STYLETHREAD -- LET'S TALK SHOP!

I would absolutely accept the offer!

Granted, I don't know the reasons for your wanting to leave(I must be behind). Was the pay really low to begin with? Do you have co-workers that are brutal to get along with? In a case like that I wouldn't take it.

Elle wrote:

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Without knowing the specifics of why you want to quit in the first place, my opinion would be that unless your top two reasons are 1. Money and 2. Job flexibility, then you're going to be back in the situation you're in now, but with a couple more pairs of shoes and an excuse not to go into work when you really don't feel like it .

I think I'd see what else they're willing to negotiate - if they can eliminate enough of the reasons you decided to leave in the first place, it could be more worth it.  Is this your first job in your field out of college?  How long have you been there?  If it's a matter of room to move up and expand professionally, then I think the smartest career move would be to continue on to greener pastures, where you'll probably make more money anyway.  Oh, and you list your salary plus your 50% raise as your 'most recent wage' on your job apps !

-- Edited by Elle at 20:00, 2006-09-25

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ITA. Unless money and job flexability are a big part of why you want to leave, when it comes down to it, you'll still be unhappy, no matter how much they pay you.

I think I would split the difference and take the job, but seriously persue work elsewhere. A boss/job that makes you cry isn't worth an increase in pay imo.

Well, the idea of more money would probably tempt me, too, but I agree with Elle that it's probably not a great reason to stay. My two cents:

1. Are they going to replace you? If yes, then I would not accept the offer to stay. You'd be preventing them from "moving on" which I wouldn't think is 100% fair if you plan to leave anyway. Since you've already planned to make the break I would stick with it ... unless you think you can commit to sticking it out for another year or so.

2. If they aren't going to replace you (or even if they are, but haven't identified a strong candidate) could you negotiate to do your job as a contractor/consultant? If they're willing to give you a 50% raise, you could accept that and in effect have a 25% raise (setting aside a good chunk for self-employment tax). If you have benefits from your hubby this might be a chance to make the cash, work from home, look for a job w/o feeling guilty, and beef up your resume (working as a contractor/consultant always looks good). Could be a win/win.

Regardless of what you decided, it seems like this is a great opportunity to go after what YOU really want, not just what they are offering. Congrats!

I think life is too short to take more money to be miserable. I agree with whoever said I don't think it's fair for you to accept the money if you have no intention of staying there. My thought is that if you accept the raise that it's somewhat understood that you'd be committing to stay there. I like the idea of staying on as a "contractor" or something like that - you could use the no upward opportunities excuse as a reason not to stay as I figure you don't want to tell this boss that he's a nightmare to work for.

I know the money is tempting but you need to figure out your priorities- is it worth they money to do it for a year or so & save up? Can you get similar money elsewhere?

If you could negotiate a more flexible work schedule (half time in office, half time at home) so that working with your boss wouldn't be so awful, I'd take it. You could at least stay for another 6 months to a year and keep your ears open for other opportunities while you're there.

One thing to consider: If you take the raise and stay there AND you look for another job at the same time, will your boss be pissed? (Meaning, will he not give you a good referral if you leave in 4 months after accepting the raise?) If so, you might want to decline. If you think he'd still be cool - or someone else could give you a referral - then I'd stay and look for another job while you're there. It at least gives you some flexibility in what you'll accept for your next position. When you're unemployed, sometimes the pressure to take something overrides the right decision for you.

If you feel comfortable continuing to look for another job, can work out a reasonable work-at-home schedule, and won't be completely miserable, I'd say stay. It's a good offer, as long as you can maintain some semblance of happiness.

i don't know...money is always tempting, but i've been there too, at that job that makes you cry all the time, and it's really just not worth it.  life it too short.  not to mention the no-room-for-growth factor...  i really think you should just stick to your original plan.

personally, i'd be worried too about that promise of working from home occasionally and that it might end up not happening (because of stupid bosses who think they need you there...you know, like "oh, this isn't a good week to stay home, we're too busy" etc. and then you end up never getting to work from home)

i would absolutely take it.

keep us posted!!!

Just wanted to chip in a thought about salary. While a 50% raise is obviously really great and yes, it would raise the salary bar for your next position, be careful. So many companies ask for salary histories right off the bat, and they use that as preliminary information to decide who they can and cannot afford to narrow their candidate pool. If this 50% raise would bring your pay to well-above-average, you could unintentionally price yourself out of upcoming opportunities b/c they may just think that they couldn't afford you and *assume* that they couldn't offer you enough to make you happy.