A Major work decision to make

[xoxoxoBruce]

Cherry Hill is a high rent neighborhood. It's also high traffic as is every damn inch 'tween here and there. Maybe 40 minutes on a good day, but they'll be few and far between.
Els, he's finance manager now.
Maybe this new place sells what Jinx really wants to drive.

A professor stood before his philosophy class and had some items in front of him. When the class began, wordlessly, he picked up a very large and empty mayonnaise jar and proceeded to fill it with golf balls.He then asked the students if the jar was full. They agreed that it was.

So the professor then picked up a box of pebbles and poured them into the jar. He shook the jar lightly. The pebbles rolled into the open areas between the golf balls. He then asked the students again if the jar was full. They agreed it was.

The professor next picked up a box of sand and poured it into the jar. Of course, the sand filled up everything else. He asked once more if the jar was full. The students responded with a unanimous "yes."

"Now," said the professor, " I want you to recognize that this jar represents your life. The golf balls are the important things-your God, family, your children, your health, your friends, and your favorite passions-things that if everything else was lost and only they remained, your life would still be full. The pebbles are the other things that matter like your job, your house, and your car. The sand is everything else-the small stuff.

"If you put the sand into the jar first," he continued, "there is no room for the pebbles or the golf balls. The same goes for life. If you spend all your time and energy on the small stuff, you will never have room for the things that are important to you. Pay attention to the things that are critical to your happiness. Play with your children. Take time to get medical checkups. Take your partner out to dinner. Play another 18. There will always be time to clean the house and fix the disposal."

Take care of the golf balls first, the things that really matter. Set your priorities. The rest is just sand."

Watch your prorities Jim, it's easy to fuck up. Believe me.

[zippyt]

OH SHIT !!! bruce does it again !!!!!!!
Well said sir , WELL SAID !!!!!!!
Seriocly , more hours + more pay only meens you have less time to enjoy the important things . but the gubbment shure enjoys the hell out of your money .

[lookout123]

i've always loved that one bruce.

i had a heartstopping moment though. would taking the new job mean that you would spend less time in the cellar??? cause if it does, thenNO F'ING WAY, MAN!!!

[Beestie]

It seems to me that you already know in your gut that you don't want to do this. Ultimately, let your gut decide and not your checkbook or visions of zero balances on all the credit cards or [insert short-term financial goal here].

So: Take the interview. Talk to jinx. Think it over. Make the call.

If nothing else, there might be room for your current employer to sweeten your current deal.

My experience with high-paying positions is that they want too much in return. Don't undervalue what you have to give up to get it. Insert Bruce's post here. Money ain't everything. Then again, if its easy then take it.

Last thought. What would your kids tell you to do? Once you make the decision, will you look forward to telling them or be anxious about telling them?

[lumberjim]

lookout: currently in a single d/ship with a distant sister store, the other place has at least 2 sisters in Pa, possibly more in NJ, I'm sure i'll find that out tomorrow.

From my experience, the F&I guy is lateral to the salesmanager. just a different path. I've switched back and forth a good bit.

yes, it would definitely mean much less time in the cellar. At the pace they go, I doubt i'd even be able to lurk much from work, and I'd be there a lot. And when I finally got home, I'd be either wiped out, or taking care of things i'd been putting off......

bruce:

thanks. do you have any cool analogies that praise the big paycheck?...just to be fair about it, ya know....

Spode: you prick, aren;t you paying attention?! how many times have I forcefed wolf the fact that I don;t sell the cars anymore?


south:

there are actually a few things i'd like to sock some dough away for. And I'm sure jinx could come up with a thing or two if pressed

Clod:
yeah, we talked about possibly moving slightly closer. It sounds cliche, but my kids' school is really close to us here, and it is relatively unique, so we don;t want to get real far away from it....plus, chester county rules.

UT:
you know where i live. about how long do you think it would take, realistically?

blues:
yeah, I used to work at denny's, and rode 50 minutes home from wyomissing to coatesville..(usually on a motorcycle or in a hoopdie, though, to be fair....after a rough 12 hour shift, that ride was murder. good point. the ride to the interview will seem short because of my mood.....gotta think about leaving there at 11:30 pm ( which has happened where I work now) getting home at 1 am, having to be out the door by 7:15 to get back to work for my 3rd 12hour shift in a row. blech.

[lookout123]

then LJ, i'm sorry to say that even if they were offering a $100K base salary, we can't let you do it. think about the cellar, man!

[Undertoad]

If you get on the Schuylkill from the turnpike you are at least 1:15 away at that point. Worse at certain times. Better at other times; at 1am it can be 0:40. Maybe you would have a better time going south of the city but you still have to get past a load of S Jersey to get to Cherry Hill.

Don't do it man! It will truly truly suck. Try it at rush hour when you would be driving.

