While my job is not exactly high paying, I'm pretty much at the max salary for my role ($115k, teacher).
My skills are not really transferrable, so whatever I pick next will undoubtedly be a big pay cut, heading back to a junior level.
Been thinking about switching out for a while and it got me wondering who else has left a job to take another role with less money.
Let's hear your stories!
At 250k, 17 yrs experience in the engineering consulting - not exactly mind blowing pay, though I would like to start my own niche consultancy. On the current salary earning course, I'll probably top out around $350k over next decade, or $400k base + bonuses at executive level, but I don't have the interest nor personality to play those political games to get to that level.
At the same time, at this salary range with a, young family, single income household at the moment, it doesn't seem like it's worth the risk going out on my own. Ideally if it expands into a small 5-10 person band, it might be profitable. What I really would like to do is to build project cars, large forced induction engine swaps, chassis swaps etc. Currently don't really have the space or time to do it, and not really sure how profitable it would be given the number of hours involved in oddball projects.
Why not suck it up for a few more years then retire permanently or work just for kicks.
Work for kicks is do volunteer work, work for just the experience or do some part time/casual work you don't give a F about.
Left a job years ago paying around 120k but was essentially a robot, very long hours and company not caring about personal life.
New job was a 40% pay cut but Worklife balance was improved ten fold.
Couldn't have it any other way, now I have climbed onto the corporate sector of the company and loving it.
I don't mind working for very long hours as long as it's paid and I love what I do, like routine and repetitious job, for 120k? I'll take that anytime of the day including Sundays.
Yeah it was challenging although ruining my passion for the trade. Also the fact they could call me anytime and expect standard hours was gruelling.
Left a managerial role in manufacturing to go farming.
Easily dropped $100k/year, hopefully will pay off long term.
I could not stay where I was, it was absolutely doing my head in, very toxic environment and company unwilling to change to make the role work.
Did I leave a high paying job for something else?
Two instances come to mind - Working for a large corporation - was asked to move from one wing of the company to another - the move meant I would lose a lot of perks which meant my effective income dropped dramatically - my new boss went to bat for me, and ended up getting me about 20% over what I had been previously earning - I was surprised to find that I was actually earning a lot more than him…
Later on, I was working for a company, who outsourced their operations - I was one of many that were moved to the new outsourcing company - the management in it was incompetent at best. I was pulling mid $300Ks - I was continuing with stuff that I was doing as an employee of the original company - the manager in the outsource company threw a wobbly, basically because A) I wasn't running things past him (I then showed him the string of unread emails that I had sent, that he hadn't even bothered opening, and b) that I was expected to screw over the original company to improve the outsourcers bottom line.
The thing I was working on at the time, was a $6M Project that we confidently planned that we could implement in 8 weeks. It ended up costing the original company $12M, and took closer to 8 months to happen.
I moved on to some consulting for for a government department on a similar income.
I will be in a few months :)
As to what I'll do next, zero idea.
Thinking outside the square here but if you're single and no dependants, maybe look at teaching english in Japan and Korea. The experiences gained from that would be great and you could learn a new language.
No idea on the pay there
I left a 200k job in private sector after 20 years to a lower paying PS role to focus on my health and limit the daily work hours. After a couple of years, I got frustrated due to the lack of decision making power in the role. I left the perm PS job and moved to a temp PS job with higher responsibilities (220k).
Take the break you want either by not working or by taking up a lower role which would be a cake walk for you and will get all the time in the world to focus on what you need.
.. what is PS? private sector? public service? have seen the term multiple times in this thread
Public service.
Government roles are ironically paid very well with job security
That's interesting! I always had the misconception that government roles capped out pretty low, was told that most people will become EL1 (120k) and never really progress beyond that level. Is that true?
Job security I can understand. I'll probs go retire in the public service haha
@portard: Various government agencies (local, state, federal) have different awards/EBAs so it's really easy to go over that with penalties, overtime etc.
I can only comment being on a state agency eba sorry but all i can say is that i was earning that as a 2nd year graduate at a state government agency.
I just resigned $170k. I have done this a few times over the years where taken 6 months or so off. Best times of my life. No regrets.
So taking a career break. Go off and do some travel through the remote islands of Indonesia and throw in some Cambodia. Maybe find a good beach bungalow and spend a few months reading books, surfing, meditating. Who knows. Maybe set up a business. Maybe come back. Maybe not.
Everyone at work is like owww you are so brave. No I'm not. I just see the road ahead and its short and getting shorter fast. The risk is flogging yourself for 45 years in the hope that you won't be too broken or dead by the time you get to retire and finally enjoy it all.
