you stated.
IMO, the non-profit job would also ādiversifyā your resume for other careers down the line (non-profit, private, or even government agencies).
Health before wealth.
I had a similar opportunity come up and I chose not to take the offer. For me, the additional stress of the job would take years off my life, and again to me, having a consistent work/life balance is worth my time with my family and sanity.
Make sure you weigh the benefits too. They may makeup largely for the pay difference.
If you can afford it, sure. Happiness is more important than
IMO, no. That’s too big of a pay cut. $10K, I would say yeah.
I think itās way too easy to say ājust go for it do whatās makes you happyā. Open up a spreadsheet, fill out all your life goals, calculate how much youāll need to retire, cost of house, etc. and see if your lower income will be able to hit the mark.
Surviving should not be the goal if you are already in a position for more. Career is about setting yourself up for the future.
If so, you can definitely take the cut with no hesitation. If not, consider the weight of the bigger picture and plan on how youāll increase your income again a few years down the road.
that’s a huge paycut. stick it out.Ā
You’re not doing all the math. If you’re getting 100K with a a lot of overtime, maybe the hourly salary is not that different to the new offer.
Add this the cost in time and money of daily commuting, lunch and maybe coffee out of home, comparing to WFH.
I’m not telling you neither “go” nor “don’t go”, but I strongly recommend you to do the math first.
And then, after that, ask yourself: how much worth is your peace of spirit?
yeah. you can always get another job that pays moreĀ
Only you k ow what better WLB is worth to you.
Why are you asking strangers how you should live your life?
It depends on what that 35k means to your life. I was at 180k, got laid off, new job is 150k. I used to work like 60 hours or more a week. The new job is 50 max. I’m not maxing out my retirement anymore but have a good amount already saved. The work life balance is much better now.
Thatās a huge difference. Problem is, your current salary defines your worth to the next company. I suggest to keep looking.
Well, if you work from home, you don’t have to commute. Roll out of bed, wash your face, and log in. Depending on the level of monitoring and work, you might have the time to be “over-employed” working and being paid for both.
Nope
No. Bank it retire earlierĀ
Switch to the new job. Of that $35K, how much will be saved on gas, time, auto maintenance, tolls, eating out, etc? A couple thousand maybe. But everything else you stated suggests you would be waaaay happier with the new job. Go for it.
Make a budget and see if you can survive on $1500/two weeks (YMMV based on benefits) vs. the $2400/two weeks you make now. I am a huge fan of WLB, always advocate for it, and I believe if you can afford it you should always try to achieve what works for you regardless of what youāre currently making. Everyone has the opportunity to be worked to death in exchange for money, most of us choose not do that.
It really depends on you as a person. Ā Ā
You may be the type to take the new job and be happy because you have more time to work on your mental/physical health, socialize more or develop a hobby/side hustle. You could even use it as a stepping stone for a better job/career. Ā Ā Ā
Or you could spend the extra time doom scrolling on your phone or complaining because you donāt have any money to do anything. Or using the time to do other things that wonāt contribute to your happiness Ā Ā
Take all the advice given with a grain of salt. Deep down, only you will know what will make you happy.Ā Ā
Side note: have you tried cutting back your hours and pushing back on work? You know, setting boundaries?
No. Keep looking for another job and possibly get yourself some more money with fewer hours. Surviving on 65k 2 years ago is completely different than trying to do it now. My expenses have gone up 17 grand in that time and that is with optimizing a few expenses down slightly. That amount of money and retirement savings losses, are pretty staggering.
The situation is probably being irritated by not taking advantage of weekends – see if you can at least force yourself into the gym even if it feels like a chore and do lightly taxing activities like going to the movies.
For your household chores – if the state of your house is declining, it could be contributing to some of the doom. You could address that hiring a house keeper. If you think you can take a 35% pay cut, you can definitely afford a house keeper.
Managing your situation within constraints will help make it more endurable until you can find a new position that is not such a big pay cut, especially with the condition of the economy being what it is
If it makes you live longer.
But thereās nothing wrong with seeking both, a well paying job that also allows you to have a life.
