Changing jobs....

[Scarpozzi]

i'd consider jumping jobs but i only have 7 years until retirement, so i might just stick it out.

then again, i might be closer than that. i got rid of almost all my hobbies because of COVID, so i shouldn't need as much money now.

no more travel, no more hotels, no more festivals or fairs, no more golf. nothing involving other people.

I know a lot of people that get to retirement, then apply for jobs way above their typical pay/level to see if anything sticks. I've also known a bunch to start consulting companies or JOIN consulting companies for 6 figures with limited benefits or sometimes excellent benefits. I always give my neighbor as an example though...he worked for a fortune 500 on a particular logistics product that USPS was investing in. He retired and started a 2 year contract with USPS. He drove like 7 hours on Sunday, lived in an extended stay hotel until Friday morning...then drove home after work for the weekend to be with his wife for Saturday/Sunday before returning. He probably raked in some serious dough doing that, but just a few months after his contract ended, he had a major stroke and lost the ability to walk. Just sucks because of the lost time he could have had in retirement.

If you're vaccinated, you're gonna be just fine. The Moderna CEO said recently that the pandemic will likely fade by next year at the rate the delta variant is vaccinating the people who don't want the shot. In my local region we saw a HUGE spike in August and deaths peaked last month. It appears that it's contagious enough that it's going to hit a sustained level of transmission through next year as it continues to get anyone in the community that doesn't get jabbed. I recommend getting the Pfizer or Moderna shots. I've heard of more breakthrough cases with J&J.

After my recent trip to Hawaii...the plane travel was the scariest cause you're in a room with 300 other people for 8 hours, but at least with that flight we all either had a negative covid test within 72 hours OR a vaccination record. We had to register through travel.hawaii.gov and upload documents....the airlines asked to see a QR code and proof before we ever left our originating airport. Once on the island, the we found the cases there were 50th in the US per capita....behind Puerto Rico and ahead of Vermont (#51). Most of the eating situations there were food trucks and restaurants were careful to keep tables apart. They were taking it pretty serious. You may want to consider a quick trip to the islands before things get back to normal and the risk likely increases from just the increase of people.

 

[deadlyapp]

i'd consider jumping jobs but i only have 7 years until retirement, so i might just stick it out.

then again, i might be closer than that. i got rid of almost all my hobbies because of COVID, so i shouldn't need as much money now.

no more travel, no more hotels, no more festivals or fairs, no more golf. nothing involving other people.

Just because you stopped those hobbies now doesn't mean you'll never bring them back.

And unless you're already on your deathbed, stopping some of those hobbies just doesn't make sense. It is very easy to stay distanced while golfing (I just went this past week).

 

[Fritzo]

I went through this several years back. Was at a place for 17 years, very unhappy, the job was soul crushing, and I figured out I was actual losing money every year working there (no raises and insurance costs kept going up every year). I just took a chance and put myself out there. Within 3 months I got two job offers offering 25% more than I was making + better benefits. I was a giant bottle of anxiety but did the whole "close eyes and jump off the cliff' thing, picked the job that made the most sense, and it 100% worked out.

You'll find when people switch jobs, it's almost always for the better.

 

[Scarpozzi]

I went through this several years back. Was at a place for 17 years, very unhappy, the job was soul crushing, and I figured out I was actual losing money every year working there (no raises and insurance costs kept going up every year). I just took a chance and put myself out there. Within 3 months I got two job offers offering 25% more than I was making + better benefits. I was a giant bottle of anxiety but did the whole "close eyes and jump off the cliff' thing, picked the job that made the most sense, and it 100% worked out.

You'll find when people switch jobs, it's almost always for the better.

My wife always says, though... "There's the devil you know and the devil you don't know."

Every job has aspects that make the responsibilities "work". Sadly, I'm at the point now with my current job/role that I rarely think or break a sweat. My problem is they should pay me for that confidence and knowledge/skills/abilities....but the job was never raised to where it should be considering I whipped it before covid. Just sad that they were splitting my reporting to 3 managers AND potentially adding 40% work without more than 4% additional compensation and no future-proofing.

What sucks is....I'm not unhappy. My physical office has an exterior door access that I'm going to lose and my boss never followed up with me. I was under the radar most of the time. That was just up in the air recently.....the move was made inevitable AND at least I'm getting paid most-likely next year.

 

[Exterous]

And work from home will never be an option...

Ooof. About half the applicants for my open job 3 months ago were looking because their company was forcing 100% in person. Snagged a great employee because of it

When your company has great benefits, it can really make a difference.

