Can I ask opportunity to come back in a couple years?
November 15, 2015 10:28 PM Subscribe
I'm trying to decide whether to leave a cushy but very frustrating government job for one at a private firm.
I work for a medium-sized municipality in a position of leadership, serving elected officials as a liaison to citizens and city departments. The job pays very well, has good benefits and a great pension. I enjoy the people I work with and I am appreciated for my work. BUT... the government I work for is profoundly dysfunctional and will undoubtedly remain so in a larger regional culture of corruption and graft. The public we serve is unhappy and distrustful, the projects we embark on to improve things are doomed from the start by dumb politics and lack of resources, etc. I am in a constant state of high stress from putting out fires, long hours and interaction with unpleasant political and department executive personalities.
Recently, a friend who works at a private company in the same industry asked if I would be interested in an open position at her firm. In the days since, this offhand question has evolved into a straight up job offer. I think this could be a great opportunity for me to focus more attention on less projects, develop some specialties, and generally get out from under the weight of my current job and obtain more of a work/life balance.
caveats:
1. I am middle aged with one 4-year-old daughter and a poor record for saving money, so the trade-out of a generous pension for a less aggressive corporate 401k match gives me pause. That said, the prospect of taking two steps back for every one forward for the rest of my career to keep that pension going just doesn't seem sustainable.
2. I am also co-managing a couple of complicated initiatives that I helped get started, and am viewed by some colleagues as the glue holding those projects together and keeping them moving clumsily forward. I have a lot of guilt around abandoning my role in these efforts and the friends with whom I've been working on them.
3. In my 15+ year professional career, I've not held a single job for more than 5 years.
What would you do here? Any insights from your experiences switching from govt to private sector work would be much appreciated.
I work for a medium-sized municipality in a position of leadership, serving elected officials as a liaison to citizens and city departments. The job pays very well, has good benefits and a great pension. I enjoy the people I work with and I am appreciated for my work. BUT... the government I work for is profoundly dysfunctional and will undoubtedly remain so in a larger regional culture of corruption and graft. The public we serve is unhappy and distrustful, the projects we embark on to improve things are doomed from the start by dumb politics and lack of resources, etc. I am in a constant state of high stress from putting out fires, long hours and interaction with unpleasant political and department executive personalities.
Recently, a friend who works at a private company in the same industry asked if I would be interested in an open position at her firm. In the days since, this offhand question has evolved into a straight up job offer. I think this could be a great opportunity for me to focus more attention on less projects, develop some specialties, and generally get out from under the weight of my current job and obtain more of a work/life balance.
caveats:
1. I am middle aged with one 4-year-old daughter and a poor record for saving money, so the trade-out of a generous pension for a less aggressive corporate 401k match gives me pause. That said, the prospect of taking two steps back for every one forward for the rest of my career to keep that pension going just doesn't seem sustainable.
2. I am also co-managing a couple of complicated initiatives that I helped get started, and am viewed by some colleagues as the glue holding those projects together and keeping them moving clumsily forward. I have a lot of guilt around abandoning my role in these efforts and the friends with whom I've been working on them.
3. In my 15+ year professional career, I've not held a single job for more than 5 years.
What would you do here? Any insights from your experiences switching from govt to private sector work would be much appreciated.
How much pension do you qualify for now (or how long do you have to stay to qualify)?
Will your daughter benefit from having a happier, more satisfied parent?
Can you prioritize saving, despite your track record?
posted by samthemander at 11:20 PM on November 15, 2015 [1 favorite]
Will your daughter benefit from having a happier, more satisfied parent?
Can you prioritize saving, despite your track record?
posted by samthemander at 11:20 PM on November 15, 2015 [1 favorite]
I enjoy the people I work with and I am appreciated for my work. BUT... the government I work for is profoundly dysfunctional and will undoubtedly remain so in a larger regional culture of corruption and graft. The public we serve is unhappy and distrustful, the projects we embark on to improve things are doomed from the start by dumb politics and lack of resources, etc. I am in a constant state of high stress from putting out fires, long hours and interaction with unpleasant political and department executive personalities.
