I previously wrote about my experience with FU Money (or in my case FU Power).  Again, I didn’t quite get the outcome I was hoping for, but I still had a good outcome.  Part of that outcome was a change in jobs.

On the surface it looks like a terrible decision (and many of my coworkers at the time thought it was).  I had just gotten a 4.5% raise and was setup to gross over $100,000 in 2018.  However, I was looking to move out of the area so Lady Kit and I would be living in the same place again.

Point Lobos – Only a few minutes away from where I moved to.

The job offer I accepted was for $30,000 less than I was currently making and involved a 1.5 hour commute each way (probably the epitome of anti-mustachianism).  Who in their right mind would take that deal?!

As I further explained to people the details of the offer it made a lot more sense, at least to me, some people still thought it was crazy.

This was a training position with accelerated advancement opportunities allowing me to return to my current salary in about 2-3 years and surpass that in 4 years.  Those numbers assuming base pay (no overtime and no bonuses).  This new job has some amazing opportunities for bonuses which could reach 10-15% of that base salary per year, and when I finish my training I may be eligible for overtime if I desire.  So all of sudden the financial cost doesn’t sound too bad.

Lower Pay, but Lower Expenses

Additionally, we’d be cutting our expenses.  Here are a few things where we saved some money by me switching jobs:

• Mortgage: $2200
• Internet: $50
• Water/Sewer/Trash: $100
• Electricity: $30
• Gas (house not car): $20

Altogether that’s $2400 a month saved ($28,800 annually) which pretty much wipes out the pay difference.

Other Benefits

Of course my commute time went from 25 minutes each way to 90 minutes each way.  This too has some benefits to counteract these negatives.  Now that I have finished the first phase of my training my schedule is much more flexible.

• I have to work 80 hours every 2 weeks spread across at least 4 days each week
  • I can work up to 12 hours per day
  • I can adjust which days I work so I can take time off without having to use vacation time
• My sick leave and vacation time rolled over from my previous employer
• I accrue my vacation time at the same rate as my previous job (higher than new employees get)
• After 2-3 years I will be able to telework full-time
• We’ll be moving closer due to Lady Kit changing jobs
  • New commute time will be about 40 minutes each way
  • Lady Kit and I will be able to commute together (more time together and less money on fuel)

In the end the new jobs benefits are pretty amazing.  It is also interesting work and raises/promotions are based on clearly defined standards making it easy to track my progress and not having to worry about any “good old boy” system (though I’ve never perceived any disadvantages from those systems against me).

The only thing is, I may feel a little guilty that I don’t plan on sticking around for 20-30 years like most people probably will.