If you had a choice between two jobs...

[Buoy]

As many of you know, I'm job hunting.
What do you think about this:
Pay would probably be equal.

Corporate gig, Retail.
Fully qualified.
Not dealing with the public, but have about 6 direct reports.
Hours will include evenings and weekends.
White-collar.
Dealing with Corporate.
Chances to move up if interested in the Corp. mindset.
Investment - none.

Construction gig.
Fully qualified.
Dealing with only homeowner, and boss/scheduler.
No direct reports.
Normal 8-5 job, some Saturday work. OT if wanted, sometimes mandatory. Possibly leave early if work is complete.
Blue-collar, physical labor.
No corporate.
No moving up, but possibility of getting used to the area and starting my own competition.
Investment - $500 - $1000 to upgrade some tools, vehicle provided.

No kids, or other outside things that would dictate schedule.
Wife is typical 7:30 to 5:30, and in a very good position.
What direction would you go?

 

[Dude! Sweet!]

Which one pays the most and requires you to work the least?

I'd probably go with the construction job.

 

[fund razor]

Number two looks tempting, knowing that you are (relatively) young.
And knowing that you are not a corporate kind of guy.

Do you remember our phone conversations when you had direct reports?

 

[sledge]

Retail sucks, evenings and weekends would mean less time with the wife (could be + or - ).
But, corp means minimal sweating/getting dirty and probably a better shot at good fringe benefits over the long term.

I gotta believe the construction gig is best if that's what you really want to do long term, or something that will easily transition to whatever it is you want to do. If you can make back the upfront tool upgrade pretty quick with OT it's a non-issue.

What's going to provide more income and/or more benefits (not just ins/vacation/retirement but also piece of mind) over the long term? Which one will let you get the boat finished quicker?

 

[phragle]

which one do you want to do?? when I got into EMS I took a 50% pay cut, but at the endo of the day I went home in a good mood, not feeling like I sh!t. dreading going to work everyday will effect your entire life.

 

[Dude! Sweet!]

Its funny that you bring this up Tim, I was cleaning the bilge of the boat the other day and all of the sudden, out of no where, I was like "Am I really going to be able to deal with doing my f*cking current job for the next 20 years..."

 

[insanity]

Working evenings and weekends sucks. Well evenings could be tolerable but no way on the weekends. Tried it at the last job and absolutely hated the fact that everybody I knew was out on the boats while I was at work . I prayed for rain every weekend I had to work, misery loves company you know...

 

[ImaPoser]

Working evenings and weekends sucks. Well evenings could be tolerable but no way on the weekends. Tried it at the last job and absolutely hated the fact that everybody I knew was out on the boats while I was at work . I prayed for rain every weekend I had to work, misery loves company you know...

What he said. Evenings and weekends are a deal breaker for me.

 

[Buoy]

Thank you, because this is the debate I have going on in my head.
The construction gig would actually take me back to my roots at my very first real job.
May even get me the contacts I need to venture out on my own again in a new locale.
If me and the wife were working different schedules, it would be kind of weird.
Hell, we practically shared an office back in Kentucky.
The possibility of the Retail/Corporate gig would keep me in the AC, but under the microscope.
The Construction gig is working on garage doors, and entry doors.
Both easy work for me, I have literally done thousands of these - not kidding.
I could pick up extra work if I wanted the money - extra work at the corporate/retail gig will just be required and not pay anymore.
I just walked away from a salaried Corp. gig that I lost my entire summer to last year (12-14 hr days) and never compensated more than my 8hr salary.
Now, considering a Corp. gig that is going to require the same thing, and nights and weekends...
I'm not feeling so warm and fuzzy.
John, yes I remember what we discussed.
I just need to get some income right now, and work out the details later.
Not that I'm hurting, but two house payments can only last for a little while.
It's cutting into boat money.

 

[rainmn]

I've worked some corporate retail jobs years back (Cell phone industry), and have now been working a straight up corporate job for the last 13 years....

Take the construction job.

 

[Buoy]

What he said. Evenings and weekends are a deal breaker for me.

I know you're in the elevator biz.
Ever heard of JAZ elevator out here in Phoenix area??
They had a listing for what would be a dream job for me about a week ago.
I haven't heard anything back.
A bump would be certainly appreciated if you have a contact.
Feel free to PM me.