Yeah - I pay ~$300/mo for zero deductible health care for 2 people. When I hurt my back I paid $50 to see a spine specialist, get an xray, mri and 2 image assisted back injections. Company also got me a new custom chair and a sit stand desk. I paid $50 for a couple of allergy appointments and got started on allergy shots. I've paid $0 in the 3 years of allergy shots since then

 

[Scarpozzi]

Ooof. About half the applicants for open job 3 months ago were looking because their company was forcing 100% in person.

Yeah - I pay ~$300/mo for zero deductible health care for 2 people. When I hurt my back I paid $50 to see a spine specialist, get an xray, mri and 2 image assisted back injections. Company also got me a new custom chair and a sit stand desk. I paid $50 for a couple of allergy appointments and got started on allergy shots. I've paid $0 in the 3 years of allergy shots since then

My wife's group insurance is a lot worse than mine. She's got the high deductible stuff but with no monthly premium.....while we're relatively young, we're using hers cause it's saving me $4k annually in premiums. I figure over 2+ years that will make sense for risk vs reward. We can always reenroll in my insurance in November.

 

[Exterous]

My wife's group insurance is a lot worse than mine. She's got the high deductible stuff but with no monthly premium.....while we're relatively young, we're using hers cause it's saving me $4k annually in premiums. I figure over 2+ years that will make sense for risk vs reward. We can always reenroll in my insurance in November.

My wife is a teacher and has always gotten poorer options despite being offered the much renowned Meemic. I always heard how the unionized teachers had such amazing health care options at the expense of tax payers but we've always taken my private sector options. But at least she gets $6k for not taking their insurance and being on mine

 

[Fritzo]

I know a lot of people that get to retirement, then apply for jobs way above their typical pay/level to see if anything sticks. I've also known a bunch to start consulting companies or JOIN consulting companies for 6 figures with limited benefits or sometimes excellent benefits. I always give my neighbor as an example though...he worked for a fortune 500 on a particular logistics product that USPS was investing in. He retired and started a 2 year contract with USPS. He drove like 7 hours on Sunday, lived in an extended stay hotel until Friday morning...then drove home after work for the weekend to be with his wife for Saturday/Sunday before returning. He probably raked in some serious dough doing that, but just a few months after his contract ended, he had a major stroke and lost the ability to walk. Just sucks because of the lost time he could have had in retirement.

If you're vaccinated, you're gonna be just fine. The Moderna CEO said recently that the pandemic will likely fade by next year at the rate the delta variant is vaccinating the people who don't want the shot. In my local region we saw a HUGE spike in August and deaths peaked last month. It appears that it's contagious enough that it's going to hit a sustained level of transmission through next year as it continues to get anyone in the community that doesn't get jabbed. I recommend getting the Pfizer or Moderna shots. I've heard of more breakthrough cases with J&J.

After my recent trip to Hawaii...the plane travel was the scariest cause you're in a room with 300 other people for 8 hours, but at least with that flight we all either had a negative covid test within 72 hours OR a vaccination record. We had to register through travel.hawaii.gov and upload documents....the airlines asked to see a QR code and proof before we ever left our originating airport. Once on the island, the we found the cases there were 50th in the US per capita....behind Puerto Rico and ahead of Vermont (#51). Most of the eating situations there were food trucks and restaurants were careful to keep tables apart. They were taking it pretty serious. You may want to consider a quick trip to the islands before things get back to normal and the risk likely increases from just the increase of people.

I'm hoping this is true. My friend at work is a conspiracy nut and refused to get the vaccine. His wife has MS and they went to a family event 2 weeks ago...now his whole family has COVID. He's sick as a dog trying to work from home now, and his wife is in the ICU right now where they're weighing intubating her. My heart is breaking for him, and I do not want to say anything

My wife always says, though... "There's the devil you know and the devil you don't know."

Every job has aspects that make the responsibilities "work". Sadly, I'm at the point now with my current job/role that I rarely think or break a sweat. My problem is they should pay me for that confidence and knowledge/skills/abilities....but the job was never raised to where it should be considering I whipped it before covid. Just sad that they were splitting my reporting to 3 managers AND potentially adding 40% work without more than 4% additional compensation and no future-proofing.

What sucks is....I'm not unhappy. My physical office has an exterior door access that I'm going to lose and my boss never followed up with me. I was under the radar most of the time. That was just up in the air recently.....the move was made inevitable AND at least I'm getting paid most-likely next year.