You are too modest to say so, but I suspect you are something of a thorn in the side of the "larger regional culture of corruption and graft," and I think before you even consider taking this job "in the same industry," you need to be absolutely certain a desire to get you out of the way plays no part in the motivation for this offer -- because if it does, the job won't be anything like the representations which are being made to you, and they'll get rid of you as soon as they conveniently can anyway.
posted by jamjam at 12:35 AM on November 16, 2015 [3 favorites]
You are too modest to say so, but I suspect you are something of a thorn in the side of the "larger regional culture of corruption and graft," and I think before you even consider taking this job "in the same industry," you need to be absolutely certain a desire to get you out of the way plays no part in the motivation for this offer -- because if it does, the job won't be anything like the representations which are being made to you, and they'll get rid of you as soon as they conveniently can anyway.
posted by jamjam at 12:35 AM on November 16, 2015 [3 favorites]
Gut response: leave, take the private sector job yesterday. The job you've got sounds designed to ground you down. It sounds incredibly stressful and absolutely miserable, that's no way to live. Your quality of life will likely continue as is until you get your pension. You might feel very unwell by the time you can access it (this is how hypertension etc. happens). Your daughter wouldn't prefer to know you as a stressed and unhappy person, I'm sure.
- Having a single job for longer than 5 years is now considered a liability in lot of places (looks like stagnation); agility and ambition look better.
- Your guilt, forget it. In the context of the workflow / workplace, coworkers who leave are forgotten within a week, the machine just moves on. It's not personal (unless you keep in touch afterwards with close people). Some of your coworkers do have what it takes to pick up the slack. You can make yourself available for a bit if you can't sleep over it.
- Switching non-profit-->for-profit: I'm not a good example (worked at an intermediate level; was laid off; moved countries right after the recession, finding work was more complicated altogether; now studying for something else.). But my bosses and coworkers (some of whom were let go at the same time) all had a hard time finding work (at all), and none successfully made the switch. Whether it's valid or not, I think there is a bias against non-profit people in the private sector. Who knows when another opportunity like this will come by?
- More than that. If you're acclimated to dysfunction, and don't take a chance to grow, you might make yourself actually unfit for a functional, productive workplace. Not just because of being habituated to putting out fires and whatever else - lowered expectations and burnout will make it hard for you to care or do well, where you are now or anywhere else.
- You can learn to budget and save, and you can probably find a way to reduce your expenses to make that easier.
(I wonder what jamjam is suggesting - that someone you've described as a friend is corrupt, and has the ulterior motive of getting you out of your role, because you're a barrier to some nefarious scheme? I guess it's possible, stranger things have definitely happened, but it seems unlikely to me. That said, definitely not a bad idea to do some research around the health of this company etc.)
You sound like you want to do this.
posted by cotton dress sock at 12:52 AM on November 16, 2015 [2 favorites]
- Having a single job for longer than 5 years is now considered a liability in lot of places (looks like stagnation); agility and ambition look better.
- Your guilt, forget it. In the context of the workflow / workplace, coworkers who leave are forgotten within a week, the machine just moves on. It's not personal (unless you keep in touch afterwards with close people). Some of your coworkers do have what it takes to pick up the slack. You can make yourself available for a bit if you can't sleep over it.
- Switching non-profit-->for-profit: I'm not a good example (worked at an intermediate level; was laid off; moved countries right after the recession, finding work was more complicated altogether; now studying for something else.). But my bosses and coworkers (some of whom were let go at the same time) all had a hard time finding work (at all), and none successfully made the switch. Whether it's valid or not, I think there is a bias against non-profit people in the private sector. Who knows when another opportunity like this will come by?
- More than that. If you're acclimated to dysfunction, and don't take a chance to grow, you might make yourself actually unfit for a functional, productive workplace. Not just because of being habituated to putting out fires and whatever else - lowered expectations and burnout will make it hard for you to care or do well, where you are now or anywhere else.
- You can learn to budget and save, and you can probably find a way to reduce your expenses to make that easier.
(I wonder what jamjam is suggesting - that someone you've described as a friend is corrupt, and has the ulterior motive of getting you out of your role, because you're a barrier to some nefarious scheme? I guess it's possible, stranger things have definitely happened, but it seems unlikely to me. That said, definitely not a bad idea to do some research around the health of this company etc.)
