A quandary...

[Tossica]

I have been contracting for a medical technology company off and on for a couple of years now. The job is "fine". I don't particularly enjoy the work but the people I work with are great and the days go by quickly. They are planning on offering me a permanent position here at the end of April. The company makes a LOT of money and is one of the better companies to work for in Minnesota.

Here is the dilemma...

I have another opportunity to continue contracting with another small, high tech company. The work is MUCH more what I enjoy doing and I would be learning a shitload of new skills. I would be making almost twice the hourly wage that I am making now but the amount of work depends on how busy the company is. If I joined them right now, I would be looking at about 20-40 hours a week but there is no guarantee that I won't go a few days here and there with no work.

Do I continue doing the same crap I am doing now, working 9-5 sitting in a cube working for "the man" making good money and great benefits or.... do I take a risk, go the 1099 route, hopefully make a buttload of money, do work I enjoy, possibly have much more free time (it would be nice to have an extra day or two a week to spend with my son when he is here for the summer), learn great new skills but give up the bennies and stability of the office job?

Guide me oh great NT massive.

[Trielelvan]

I suppose the question is, who do you think is more stable of the 2? As in, who is more likely to be around in the next 10 years or so? And who is more likely to layoff people should things slow down?

Job stability is a huge thing for me right now - I'm kind of one-track-minded regarding that aspect.

[Tossica]

That's ONE of the questions and there isn't a clear answer. The company I am working for now has been around for 50+ years and will continue to be here until humans are immortal BUT that doesn't mean they won't lay my ass off if they think it will save a buck.

This is a great big ball of stress in my gut.

[Harrison]

Take the risk, go for what you enjoy.

[Trielelvan]

Damn Toss. I don't envy your position right now.
Well, they say the greatest rewards usually come with the greatest risk. Then again, so do failures. Ok, I'm a little loopy from medication, so forgive silly questions...
If you should decide to leave the present company, what are the chances of you being able to go back, and still get a permanent position there? Will they hold it for you? (I'm assuming no, but still, can't hurt to ask)

Meanwhile, here are some minor distractions to alleviate some stress.
:boobs::boobs::boobs::boobs::boobs::boobs::boobs::boobs::boobs:

[Lyion]

The sexier job is the easy answer, but stability with good people is nothing to shake a stick at.

Make a Pro and Con list, Toss.

In the end, go with whatever adds up.

My gut would be to grab the guaranteed work and stick with the known buck and bennies, but thats moreso based on my fear of how bad IT has been.

[Donnel]

The chance to learn new skills and do work you truly enjoy is a rare combination. I'd say jump on the latter, and make yourself invaluable to them. More hours could be the result of that.

If you are making twice as much though, does it matter if they cut your hours in half?

PS: It's quandry.

[Tossica]

Thanks for the input.

If I am making twice as much, no the 20 hours a week doesn't bother me, it's the possiblity of not getting that 20 hours that worries me. I NEED to make as much as I am making right now or I would have to make some serious lifestyle adjustments. Anything over 20-25 hours a week would be gravy.

PS Quandary is correct.

[Donnel]

I lose

been spelling it wrong for my entire life
/bow

[Narrock]

Stick with what you've got. If you go to the other company and find out that it isn't what you expected after all and leaves you very disappointed... your seat at the old company might have been filled during your "trial" of this new company you thought was "greener pastures."

[Donnel]

I have another opportunity to continue contracting with another small, high tech company.

He already knows what the other company is like.

[Tossica]

Yeah, I have a good friend that works there now and he is the one who got me in the door. He has been there almost 2 years and loves it.

