Have you ever regretted getting a promotion?

[MoMeanMugs]

I took off the whole month of December and disconnected from work. I got a text message Wednesday from my boss's director asking me to call him. I very rarely interact with him directly, so I thought this was kind of odd. When I called him, he asked if he could call me back. He had that tone in his voice like he had some bad news to deliver. As I sat there waiting for him to call me back, I was sitting there thinking I was about to have a 'Friday' moment. I kept thinking to myself, how the fuck am I about to get fired on my day off? He calls back and tells me both my boss and one of my coworkers quit for different reasons. He asked me if I wanted the project manager position. I got the feeling it wasn't really an option. I took it, but now I'm having second thoughts. I enjoy my freedom and being able to leave early in the afternoon. I'm now in charge of a mult-million dollar project that I've been on for the past two years. I don't know if it's worth the stress. Does anyone regret going from a technical position into management? I'm an EE if it matters.

 

[UberNeuman]

I took off the whole month of December and disconnected from work. I got a text message Wednesday from my boss's director asking me to call him.

I very rarely interact with him directly, so I thought this was kind of odd.

When I called him, he asked if he could call me back. He had that tone in his voice like he had some bad news to deliver. As I sat there waiting for him to call me back, I was sitting there thinking I was about to have a 'Friday' moment. I kept thinking to myself, how the fuck am I about to get fired on my day off?

He calls back and tells me both my boss and one of my coworkers quit for different reasons. He asked me if I wanted the project manager position. I got the feeling it wasn't really an option. I took it, but now I'm having second thoughts.

I enjoy my freedom and being able to leave early in the afternoon. I'm now in charge of a mult-million dollar project that I've been on for the past two years. I don't know if it's worth the stress. Does anyone regret going from a technical position into management? I'm an EE if it matters.

/breaking up the text - it's not a bad thing....

 

[dud]

... He asked me if I wanted the project manager position. I got the feeling it wasn't really an option. I took it, but now I'm having second thoughts. I enjoy my freedom and being able to leave early in the afternoon. I'm now in charge of a mult-million dollar project that I've been on for the past two years. I don't know if it's worth the stress. Does anyone regret going from a technical position into management? I'm an EE if it matters.

No, I have no regrets in that I avoid "promotions" of this type. At work, engineers and project directors make the same money so it would be near suicide to change over to being a PD. OP, I hope you got a huge salary increase to compensate for the potential extra stress.

 

[MoMeanMugs]

/breaking up the text - it's not a bad thing....

Sorry if you couldn't take in the vast amount of information presented in a few sentences.

 

[zokudu]

Do you get a pay increase?

 

[UberNeuman]

Sorry.

If.. you couldn't take

in the vast amount of information

presented in a few sentences

/Christopher Walken

Sounds like you've got a major task ahead of you, so you should make the most of it.

 

[MoMeanMugs]

Yes, I get a pay increase, but I didn't really factor that in my decision. Not that I do things for free, but I'm not in a money grab either. The main reason I took it is that I spend many days bored out of my mind with nothing to do. I figured it would be an opportunity to do something interesting. I'm supposed to go down to the Bahamas in January to do some work at the power utility, but I guess that's not an option now.

 

[Jeff7]

I know that two of my professors seemed to regret it. They were engineers at the same company, and both had been promoted to management positions. They ended up doing less and less genuine engineering work, and eventually requested their old jobs back, or else they'd leave.

They did end up leaving then, and both went to teaching at the university.
I imagine that they'd have gotten business degrees in the first place if management was what they really wanted to do.

 

[chusteczka]

It seems you take your new responsibility seriously. This is a good sign.
I think you will do well.

 

[CRXican]

money CAN buy happiness

 

[69Mach1]

This depends on your personality. I don't like being told what to do, so the closer to the top I'm at the better I like it. I have complained about the stress sometimes, but if I could go back and make a different choice, I would still choose to take each promotion I've gotten. Being in charge, you have a real say in how things get done, instead of just drifting along.

 

[Jumpem]

I would prefer to go as far as a mid-level technical position. I would rather make $85k, and work mostly 40 hour weeks where I can come and go as I please; than make $105k and be stressed working 60 hours a week and from home.

 

[Jumpem]

I know that two of my professors seemed to regret it. They were engineers at the same company, and both had been promoted to management positions. They ended up doing less and less genuine engineering work, and eventually requested their old jobs back, or else they'd leave.

They did end up leaving then, and both went to teaching at the university.
I imagine that they'd have gotten business degrees in the first place if management was what they really wanted to do.

For the most part (at least where I work) management comes from the engineering ranks.

 

[BarkingGhostar]

Almost. Had I taken it that would have meant no OT, 50-60 hour work week, no telecommute and all for a 2% increase in bonus. Screw dat!

 

[IronWing]

Facts:

Multi-million dollar project exists.
Project has been underway for at least two years.
Folks in charge of said project quit.
It's your baby now.