[jaguar]

LJ - Do you own your own house? I mean if it's that much better maybe after a few months you could move nearer, good solution all round no? I say at least go to the interview and check it out.

[Catwoman]

Depends what you want.

Money would bring you more choice.

But choice means shit.

All you need is love, food and water - which I believe you have.

All depends on your priorities.

[dar512]

Definately do the interview. There's no harm or cost in that.

For the rest of it.

Pros: More money

Cons: Longer commute, Longer hours, Busier hours.

Does that summarize it?

1) I'd make darn sure how much more you'd be making. Make sure the gain will be worth the pain. How about taxes? You'll be working in NJ and living in PA, right? Will that take a slice?

2) Do you like to work? Are the longer, busier hours going to be tough to take for you?

3) Have you planned your career? No matter what kind of work you do, you should have a vision of where you want to be in 5 & 10 years. Does this move fit in with what you want for your career and your life?

4) I once worked in management for a year. It was awful. I hated it. I was very glad to get back to programming. However, the salary bump I got from going to management has stayed with me since then. So the year of pain was worth it in the long run. And I learned that management doesn't suit me.

5) Remember to account for the element of risk. It is always a risk to change positions. Have a plan B. What will you do if you take the new position and it just doesn't work out?

Hope some of this is helpful.

[wolf]

The commute would suck ass.

You would be going into New Jersey. (that would kill it for me right there)

You would probably end up moving. Do you want to leave (where you are now)?

What would the impact on the curtain monkeys be ... are you willing to spend less time with them because of the long longer hours and longer commute?

Ask above question regarding Jinx.

Do you want to work for a large dealership that probably turns over staff as often as it does cars?

If you PM me the name of the dealership, I have a friend who used to work in car sales in NJ and I'll see if I can get you any "inside dirt."

Can you utilize the offer they present you as a means of squeaking out a wee bit more from your current employer?

[Griff]

Originally Posted by xoxoxoBruce

Cherry Hill is a high rent neighborhood. It's also high traffic as is every damn inch 'tween here and there. Maybe 40 minutes on a good day, but they'll be few and far between.
Els, he's finance manager now.
Maybe this new place sells what Jinx really wants to drive.

A professor stood before his philosophy class and had some items in front of him. When the class began, wordlessly, he picked up a very large and empty mayonnaise jar and proceeded to fill it with golf balls.He then asked the students if the jar was full. They agreed that it was.

So the professor then picked up a box of pebbles and poured them into the jar. He shook the jar lightly. The pebbles rolled into the open areas between the golf balls. He then asked the students again if the jar was full. They agreed it was.

The professor next picked up a box of sand and poured it into the jar. Of course, the sand filled up everything else. He asked once more if the jar was full. The students responded with a unanimous "yes."

"Now," said the professor, " I want you to recognize that this jar represents your life. The golf balls are the important things-your God, family, your children, your health, your friends, and your favorite passions-things that if everything else was lost and only they remained, your life would still be full. The pebbles are the other things that matter like your job, your house, and your car. The sand is everything else-the small stuff.

"If you put the sand into the jar first," he continued, "there is no room for the pebbles or the golf balls. The same goes for life. If you spend all your time and energy on the small stuff, you will never have room for the things that are important to you. Pay attention to the things that are critical to your happiness. Play with your children. Take time to get medical checkups. Take your partner out to dinner. Play another 18. There will always be time to clean the house and fix the disposal."

Take care of the golf balls first, the things that really matter. Set your priorities. The rest is just sand."

Watch your prorities Jim, it's easy to fuck up. Believe me.

Irony Alert: A local car dealer told that story on the radio every morning for about 6 months!
Advice: To me time would be the deciding factor. Pete did a travel job for a while, huge bucks... we were miserable. She was supposed to have a 4 day work week. That never happened due to airport issues. Check out those local dealers if you need a change. good luck man, you can handle it whatever you do.

[lumberjim]

thaks for all the advice, everyone. you all make good sense. the hours and pace are not a big problem for me...i'm pretty resiliant. this is going to come down to that awful awful drive vs. great big gobs of cash. hell, maybe they'll hire someone else, and this will just be a wake up call. i'm thikning that even if i just stuck it out there for a year, i'd be able to put enough away to have a nice cushion......but .....i wouldnt have time to look for a new job while i worked there!

getting ready to go see them...willl let you know how it goes!

[lookout123]

good luck - i recommend you wear a polka dot zoot suit so that they know you put all of your serious energy into making them gobs of money.

[xoxoxoBruce]

bruce:thanks. do you have any cool analogies that praise the big paycheck?...just to be fair about it, ya know....

Well, you would be able to pay back that loan faster. You know, the one your getting to buy that great gift for Jinx's birthday this Saturday.