Quit my job - I have 2 new offers - Not sure which one to take.

[olds]

Rent, don't sell

 

[brandonb]

How's the traffic between the larger town? You can maybe even work remotely 2-3 days of the week and drive the rest.

No idea. I got along with them fine so I can call them back and propose the idea (and of course forfeit my bonus). But just in general what they thought about me working remotely 2-3 days per week and driving in the other days. If that would suffice or if they would frown upon that long term.

 

[Scarpozzi]

The way you wrote that up, it sounds like you already know what you want.

You can always put your foot in the water with #2 for a few months and see if the move makes sense while keeping #1 available for fallback.

 

[cabri]

The way you wrote that up, it sounds like you already know what you want.

You can always put your foot in the water with #2 for a few months and see if the move makes sense while keeping #1 available for fallback.

I doubt #1 will still be open after a month.

 

[brandonb]

I've been pondering it the last few days. I believe I've come up with my answer.

I'm going to pick #1.

The reasons are this:

At #1, I'm at the bottom with only 1 direction to go. Up... (Provided things work out). This also allows me to work on my resume so if things don't work out well here, I can find another job and I've added something to my resume.

At #2, I'm going in there and they are thinking I will help them conquer the world. What if their vendor software can't be modified as easily as they hope it can, and I can't fix the world for them? They are going to be disappointed. I have more potential downside here than I like. While it has some nice solid pros, it is not a software shop, and I'm going to be the only resource here. It's higher risk.

I'd rather get 2 years of experience at place #1 (it's also an established company) which would then allow me to get a job pretty much anywhere going forward. If I pick #2, I'm good while I'm working there. If they get disappointed in what I'm able to do, and I'm out of a job 2 years down the road then I haven't gained anything. I did a lot to really be in the same place as I am now. And I don't want to have to be put into that spot and have to worry about that every day I'm at work. That's what happened at my current job (and why I went looking to begin with -- I was the only resource that was able to do what I did -- and having to make everybody happy) and I don't want to place myself into the exact same situation. All things considered.

Thanks all for your opinions!

 

[Carson Dyle]

At #2, I'm going in there and they are thinking I will help them conquer the world.

Which, if you pull it off, can be a very enviable position to be in. Being someone in a small company who is highly respected for his talents, and the only guy who fully understands the system, can be extraordinarily advantageous. And in a growing company, it can also be very lucrative.

Nothing ventured, nothing gained.

 

[AznAnarchy99]

Which, if you pull it off, can be a very enviable position to be in. Being someone in a small company who is highly respected for his talents, and the only guy who fully understands the system, can be extraordinarily advantageous. And in a growing company, it can also be very lucrative.

Nothing ventured, nothing gained.

That's huge. Basically they can't get rid of you. Personally if I were you I'd go #2. Why not start higher up rather than have hopes to move up?

 

[MrDudeMan]

I did #2 when I had a similar choice. I'm 100% sure I would have regretted #1 because 'conquering the world' at a company where I had basically no peers was an amazing experience. I learned a lot more than technical skills by using the technical skills I already had in that role. Talk about job security - I wrote a program that completely changed how day to day business was conducted and no one else knew anything about how it worked. I eventually trained someone to take my place, but I easily could have maintained the status quo with no issues.

I also rented my house so I could move back, but I eventually sold it because the job worked out fine.

 

[MrDudeMan]

That's huge. Basically they can't get rid of you. Personally if I were you I'd go #2. Why not start higher up rather than have hopes to move up?

That would be my advice as well. Starting at the bottom sounds a little foolish to me considering there's a better offer on the table with just as much, if not more, room to grow. A well established company is going to have a pecking order, of which the new guy will be at the bottom. There's also more chance for gridlock.