This situation is pretty common actually. There’s a reason why this job pays $35K more. It sounds like it’s intense and a lot of work. No employer is responsible for your mental health or work life balance so move that out the the equation. If it’s that bad quit. Some micromanaging is micromanaging, sometimes it’s employees who think they know better or otherwise don’t want to be told what to do. If they’re paying that much more to employees it suggests they’re very aware of the demands of the job.
I entered a career that was intense, lots of work, lots of pressure, every move we made was according to written standards, and we heard about those standards every day. I dove in full force and ended up loving it, and got good enough I was able to train others to be as good or better than I was. After ten years started my own company, now I’m retired and our kids are running the place. It’s still intense, lots of work, lots of pressure and most people who try it complain about micromanagement. Unless they thrive, and those folks are in executive positions now.
Nobody can tell you whether it’s worth it except you. We had lots of people along the way who thought they’d be great at it and left soon after saying they couldn’t take it any more. Only a certain type of person can do it. And yes, we paid 50% more than similar jobs in other companies.
I would if there is a big upside. Otherwise, NO. Also we seem to be a in a recession with a very tough job market.Ā
I took a big paycut of about 25k or almost 40% , but it was getting my foot in the door in a new industry.Ā
But within 6 months I was able to already start earning more.Ā
You would end up making the move whether you take this opportunity or not. Sounds like you are in burn out mode. Recommend taking the move and then building back up.
Similar situation a few years ago. Left an easy job with decent money for a 33k pay increase but the burnout was real. I left the exhausting role for another pay increase but a slight decrease in stress just 12mo after starting. I started applying for jobs like 3mo into the role.
Work-life balance is important, but the comfort/opportunities I can afford my family at my salary now wasnāt possible with what I was making 3+ years ago.
So my suggestion is option 3: seek a same/higher paying job that isnāt as taxing on you.
No job is worth going through years of bad times – trying out something new is better if you can afford it
Keep this high paying job until you can get a house, then make sure you still have a savings and budget well. Then from there just make sure you can afford the pay cut and change jobs. Itās harder to get approved lower income
Absolutely not ! Weāre literally in a recession
Iād take the pay cut as long as you can pay for what you need. The longer youāre in an environment like that, the harder itāll be to recover when you leave. Not sure what your current commute is but WFH saves money on gas, car maintenance, lunches, etc. Stress, not working out, and social isolation all lead to health problems which will cost money in the long run.
Life is too short to let a job ruin your joy and drain your energy and relationships. If you can get by on the lower income, might be worth it even if you keep looking for something higher paying after you stay. I just left a job where I felt similar to what youāre describing. After two years of almost constant high anxiety and a stressed out nervous system, itās just crushing to realize how bad things actually got mentally. Iām grateful my loved ones are still supporting me since Iāve been managing this depression/stress for so long.
If Iād gotten out even six months or a year earlier, things would be so much easier to bounce back from. Maybe this sounds dramatic but Iām sick and pmsing lol, Iāve been sick for two weeks and I just left my toxic job about a month ago, so Iām really putting my pieces back together! Iām Im also navigating working full time with a chronic disability, and my previous employer was useless, actually very harmful and retaliatory around that. Iām making $40k now, itās a bit higher than my last job so the financials are a whole different story for me. These are just my thoughts on this topic pertaining to the personal wellbeing and health impacts.
I did something similar just a much bigger pay cut. It might feel OK for a bit now not feeling great about the choice
I just put my 2 weeks in for a job I was making roughly 63k a year. Before I received the job, there was a pay cut, and now I understand why they can’t maintain the position.
Peace out, my health is too important and I’m tired of sleeping literally 2.5 hours a night twice a week because of all the obligations we have with the company
Youāre getting a LOT of advice here that sounds like itās what you want to hear. In todayās world your standard of living and disposable income will drop significantly with a third of your income now gone. Make sure to also compare your benefits package at both as that can affect the comparison. Personally I would tough it out and keep looking but Iām not in your shoes. Good luck OP.
Iād stick with the higher pay until something similar in comp comes along. $35k is too much of a cut for me. Iād also just do the bare minimum and not go above and beyond to keep my sanity.
If you can live on that big of a paycut, it sounds better for your mental health. Considering how much time you’re spending at your current job, you may find that you have enough free time for a part-time job. When I was working my full-time remote job, I quickly realized that I got bored at home by myself. So, I picked up a 2nd job at a restaurant in my neighborhood.