[Langston]

Toss -

I have been in a similar position. Here are some of my thoughts when I was considering it. They may or may not apply to you:

- Do I need a regular, planned income... in other words, do I need to be able to count on my paycheck being $xx every month - or can I afford to have a little flux with the big months covering the little ones.
- Benefits - not only medical/dental but bonus programs, etc. Do you need these things? Which are offered in which of the positions?
- Are the skills you learn in one position far greater and more marketable than the other? As you well know, you're only as good in this industry as your credentials and work experience are current. If you're getting good skills in one place and stagnating in the other, then your future marketability is diminished tremendously. Sometimes it's better to take the lower pay, higher skill advancement position so as to be on better footing in the future.
- What is the net expected duration of each job? If you're talking about contract work vs. perm, then you might find yourself shortly without a job and back in the market again. If this concerns or worries you - then stability and duration might be the better way to go.
- Location - is one more convenient, closer to places of interest, etc. Location is everything if you live in a metro area.

There are other things, naturally, but these were ones that weighed heavily on my mind. In the end, I wound up taking the permanent position because I needed the stability at the time. You might be in a different situation, though.

[KaiineTN]

Take the risk, it will be that much more fun.. You'll pay the bills, don't worry. It's not like you'd end up on the street if it doesn't work out well at first, you could shack up with Mindia before that.

[Tossica]

Take the risk, it will be that much more fun.. You'll pay the bills, don't worry. It's not like you'd end up on the street if it doesn't work out well at first, you could shack up with Mindia before that.

Risk when you have a $1400 a month mortgage and a 9 year old boy isn't much fun but I get your point.

[Martrae]

Take the risk and do work you enjoy.

If it's contract work and the hours don't add up you can always add another contract or 2. You could also potentially acquire some of the work from your old company as contract work. You could start your own consulting business that way.

[Tossica]

Take the risk and do work you enjoy.

If it's contract work and the hours don't add up you can always add another contract or 2. You could also potentially acquire some of the work from your old company as contract work. You could start your own consulting business that way.

I am my own consulting business.

The real stressful part of this is that the company that is going to offer me a full time position is a company that many people would kill to work for. I mean, it's a REALLY great company but I see myself not really doing much more than I am doing now. The real benefits of leaving are freedom (not working for the man), access to knowledge and experience that I will never get here, no cubicle to stretch my belt even more and a possibility to make good money AND be in with a handful of smart people on what could turn out to be a very successful company.

It's not a bad situation to be in, I mean it's either good or possibly better but I would kick my ass for years if I pass up the job here only to have the other company fold soon down the line.

[Donnel]

Why?

You mentioned that you will be able to learn a lot of new skills, and gain a heap of knowledge while you are there.

If it folds in a few years, aren't you even MORE marketable then you are at the present?

[Tossica]

Why?

You mentioned that you will be able to learn a lot of new skills, and gain a heap of knowledge while you are there.

If it folds in a few years, aren't you even MORE marketable then you are at the present?

Yep. It would be great experience but the whole lack of stability issue and the great benefits of working for the man have my stomach in knots.

[Donnel]

Again, I reiterate.

Stability is a non-issue if the comensurate increase in skill/knowledge will all but guarantee an acceptable employment should the company fold.

[runamonk]

You only live once Toss, trust me on this and don't sit in a position where you're most likely end up really hating it. You shouldn't love working but you should at least enjoy what you're doing.

I sat in a shit job for almost 7 years (making ok money) until one day I finally snapped and quit on the spot. I was lucky in the respect I didn't suffer from the experience of being without a job and I ended up in a much better place for it but it would have been better had I got out of there alot earlier and into where I work now. I love it here and I love what I do alot more.

So I say even though it's a risk, go for it. You can't sit around being all safe and comfy everyday, all day of your life or what's the point in bothering at all?

[KaiineTN]

Toss, let's start a club, you DJ np.

[Karynna Suxcle]

Take the new job. It sounds like you are worrying more than you need to if your friends had been there two years and still loves it. I know very few people who have been at their job over 2 years and can still say they honestly love it.

Besides, it sounds like it's much more your style and speed. As long as you have confidence you can maintain your lifestyle (and I think your friend has confirmed this in a sense) if you don't take it you'll spend the next few years plagues by what if thoughts.

[Tossica]

Toss, let's start a club, you DJ np.

Plan to by 2010. Need $$$ and a solid business plan.

[The Kizzy]

Toss, if they hire you on full time at your present place of employment, will this mean a higher rate of pay?