 

[Tony]

Buy a 6 pack, uhh better make that a 12, stop by the movie store and rent: Office Space, Harrold and Kumar go to White Castle, and He was a Quiet Man.

Do what is natural to you. My future wife is a white collar worker, and there is no fukin way in hell I could ever picture myself in that environment 5 or more days per week. In my world a sharp jolt to the shoulder followed by "quit fukin off and get busy" is an embarrassing motivator not a harassment suit.

 

[Dude! Sweet!]

I got here at 7:00 this morning and I'm still here... My sh*t pile got bigger not smaller... White collar jobs are the last bastion of acceptable employee abuse in America. The only difference between a factory job and a desk job these days are the odds of being killed by a machine are lower, but the odds of dying young of some stress or obesity related illness are higher.

 

[Chris]

I would rather work twice the hours and twice as hard for half the pay and guide my own destiny.

My kids- one in college, one goes in the fall. Since they're babies, I've told them this over and over... never allow yourself to be in the postion of someone taking your livelihood away from you arbitrarily. Do something you enjoy, but be damn sure the world can't function without it.

 

[ROGUE]

Ive done both, and now have a nice mixture of the 2 but in the long run, I prefer going home with some sense of satisfaction of having done a good job that day. The construction one does that, the corporate one doesnt. In the corp life, most of my time was spent paper pushing and cya with little real accomplishment, very little to see at the end of the day, and the pressure and work goes home with you. The construction job, you go in, do your stuff to the best of your ability, go home seeing something that you did and are hopefully proud of, and dont think about it again. If money is similar and you are healthy enough to handle it, Id do the construction in a flash. I spend most of my time in the field now and its a good thing, I hate being in the office too much.

 

[cuda]

Working evenings and weekends sucks. Well evenings could be tolerable but no way on the weekends. Tried it at the last job and absolutely hated the fact that everybody I knew was out on the boats while I was at work . I prayed for rain every weekend I had to work, misery loves company you know...

Being hungry sucks worse, unless you are on the gubmit t!t.

 

[cuda]

Its funny that you bring this up Tim, I was cleaning the bilge of the boat the other day and all of the sudden, out of no where, I was like "Am I really going to be able to deal with doing my f*cking current job for the next 20 years..."

20 years from now, you will be thankful for any f*cking job IF you're lucky enough to have one, and you'll be lucky not to have address him as Commissar.

I always knew I was living during the last true golden years. You younger people get off your butts and please prove me wrong. Who's going to do THAT for you? Your representatives???????????????

Sorry Dude, not intended at you.

 

[cuda]

I would rather work twice the hours and twice as hard for half the pay and guide my own destiny.

My kids- one in college, one goes in the fall. Since they're babies, I've told them this over and over... never allow yourself to be in the postion of someone taking your livelihood away from you arbitrarily. Do something you enjoy, but be damn sure the world can't function without it.

I've had a damn good run for myself for the past 25 years. It may be picking yp, or it may be slashing price, but I did the same amount of jobs last month, as I did all year in 2008. I think it's due to pricing. Hell, I'd rather make 70% of what I worked for 25 years ago, than 0%.

What am I going to do? Wait it out, or learn to be a bagger at Walmart. I have always said, if I go broke it's my own damn fault. But I just have a heard time getting used to the smell of somebody elses butt.

Sure I went to college four years, before I decided I was majoring in drinking, with a minor in astronomy. I was taking up space, besides I had one college algrebra class where we had seven tests, and I made seven 100's. That's the only one that springs to mind, but just could see paying someone to teach me that I had already learned in high school.

 

[ChiefApache]

What does your gut tell you Buoy???

Personally, I've done the direct report and while I'd do it again, it's not everything it is cracked up to be.

Do you want to sit behind a desk all evening/weekends while your wife sits home alone?

The thing with construction is it can take you to other places....project manager, etc down the road, so there is room for growth if you push yourself to grow.

Money is not a ruling factor. I'd rather make $40,000 doing what I love than make $100,000 doing what I hate. Most of our time is spent working......find something you love, othewise you hate dragging yourself out of bed in the morning.

 

[Magic Medicine]

the construction gig sounds better to me. working nights and weekends kills the retail for me