If you're content with being content, then you should stay. If you're longing or getting frustrated because you're not growing, you need to leave and expand your life-circle.

Look at it this way- your current position is just a starter position at another company....

 

[Red Squirrel]

I actually like my current job, it's cushy and has great hours and very good pay for this area. I sometimes worry about job security though. Any desk job can be outsourced. Especially tech. I work as a NOC tech so I monitor telco equipment and buildings, but it seems anything new that they put in ends up getting monitored out of another NOC down south. There's at least like 10 different NOCs in the company, which is a bit concerning as if I was a big head honcho manager I would be asking "why do we need so many NOCs?". We mostly handle legacy stuff that nobody else wants to touch or even knows how to work with but as they phase that stuff out it's a bit concerning as what they replace it with does not come to us. I have a feeling lot of this stuff will still be around by the time I can retire though. It's paid for, and it works, and it's not worth replacing it. They keep saying they want to and always set a date, then they end up replacing ONE machine out of thousands. So I think we're ok but it's still worrisome sometimes.

Funny thing is this is not exactly what I originally went to school for or wanted to do. I took computer science and wanted to get into IT. I did the IT thing for a few years, got the server tech job I wanted. Realized I actually hated it, mostly because of the particular client I worked for though, but when I saw a chance to jump ship I took it and it's the best thing I ever did.

I don't want to keep working for rest of my life though, so now my main goal is to just finish up some personal projects then clear my plate so I can start focusing on a project that can bring me income. I eventually want to be financially independent and live off grid so I won't have as many bills, so the money I do have/make will go further.

 

[cytg111]

I have never been able to "jump ship".
My problem is always something else, like the company shutting down and mass layoffs (hynix)
or not being able to afford me (tektronix)
or letting me go cuz I take time off after a personal emergency (astra zeneca)

so the idea of having multiple options and getting to choose when I leave is sorta foreign.

Damn. In so many ways the US is way behind the curve.

 

[DaaQ]

Interesting, do you monitor for one company or multiple?

I ask because my main dispatch is an HFC-NOC

AFAIK we have 2 locations, I am positive that for the Tech-Ops side is 2, but the NOC side I am not sure.

 

[IndyColtsFan]

I’d leave for the right opportunity, but given the fact that I’ve worked from home since before the pandemic, pay pocket change for insurance, and am paid insanely well, it will be tough finding something better. The workload and stress are just too much and that is why I would leave for the right opportunity.

 

[Red Squirrel]

Interesting, do you monitor for one company or multiple?

I ask because my main dispatch is an HFC-NOC

AFAIK we have 2 locations, I am positive that for the Tech-Ops side is 2, but the NOC side I am not sure.

I assume you were replying to me. Technically one company, but 4 sub companies, as it's multiple companies all owned by same company, basically. Feels like Dilbert sometimes with all the corporate stuff and umbrellas lol. We cover a good chunk of Northern Ontario and Quebec geographically.

 

[purbeast0]

You all talking about benefits reminds me how great I have it with my benefits situation. I forget that it's not the norm to have the type of benefits I have.

 

[brianmanahan]

I’d leave for the right opportunity, but given the fact that I’ve worked from home since before the pandemic, pay pocket change for insurance, and am paid insanely well, it will be tough finding something better. The workload and stress are just too much and that is why I would leave for the right opportunity.

the stress is the worst part for me

bad days at work can cause my blood pressure to go through the roof, and my doctor has been harping on me about that already

i can't wait to never have to debug another exception or write another line of code ever again

 

[DaaQ]

I assume you were replying to me. Technically one company, but 4 sub companies, as it's multiple companies all owned by same company, basically. Feels like Dilbert sometimes with all the corporate stuff and umbrellas lol. We cover a good chunk of Northern Ontario and Quebec geographically.

Yes, I am in US so I am sure it's somewhat different. Interesting nontheless.

 

[IndyColtsFan]

the stress is the worst part for me

bad days at work can cause my blood pressure to go through the roof, and my doctor has been harping on me about that already

i can't wait to never have to debug another exception or write another line of code ever again

On top of my normal workload, I’ve now got 2 clients in Asia and have to meet with them at night. I didn’t sign up for that - I was in charge of a global network with 40 sites around the world a number of years ago and hoped my late night calls to/from Asia were done. At least my clients in Europe can generally meet during normal US hours.

