Seeking Advice

Imagine this....

You  have a full time career that you love, with a manageable list of clients that you like, respect, and work well with. Lucky you! Despite this, you have decided to return to school this fall to complete the post graduate degree that you almost completed many years ago. Happy sigh.

Here is the dilemma: It is not impossible, although somewhat challenging, to maintain the work required for your studies, and maintain the same quantity of professional work, without, of course, the quality suffering. Yes, it is possible to delegate, in the sense that a part time assistant  can be  offered full-time work, and an additional part-time employee hired. Problem solved, correct? Well, not quite. One corporate client has recently offered to hire you on a part-time basis, and pay you the salary that you currently pay yourself  for full-time hours. This would allow you to  work,  study, and maintain your current income. Sounds perfect, no? Well, again, not quite. Although the  work required is minimal, and money received is not, your respect for this particular company, and it's upper management, is very low. So, what do you do?

Do you accept the job that offers the income you are accustomed to, and allows time for classes and study; despite the fact that you do not respect the company?  Do you maintain your current clients and pay others to help you with the work,  which would keep your clients happy, although leave you with a much smaller salary, and much less sleep. Or, do you decide to buy a tub a Ben and Jerry's, write a blog post, and  ask your wise and wonderful blog-friends to offer their wise and wonderful advice?

Of course, if this were me, (hint, hint) I imagine that I would  be having random spoonfuls of ice-cream as I read you wise advice.

Comments

[burntofferings]

Ultimately, by doing the study, you WILL get into a better job with, MORE money...

It is also a valid thing to eother step down or sideways, as that every lowering glass cieling is giving you a headache. A headache that you do not need when doing any form of study!

So, what I would do is this, determine as to how much study load you will have, stess load of that as well, and look at where you want to be in 5 years. In five years time, is that salary going to be more than what you are on now if you were to stay and NOT study?

I would go with the stressless job, more time and freedom, and try to negioate with the new employer to pay for the study as well!! Good luck!

[kenju]

I would be careful of going with a company for which you have little regard. That attitude would no doubt spill over into your work and eventually, you would be affected by it. It may seem to be the best situation for you now, but think of the consequences later.

I might consider paying others, if you can find (or already have) some you trust to do the right things.

Good luck and I applaud your continuing your education!!

[aka_monty]

I don't think, personally, that I would be happy working for a company that I didn't believe in, and it would cause far more stress in the long run.
I don't make much money, but enough to take care of myself and the kids, and I'm happier than some of my friends who make tons more $$ than I.

Mostly, I say go for the ice cream.

[awareness]

How long will it take to complete the post grad degree? I think this needs to be considered when making the decision. If it is a relatively short term endeavour, it may be manageable to work in a less than splendid situation.
The other consideration is to realize that the post grad work may entail longer hours than one can balance with a full time job too. Glitches and extras will eat up more time than any of us slot to complete it. The shorter hour job may offer you the time flexibility you may need.
Presumably the post grad completion is part of a gameplan for the next step in a career, which wouldn't include the present day work environment? So, there's no worries about walking away from it?

My feeling is that this transition back into the land of academia is going to take precedence for a short time.....whatever will precipitate the success of this is that path worth taking.

How's that for a political answer?

And if you'd like to chat about career related stuff......drop me an email. I'm a career counsellor :)

bon chace michele.....it sounds exciting. good to know others are making big changes too. cheers.

[Diane]

Working for people or a company one doesn't respect will inevitably affect one's attitude and the quality of one's work . . .

[leslie]

As you've seen from my blog posts, I'm in no way able to give you sound advice on jobs/future etc. All I can say is good luck, go with your gut. Kenju has it right - working for a company and/or employers you don't respect is probably not a good choice.

What flavor of Ben and Jerry's do you got there?

[Dara]

I would rather lose sleep from stretching myself thin/working hard than from worrying about the integrity of the company I work for. And trust me - I've walked in both shoes. And if you are game for it - you will be surprised at how much less you can live on comfortably, especially for a finite amount of time. Whatever you do, if you do it with commitment and intention, you will succeed and things will fall into place. Enjoy the ice cream!

[Shephard]

My partner works for the Mouse.
His respect for this company can fluctuate wildly. I think as long as they're not harming large numbers of people, there is always hope for change, improvement and making a difference. Politics is another matter entirely however, and I won't comment on that. Some leopards will never change their spots.
~S

[mar]

I am sorry I have no sound advice to offer. Good luck, you'll make the right decisions and complete the post graduate degree with honors !!

[MissMeliss]

I wouldn't work for a company for which I had low regard. Money's nice, yes, but, I've learned over the last 12 months that I'd rather be frugal, a little tired, and doing something I love and care about, then working somewhere where I don't feel connected.

Ice cream, however, is never a bad plan.

[raehan]

To help you answer your question for yourself, I will ask you some questions:

1. Why do you have low regard for this company? Is it simply a matter of not respecting the personalities managing the company, or do you not agree with what the company does. Would you be doing work that can't ethically support.

2. Would you feel a sense of obligation to this company. For example, if after a year you thought the arrangement wasn't working out, would you feel comfortable letting the work go, or would you feel obligated to continue.

3. Would the work make you unhappy on a daily basis. Would it cause you stress, or is it merely a matter of disliking certain individuals.

Good luck making your decision, Michele. If your answers are no to number one (that you don't object to the company but to the personalities) and yes to number two (that you would feel comfortable quitting whenever you need to) and if you feel the work would not cause daily stress, I would advise that you to seriously consider the offer.