You sound like you want to do this.
posted by cotton dress sock at 12:52 AM on November 16, 2015 [2 favorites]
No, you can't ask for the opportunity to come back in a couple years. They might not need you, they might not want you, there might be a better applicant, etc. All you can really do is avoid burning bridges and say you're excited about this new opportunity but have enjoyed your current job.
You really can't ask, now, for the chance to come back later. I mean, you can, but that will sound like you don't know what you're doing and you don't value either your current job or the job you're leaving it for.
If you take the new job and you don't like it, you can get another new job down the line. But you can't count on coming back to this one. That's possible, but my guess is unlikely, and you really ought to consider it a nonstarter in your decision-making process here. It's the one job or the other.
I think you should leave because you sound like you can't stand your job anymore.
posted by J. Wilson at 4:50 AM on November 16, 2015
You really can't ask, now, for the chance to come back later. I mean, you can, but that will sound like you don't know what you're doing and you don't value either your current job or the job you're leaving it for.
If you take the new job and you don't like it, you can get another new job down the line. But you can't count on coming back to this one. That's possible, but my guess is unlikely, and you really ought to consider it a nonstarter in your decision-making process here. It's the one job or the other.
I think you should leave because you sound like you can't stand your job anymore.
posted by J. Wilson at 4:50 AM on November 16, 2015
I was in your position several years ago. I held a government job, in a dysfunctional agency, with a great pension and great medical benefits. I was offered another job, a very risky position indeed! (With a start-up!)
Fast forward to today: I have been promoted twice since then, I really enjoy my work and I have a comparable health plan. My pension and retirement savings are not flawless, but I believe the work-life balance, the challenges that I've faced (and overcome!) and the additional money made the move a smart one.
When I left, there were several projects I was working on that I wanted to succeed. I was unsure that they would in my absence. Sadly, now I know they didn't. I forgive myself: it wasn't my fault they failed. They might very well have failed had I stayed.
Give yourself the permission to be selfish. Be happy.
posted by Colonel Sun at 6:10 AM on November 16, 2015 [1 favorite]
Fast forward to today: I have been promoted twice since then, I really enjoy my work and I have a comparable health plan. My pension and retirement savings are not flawless, but I believe the work-life balance, the challenges that I've faced (and overcome!) and the additional money made the move a smart one.
When I left, there were several projects I was working on that I wanted to succeed. I was unsure that they would in my absence. Sadly, now I know they didn't. I forgive myself: it wasn't my fault they failed. They might very well have failed had I stayed.
Give yourself the permission to be selfish. Be happy.
posted by Colonel Sun at 6:10 AM on November 16, 2015 [1 favorite]
Go and immediately set up a way to contribute the max to your 401K so that you start the job with that in place instead of living on the new salary for a while and then trying to set it up and doing the "but how will I live in $X amount less each month?" thing.
And let the guilt go. It's not your fault that the department is set up such that only one person can make those projects work. Maybe think of it as giving another person an opportunity to rise to the occasion.
posted by dawkins_7 at 7:15 AM on November 16, 2015 [2 favorites]
And let the guilt go. It's not your fault that the department is set up such that only one person can make those projects work. Maybe think of it as giving another person an opportunity to rise to the occasion.
posted by dawkins_7 at 7:15 AM on November 16, 2015 [2 favorites]
[You guys, the OP isn't asking "for the opportunity TO come back", the title is just a clever/jokey way of saying "the timing on this is lousy and I wish I didn't have to make the decision right now."]
posted by We put our faith in Blast Hardcheese at 9:52 AM on November 16, 2015 [2 favorites]
posted by We put our faith in Blast Hardcheese at 9:52 AM on November 16, 2015 [2 favorites]
« Older How do I do ticket change with the minimum change... | Pregnant! Should we step back from buying this... Newer »
This thread is closed to new comments.
I think you're trying to convince yourself you can have your cake and eat it too so you don't have to make this tough decision. But you do have to make it. Whatever you choose, make that decision as though leaving will be permanent.
If you didn't have a small child, I'd think that moving on would be a no-brainer. But given that you do, I think you need to sit yourself down and have a long talk with yourself about whether you can do better at economizing and saving. If the answer is realistically no, maybe you should stay.
posted by mysterious_stranger at 10:39 PM on November 15, 2015 [6 favorites]