I told my boss the other day that I couldn’t take any additional clients at this stage and I know we have 3 huge ones about to sign. I’m supervising consultants, architecting apps, planning migrations, and conducting client meetings in addition to doing way too much presales. I’m 50, not 25, and I’m too old for this stuff. Lol

And to top it off, my free trip to Maui got moved to next year because of Covid, so I don’t even get to party on the company dime this year.

 

[shortylickens]

I have learned the hard way that low stress is overall better for my health. Navy was high stress and shit pay, but good benefits.
First civilian job was medium stress but very good pay. The alarm management job at AZ was very low stress, but horrible pay.
Its smarter to figure out a situation that pays better and does not add stress. I admire and envy people who manage portfolios from home or do what they really love, like carpentry. If you HAVE to make a choice, its better to be happy than rich. Of course both at the same time is ideal.

 

[NuclearNed]

well well well... an interesting wrinkle has developed. Our upper mgmt has called a mtg with our entire IT staff today, to discuss our "current IT staffing crisis." (In case you didn't read my post above, a lot of our dept has recently left for 100% work from home jobs, less responsibility, and anywhere from 30% - 60% pay increases). My employer is a govt contractor. I've worked here for 21 years, know how our mgmt thinks, and forgive me if I've grown to be cynical... I halfway expect them to do 1 of 2 things at this mtg: either fire everyone & replace us with contractors, or give us the "it's an honor to work here" speech

 

[IndyColtsFan]

well well well... an interesting wrinkle has developed. Our upper mgmt has called a mtg with our entire IT staff today, to discuss our "current IT staffing crisis." (In case you didn't read my post above, a lot of our dept has recently left for 100% work from home jobs, less responsibility, and anywhere from 30% - 60% pay increases). My employer is a govt contractor. I've worked here for 21 years, know how our mgmt thinks, and forgive me if I've grown to be cynical... I halfway expect them to do 1 of 2 things at this mtg: either fire everyone & replace us with contractors, or give us the "it's an honor to work here" speech

Well, if you know anyone interested in a very senior level architect position for SharePoint, Power Platform, and/or Microsoft Teams, ping me. We're hiring on my team and I need some good recommendations. The person must be expert-level in at least one of the the aforementioned workloads, must have enterprise-level experience (500+ users with preference being with those who have architected environments for companies in the thousands/tens of thousands/hundreds of thousands range), and must be comfortable presenting to clients and C-level execs.

 

[nakedfrog]

I was flirting with the idea of changing jobs, I'd even started on a resume... but then my boss had a meeting with me, and told me they were offering me a hefty retention bonus, 1/3 paid out in March and the remainder the following January, a shinier title, and corresponding raise to go with that title. We've had a few people leave over the last couple years, and I do hold a bit of specialized knowledge, so I can understand it. I've already been working from home for about 4.5 years now.

the stress is the worst part for me

bad days at work can cause my blood pressure to go through the roof, and my doctor has been harping on me about that already

i can't wait to never have to debug another exception or write another line of code ever again

Sucks to be you
I ended up quitting coding as a hobby after I'd been doing it as my job for five years, but I still enjoy writing code, and resolving most exceptions (not those real motherfuckers where you're like "how is this even a thing", but the ones that make sense at least). 80-90% of the time it's fairly low stress though. That was part of the reason I was considering leaving, our new platform doesn't have quite as much opportunity for me to write code. I hate the non-developer oriented visual workflow stuff.

Well, if you know anyone interested in a very senior level architect position for SharePoint, Power Platform, and/or Microsoft Teams, ping me. We're hiring on my team and I need some good recommendations. The person must be expert-level in at least one of the the aforementioned workloads, must have enterprise-level experience (500+ users with preference being with those who have architected environments for companies in the thousands/tens of thousands/hundreds of thousands range), and must be comfortable presenting to clients and C-level execs.

Feels like I'm forever seeing people looking for SharePoint experts!

 

[IndyColtsFan]

Feels like I'm forever seeing people looking for SharePoint experts!

You've probably seen a few posts from me. There is just not enough SharePoint talent going around.

 

[nakedfrog]

You've probably seen a few posts from me. There is just not enough SharePoint talent going around.

Not just you

 

[brianmanahan]

Sucks to be you

not for too much longer, hopefully. i was shooting for retirement in 7 years, but i might be able to do it in 5.

 

[nakedfrog]

not for too much longer, hopefully. i was shooting for retirement in 7 years, but i might be able to do it in 5.

TBH, while I'm looking forward to retirement, I also kinda feel like my life is already like a vacation since I moved to a wonderland and my teenager moved out.