You might want to wait six months to decide though. Start the program, see what the courseload feels like and then decide.

My two cents.

[MadSeason]

Going with my initial gut reaction on this one, I vote for finishing the degree, which apparently involves working for the 'company'.

I've been in those shoes (working with companies that I didn't highly regard) and I agree with burntofferings and others: the degree will afford many opportunities in the future to move on, if you so choose. What I've learned in my lifetime is that I am responsible for myself which means it really doesn't matter for whom I work, I give my 110%. That's all I can do.

The money is nice, too, allowing you more time to concentrate on your education without financial stress - plus having the time to study is vital. I finished my Associate's degree this past year while I continued to work full time. I regret not having more time to devote to my studies because although I made great grades, they weren't perfect - and could've been. I still wonder what I missed...

Course, that's just me... Lots of great advice here though!

[Indigo]

Can everything go back to normal if you don't like the choices you've made? That's what I would base my decision on.

Grad work is very time consumig. I'm half way through my MBA program and there I times I can't even remember the date! I'm sure you'll handle it with a lot more grace than I do, but make sure you always have the option to get back to where you want to be no matter what you choose.

Good luck!

[Auntie Antiquity]

take the part time job with the full time money. it is only for a period of time. eat a lot of ice cream to get past the lack of respect you have for the company

[Marie]

I don't have any new thoughts to add to the mix, but I am assuming that by "this fall" you mean the semester that starts any day now? How exciting!!!

Good luck Michele! Of course you'll make the right decision for you...

Now, back to that ice cream... do you have an extra spoon? What do you mean I should get my own damn pint?!

[Bob-kat]

I am currently studying a post graduate degree course on top of working full time and the reality is that the studying always takes up more time than you think it will and it is harder work than you imagine it to be. If you can cope for working for this other company for a limited period of time then make life easy for yourself. Take the path of least resistance. Morals are wonderful things to have and I applaud them but sometimes the practicalities of life force us to make difficult decisions.

Your choice should be based on what is best for you, not what is best for your clients or anyone else. The choice seems to be:
Keep your morals intact but end up stressed with trying to fit everything in, and a bit poorer too or compromise your morals for the long term picture. If you try and fit too much in then the quality of your studying and your work may well be compromised.

Good luck! It will all be worth it!

[Thumper]

Having taken a job with a company for which I had little respect, I can tell you it makes for a miserable work experience. It was two years of hating life, because the misery of work spills over into everything else... If I could go back and do it all over again--even knowing that I was able to keep my son with me and out of day care because of that job--I wouldn't do it.

No amount of money is worth how you wind up feeling when you work for creeps, dweebs, and the devil incarnate. I'll go back to eating generic macaroni and cheese every day before I'll knowingly work in that situation again.

[Lia]

Working for a company you don't like is bad, but in my experience, when working and in school, school becomes the focus, so that the job becomes "just a job", and you are able to ignore a lot of the stuff that probably bothers you, because there will be other things occupying the "important" spot in your mind.

On the other hand, if you'd hate yourself for working for them, it's not worth it. Still, since you can't give 100% everywhere, either school would suffer as you attempted to maintain the same quantity and quality of work, or the work would suffer for your schooling. And that would disappoint your clients, making them less likely to want to work with you again when you're done with school.

[rosemary]

Humm, I'd really have to eat a lot of ice cream to make that decision. School is always the right choice...how bad is this company? Can you change them a bit?

[annie]

Do what I did, forget about work so much and take out student loans.
No, that's not ideal, either.
What I know about you, Michele, and I like to think we're alike in this (sorry for the insult) I would say stay self-employed and hire people. But I know how hard that is, I end up wanting to do everything myself. You could have your assistant do the less important(?) stuff?

[Used*to*be*me]

Having received my BA while working full time for a medium size law firm, and raising two small children (1 and 3 when I started), and now returning to law school, while working full time and raising what are now 7 and 10 year olds, I think that I am certainly qualified to chime in on this dilemma.

If it were me, I would turn down the part time gig and continues doing what what I love on my own terms. If the opinion of the offering firm were better, I might have a different answer. However, doing what you do, on your own terms, makes the reward much sweeter, in my humble opinion.

[sister AE]

My two cents on the matter is that the emotional component of a job is sometimes more important that you think. I know that I COULD work for someone I didn't respect but only for a short time before I would be so ticked off that my attention would wander and I would be a mess. If the hypothetical person's excitement over finishing the degree can be maintained, and if she loves her existing clients, the extra stress of balancing the two may be worth it.

[MRC1471]

i say for the same amount of pay and less hours! take it now!

[Heather]

Do go back to school (congrats). Don't go work for a company or client you have a low opinion of, you'll dislike your job and want to kick yourself for making that choice within 2 months. Delegate some work if you can and continue on as a self-employeed godess that you are. That post-graduate degree means more job opportunities and money in the near future.

[anniebird]

Would the post grad degree offer the possibility of other, more fulfilling work, enhance the work you are currently doing or would it be more symbolic or representative of the pursuit of a passion? I think it might be wise make the value of the graduate degree part of the equation....not that I would discourage you from adding to your education, but perhaps attaining the degree in short order is not urgent and the coursework permits you to take one class at a time?

I suppose the truth is that balancing one's aspirations and obligations is a delicate task that is seldom easy! I wish you well!