question for wise guys who don't work

[holycowholycow]

Here is my question for the wise guys: which is the better situation to be in, A or B:

Situation A

I have a job that pays about sixty thousand with a great manager and lots of flexability. However, the company has a tendency to downsize about three to five percent of their employees every year for the past four years.

Situation B:

I have a job that pays eight five thousand but the manager is average at best (can be a pain at times, but not too bad). Also, the flexability is average at best. But the company is stable and has better long term potential. Also, the expectations are much higher and the pressure to perform is greater.

I am in situation A right now with the option to move to B.

What would you do?

[ACPlayer]

As a wise guy who does not work (and has not since Dec 2000 - unless you count poker or the last 2 weeks i spent working in a scuba dive shop in return for lots of free goodies and diving) both options seem quite pathetic and unappealing.

Do not, repeat, do not a) get married b) buy a house with a big mortgage c) buy a big car with a big mortgage or d) get used to big expenses.

Do, learn to play poker well so you can avoid the jail of the 8-6 workplace.

Do, take the downsize handshake package.

Cheers

[MMMMMM]

It sounds like a personal preference between less stress/less money and more stress/ moremoney--except for one thing, the downsizing pitfall.

If you can avoid being classified in the least valuable tiers of employees in company A (is there something you can do to make sure of that every year?), then you won't have to worry about the downsizing. The same holds if you can likely replace your current job without too much trouble.

Would the extra money each year with company "B" mean a lot to you?

Personally speaking, I hate a job that demands long and non-flexible hours. If I were in your shoes and wished to keep the job with company "A" I might try to find a way to become expert at some obscure but essential aspect of the business as well as my regular duties. I would then protected from downsizing and also be in a position to negotiate more money. The whole trick is to be not just another cog in the machinery, but an irreplaceable cog (or a smooth and very highly performing cog).

[paland]

[ QUOTE ]
Do, learn to play poker well so you can avoid the jail of the 8-6 workplace.

[/ QUOTE ]

Ummm. I think the best way is to get a job where you get paid 65K and can still play online poker (while at work most of the time). That way you CAN afford that house, car and other things that you enjoy.

How do you find a job where you can do this? Well, many government jobs and professional jobs have this capacity. Get an education or print a nice transcript. I like working a decent job more that sitting at a poker table 10 hours a day getting boils on your ass.

The way it is now, I play for hobby and extra money and am doing quite well. I have health insurance, a new car, a house that makes me 60K a year in appreciation right now,a wife and a daughter. I get to drive to Tahoe or Reno whenever I want to.

All I'm saying is that it is better to have a nice job to go with poker unless you are one of the VERY top and win BIG tournaments. Otherwise, poker is a grind (or so I hear from the real pro's)

[adios]

Is this a trick question? Situation B hands down. If someone feels your worth that much more I would think the company mentioned in situation A could pay you more money easily.

[ACPlayer]

Ummm. Well, I worked in Corporate America for 20 plus years making a lot on money. Let me assure you that, IMO, for most people work is a trap that Corporations sell you on to keep you working there forever (or at least till you are surplused).

Am really glad I dont have a mortgage, etc so I can travel extensively rather than stay in the grind of a job (however exciting) just to pay the bills as many of my friends are.

Only a nut plays ten hour sessions.

Otherwise, he did ask the "wise guys" for an answer, which of course is different from "wise guys" /images/graemlins/grin.gif

[paland]

[ QUOTE ]
Otherwise, he did ask the "wise guys" for an answer, which of course is different from "wise guys" /images/graemlins/grin.gif

[/ QUOTE ]
True. I should have stayed out of it. Nevermind and continue. I'll shut the f.. up.

[Zeno]

[ QUOTE ]
However, the company has a tendency to downsize about three to five percent of their employees every year for the past four years.



[/ QUOTE ]


Why is this? Is the company on a downward trend, or is the general business sector on a downward spiral? Make yourself valuable by doing a variety of tasks or projects. Become knowledgeable in a broader spectrum is helpful. I survived four layoffs in my old company during the 1995-1999 years because I could do multiple tasks.

I would stay with situation A, with the about caveat. Remember, money is like a whore, very tantalizing to the eyes but the reality is always much less than the fantasy.

And Poker is a Whore for 95% of the people that try it.

And 60k is not a bad wage. In the end, the choice will depend on the priorities that you set for yourself.


That’s my opinion.

-Zeno

[Ray Zee]

no-brainers B. you are going to lose the first job anyway i guess by your post. but 25,000 more a year puts you that much closer to being able to quit or retire much sooner. that is what it is all about. that money compounded will be big time dough in 20 years if you can look that far out. if you are just going to buy nicer cars with the worse job than stay with A.

[Zeno]

If he takes B, he dies at 58 from stress, and that extra money, for the most part, is sucked up by the bureaucratic state.

So if he takes B, he should either make sound legal plans to assure that his ‘extra bucks’ goes to relatives, immediate family, or friends; or, spend it all like a drunken sailor and die at 58, penniless. This may depend on his individual devotion or feelings toward his relatives and close associates. But it is sound financial advice. I am, after all, an expert. /images/graemlins/wink.gif

-Zeno