Conclusion:
You're so screwed.

Action:
Convert this thread to a blog post to keep us updated as the train wreck proceeds and you learn how badly this project has been going.

 

[lxskllr]

I would prefer to go as far as a mid-level technical position. I would rather make $85k, and work mostly 40 hour weeks where I can come and go as I please; than make $105k and be stressed working 60 hours a week and from home.

^^^

Freedom is worth more than $. I've never had the kind of job where a promotion meant I lost my freedom, but I'd never take it if I had the option. In your case, I'd offer to fill in, or accept the promotion on a "trial" basis, but work is never worth killing yourself over.

 

[nageov3t]

not personally, but I had an old coworker who got f'd by it.

he was my department head when I worked as a data center technician a few years back. the powers that be in the company asked him to switch departments and take over as the director of purchasing (which is a pretty significant position for a webhosting company considering the amount of servers and networking gear we buy).

a couple months later, a large firm made a huge investment in my company. as part of the investment, though, they looked around at how everything was running and one of the first questions they asked was why a guy with no sales/purchasing experience was in such a position. his days were numbered from then on (he got a couple demotions + lateral moves before eventually getting fired)

 

[gophins72]

Yes, I get a pay increase, but I didn't really factor that in my decision. Not that I do things for free, but I'm not in a money grab either. The main reason I took it is that I spend many days bored out of my mind with nothing to do. I figured it would be an opportunity to do something interesting. I'm supposed to go down to the Bahamas in January to do some work at the power utility, but I guess that's not an option now.

sounds like you know where you want to go with your career, may as well not hold back at this point.

 

[Jeff7]

For the most part (at least where I work) management comes from the engineering ranks.

Probably because engineers actually know how to get shit done.



<flamesuit>
<deflector shields>
<tachyon inversion field>

 

[IHateMyJob2004]

Where I work (engineers), the joke is that over time you get more responsibilities. You might as well get paid more also. And over time, you will get sick of doing what you are doing. Might as well keep some spice in your employed life.

Anyways, the enxt step up for me will be the first real big one. I'm not even worried about the role. hours won't change much. just who I interact with. My only fear is that I will get farther away from engineering and more into management.

In truth, I want ot work for myself. I want to own my own business. And in theory, I want it to have nothing to do with engineering. To fed up with people that are mental door knobs making more money than I do. The issue is not intelgence but what I do with it.

 

[Kommander_Kink]

Hahaha my co-worker took one from being a simple laborer to a foreman, now he hates it. He makes the same amount of money per hour as his laborers but has to wake up earlier and go home later, meanwhile he has to drive his crew 2 hours away and they all fall asleep in the back seat while he has to stay awake and drive, then when something breaks down at the jobsite or goes wrong he's the one that's yelled over the phone by the big bosses.

LMAO!!

 

[Regs]

There are a certain type or class of people that do not want to own up to their work. Work sucks, but the job still needs to get done. Are you that type of person that will grin it and bare it?

The people that usually tell you that you shouldn't be a push over are usually the arrogant few that go nowhere in life.

 

[MoMeanMugs]

Facts:

Multi-million dollar project exists.
Project has been underway for at least two years.
Folks in charge of said project quit.
It's your baby now.

Conclusion:
You're so screwed.

Action:
Convert this thread to a blog post to keep us updated as the train wreck proceeds and you learn how badly this project has been going.

I knew I was screwed before saying yes! The project is already in the hole because it was bid improperly, but I had nothing to do with that. The person in charge on the customer side is a bitch, but I have thick skin. I was a store manager of a video store back in college, so I've put up with the asshats of the world before. I'll be sure to update the thread as the blazing plane goes spiraling into the ground.

 

[TridenT]

I took off the whole month of December and disconnected from work. I got a text message Wednesday from my boss's director asking me to call him.

I very rarely interact with him directly, so I thought this was kind of odd.

When I called him, he asked if he could call me back. He had that tone in his voice like he had some bad news to deliver. As I sat there waiting for him to call me back, I was sitting there thinking I was about to have a 'Friday' moment. I kept thinking to myself, how the fuck am I about to get fired on my day off?

He calls back and tells me both my boss and one of my coworkers quit for different reasons. He asked me if I wanted the project manager position. I got the feeling it wasn't really an option. I took it, but now I'm having second thoughts.

I enjoy my freedom and being able to leave early in the afternoon. I'm now in charge of a mult-million dollar project that I've been on for the past two years. I don't know if it's worth the stress. Does anyone regret going from a technical position into management? I'm an EE if it matters.

/breaking up the text - it's not a bad thing....

It really wasn't even a wall of text... :/ It doesn't need breaking up of that much.

 

[Wordplay]

He calls back and tells me both my boss and one of my coworkers quit for different reasons.

:hmm:

I would of asked for a day to think about it but really ask both of them why they left. If you are cool with them maybe they can tell you something you don't know that is happening behind the scenes which gave them a reason to quit.