I get intimidated by this question, “Should I take this job?”
Growing up, my dad had a huge influence on my upbringing. He had a government job and it was the only job he ever had (retired in 2012). However, my generation Y seems somewhat lucky to be able to pick and choose a job, once every couple years or so. And every time I feel like it’s time to start looking around for that next job, I get intimidated by this question.
I think this is because, I put a lot of passion into the work I do. I also feel proud of my work. So, when it gets boring, and learning opportunity gets flat, it rings that bell - “what’s out there?”
We get comfortable around the people at work, build relationships and know the businesses inside out. The thought of leaving the comfort zone intimidates me. At the same time, a new work, working with new people and just a lot of learning opportunity gets me excited. So, everytime I need to solve this trade-off, it becomes a huge mental load for me. Last time, when I left ThoughtWorks, the mental load was paramount, and here’s how I made up my mind:
I focused on the worst case and best case outcomes. For me, the worst case was if the new job I was taking would leave me jobless, right when Shopoth, my son, was due to be born. I was pretty confident that wasn’t gonna happen until something really bad happened. The next in line was, if work and life at the new place turns out to be too bad that I’d have to find a new job right after. If it indeed happened, I timeboxed it to at least see it for 8 months, when our new born baby would be 4 months old and we’d possibly get somewhat settled. With these two items checked, I felt somewhat comfortable with the decision to move.
The best case for me was the opportunity to lead some innovations while making good income. Both seemed to be in place. So, I made the decision. It worked out pretty well till now. I hope the Best/Worst case outcome thing helps you in making your decision.