I am not interested in tying into a million dollar loan that keeps me working full time in an office job until I am 75. I won't take that shitty house to the grave. I won't lie on my death bed wishing I had spent more time working instead of experiencing life. So time to go have some fun.
It might be fine depending on your industry and experience, but I did the same 11 years ago and it was a problem getting back in due to an industry downturn. I got some short term assignments - enough to get by, but was for most of that time unemployed for 2 years. Lesson learned for me and I will not be taking another career break.
I like how you think man, that's why these days I don't worry too much about being hired, or not, when I quit this current role. If they hire me, fine, if not, I'll just enjoy my time being jobless.
I went from my first job in IT with decent pay to working as a concierge/porter due to starting to hate IT. The 3 year break was exactly what I needed before getting back into a better IT job.
With the above, I upped and moved cities without a job on the other end…took about 2 weeks from arriving in Melbourne to get the Concierge/Porter job
I hate my IT job, hope a 6 month break (or longer) being jobless will fix it
Maybe a full change of scenery, rather than being jobless will work. The hotel found out I did IT and I was doing things for guests. Gave me a little taste of IT again without being too full on. Applied for grad jobs after 3 years and bang, landed a job i've been happy in for the past 14 years.
Made me appreciate hospitality that much more.
stress > money
Have I ever taken less money for a role? No.
Have I ever left a role without another one secured? Yes.
Will I ever use my time to do something I love, instead of something that just pays the bills? Hopefully.
I work a job that I enjoy (and pays me very well to do so). But the moment I find it soul-destroying, I'm out. My peace and health is worth too much to compromise. That being said, I'm not going to jump into a lower paying job that's sunshine and flowers, but can't pay my mortgage, bills and everything else that's going up in price.
That's why I'm putting whatever money I can save towards investing for my future. Trading time for money is never going to get you there. Making money work for you, with passive income is the way :)
Btw, I have several teacher friends (secondary school) that make upwards of 180k a year. The commonality is that they're in private schools and are year coordinators and/or head of a particular subject.
Left my job as an IT manager on 120 to start my own business doing IT & Cyber Security Consultation. Made about 11k over the past 6 months so far starting from nothing.
lots of high paying workers probably already do, ez
Left my engineering job and moved into banking.
~20% cut initially. Have to put in double the hours but I am currently getting paid quite well…
Takehome pay hasnt increased as much due to tax, but I haven't regretted the move as I seriously enjoy what I am doing now
Follow your passion and you (should) be OK….
I took six months long service leave from high school teaching and applied for a job at a university doing elearning training. You can park your current position at a school for three years to go try something else, at least that’s what I did. Instructional design was just getting started back then. I’ve been working as a learning designer for nearly a decade now and there are plenty of job opportunities out there. Pays a bit less that a maxed out experienced teacher wage, but the low stress and work life balance have been completely worth it for me.
In my current role there is a pathway towards becoming a senior learning designer which pays similar to what you are getting as a teacher, and totally wfh.
Been hearing a different advice lately when thinking about switching out that is not "follow your passion":
- What are you good at doing? You'd be more likely to do well in those areas and the skills involved in those areas will be transferrable.
- In which area can you make the most contributions? If you choose to take a pay cut then perhaps money is not the main motivator (I'm assuming)? What gets you out of bed in the morning usually aligns with your value and it's likely you'd enjoy doing/feel good about working in a field that you can make a huge contribution.
Maybe I'm going on a tangent but be aware of your own expectations if/when switching out. The grass may not be always greener on the other side (someone wise told me they are just different shades).
Hired a guy to install an above-ground pool and build a deck around it (there was a qualified carpenter with him). He had left 25 years of office jobs in finance to do this. He couldn't have been happier.
Been looking at possibility of being a mechanic or builder apprentice myself, I hate my office work, I hate that I only get a few hours of sleep due to stress…
The happy ones always seem to be the ones in simple service jobs and usually self employed. Cleaners, lawn mowing, car detailing, pressure washing etc.
Started my career at startup in EU after Phd, was fun and exciting at first but it was like riding a roller coaster with jackpot at the horizon. We used to joke if there is 24hrs a day, there is still the night. Moneywise was up and down but good with multiple bonus per years (middle manager). Left after 3 years to academia in Australia, progressed the ladder for 5 years to the point that it was just like a survival game every single day at work. Research works at Uni is a wildworld. Constantly headache looking for fundings for next contract, recruit RA and students and sicked of all the brainwashing bs from the manager. Left to APS in STEM, salary dropped 30% but I gainned my life back and Im not regret at all. No call or email after working hours. Exellent work life ballance, until now. Have time for kids, gardening and sporting.
Engineering