Which job to go for?

I am asking alot of people this question and you guys may have more experience than me in this field. Plus, I value your opinions. So here goes...

There are two jobs I applying for at present. I have had a great deal of experience in both roles, hence believe I am quietly confident that I will get interviews for both. One is as a counsellor (mental health, not political) and the other is as a medical receptionist. The deadline for the latter came first. Hence its not unreasonable to assume that interviews for the latter will also come first.

The thing is, its as a counsellor that I really want to work. The counsellor role is based in Glasgow, which will mean ALOT of travelling for me. I will see my wife less often than I currently do but I will be home at weekends.

The role of receptionist is based locally but isnt what I want to do long term. Here is my problem. If I do get an interview for receptionist job and get offered the job, do I accept? What happens if I accept it and then get offered the counsellor job? Do I quit the receptionist job i'd just started? Do I yurn down any reception job offer and risk NOT getting the counsellor job? I dont know what to do?

For purposes of this poll, lets assume I have interviews with both and have been offered the job with the local medical centre.

Any questions to clarify are welcome, but please explain your advice.

What should I do? :shrug:

If you do get interviews for both, and they are not spaced to far apart, time wise, why not wait to hear back from both?

Its just my opinion but I think that it be very unprofessional to start a job for all of a few days or a week then leave for another. Personally its not something I would do, but each to his own I guess.

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Originally Posted by sidneykidney

I will see my wife less often than I currently do but I will be home at weekends.

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Before I cast my vote, I was wondering if you would explain why you included this piece of information? What does it mean to you and, if it created problems in your marriage, how would you address them? For example, would your wife be able to relocate to Glascow with you or does she have a job she doesn't want to leave? Also, what kind of metal health counselling job are you talking about? Working in a mental hospital or in an outpatient clinic? In what capacity? If you are also considering a receptionist job, this must not be at a professional level, i.e., psychologist, but rather as nursing staff, or am I completely off-base?

As the old saying goes "a bird in hand is better than two in the bush". If offered the receptionist job accept it. Than if the counceller job comes available you can make the decission of weather or not to take it. There is no guarantee you'll be offer either job, so don't worry about which one to take until there's something to worry about.

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Originally Posted by OLD_SCHOOL

Personally its not something I would do, but each to his own I guess.

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I agree. It is something unprofessional, and it is something I wouldnt usually do. However I really want to follow a career path, rather than a job.

But at the risk of not getting a job at all? :shrug:

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Originally Posted by Chimensch

Before I cast my vote, I was wondering if you would explain why you included this piece of information? What does it mean to you and, if it created problems in your marriage, how would you address them? For example, would your wife be able to relocate to Glascow with you or does she have a job she doesn't want to leave? Also, what kind of metal health counselling job are you talking about? Working in a mental hospital or in an outpatient clinic? In what capacity? If you are also considering a receptionist job, this must not be at a professional level, i.e., psychologist, but rather as nursing staff, or am I completely off-base?

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I include this because I love my wife very much and we have never been in a situation which would regularly seperate us for long periods of time. My wife would be unlikely to relocate to Glasgow for health reasons. Also, she has only recently started her job here on Bute.

The job decription can be found here

And you are correct, the reception job would be considered less professional. Hope that helps.

Why work at all? :shrug:

I guess what I am asking is how much of a factor are the income / expense differences between the jobs and how important is that factor

I did not vote because you left out an important piece of info: how important is your wife to you, and how much do you hate traveling?

I switched from consultant to emloyee in order to spend more time with my family.
Now, in my case, it was a step up in money and time. And while I am a developer and currently working part development and part system admin, it's not a step down and actually a valuable asset on my resume.

But you are balancing 2 things: A fun job with lousy traveling and risk of alienating your wife (believe me, this can happen) or a less fun / rewarding / valuable / ... job with a much better family life and less traveling

And I cannot make that decision because I don't know what is most important to you.
Even if I had to choose for myself, it would depends on how long I see myself doing that job, how valuable it would be for me as a step up,....
I think I'd choose for the receptionist job, forget about the counseling job and try to find a counseling job locally. because it is similar to the choice I made 2 years ago. In my case it ws also the job I wanted, but I applied because I wanted less traveling and more family time with my wife and newborn baby.

I firmly believe that working locally is much more rewarding and easier than having to travel hours every day. Just wait until you get kids and your life will be one stressful and frustrating day after the other if you have to travel for hours, schedule transportation and school or day care, ....

I'm not going to get into the which is more important job or family question, because it's not what you asked for. Speaking strictly in terms of jobs, I've had a lot of jobs and a job that isn't the one you want is worse than no job at all. If you took the receptionist job, you would be bored to death in 6 months and leave it anyway. I think you should go for the job you want and, if you don't get it, another job as good or better than the receptionist job will come around.

As a consultant I've also done jobs that were less interesting, but sometimes they were needed to carry use over until you can get a really good job. When the telecoms industry nosedived in 2002, our company felt it as well, and there was a time when we had to scrape for work. And even if some of the work was not technically challenging or interesting (and with lots of traveling) we'd do it so that we survived until things went better and we could go for the good stuff.

So I'd choose the receptionist job in order to get money in while searching for a counseling job locally.

Is my wife important to me? She is my highest priority. Have I done loads of travelling for work before? No. But as has been said, for me this is less a question of family vs work. At the end of the day my wife has her work too. We dont have any kids to complicate the issue. I dont need to be with my wife 24/7 to feel loved and to love her.

No, for me this is more a question of professional conduct and going for career at expense of job certainty. Financially both are similar money. The counsellor job is less hours. Travel will cost significantly less- I will be able to get a disabled persons railcard (an off-topic thing i'll avoid talking about).

Oh I dunno....

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Originally Posted by sidneykidney

No, for me this is more a question of professional conduct and going for career at expense of job certainty.

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Job certainty is an illusion. I read the description of the job you want and it's a hell of lot more interesting and, potentially, satisfying. If there's a job you really want, you should go for it. The worst thing you can do is pass up an opportunity to do something really important.

Ok but those items change the picture and thus they should have been part of the original question :)
Because now, less hours work means that the impact of traveling is less dramatic.
And because of that, the time with your wife is impacted less and the difference between the 2 is less.

A friend of mine works and lives in london.
He has several colleagues with families, and some of them have a family somewhere near london, but not close enough to live there. So they rent a small studio to live in london in the week, and go home in the weekend.

But of those guys, there are several ending up divorced because they gradually estrange from their family.
Which is normal. Of course this is not the only reason, but it's a significant factor.
So it's not only about spending quality time together and loving and be loved, but mostly about have a life together.

Still, it's different for everyone and you are not me. I can only look at it from my point of view :)

This is a topic close to my heart right now too. I have reached the stage of study (and redundancy money!) where I have started looking at jobs again. I have financial security till the start of 2009. My problem is our priority is to remain in the Highlands and jobs just are not as easy to come by - at least fairly specific stuff. A job I would love to do right now has come up at Edinburgh zoo (interpretation officer) but we both agree (daughter too young to have a vote on this one and the dog doesn't either but he'd hate the city!) that we can't live in the big smoke again. So, that's my priority - location first which enables us to live in the Highlands but if it was a national post maybe I could work from home and travel a bit. I may well end up doing any job I can find for a while and that may well be worthwhile too. I could become a consultant in my specialism and maybe do OK but my other life decision is that I want time for family and hobbies - not working 24/7 and worrying about it likewise.

Sorry to hijack your thread a bit here but in a way I am saying that this forum is a good sounding board but in the end only you can work out what is right for you. Just too many factors involved. Personally I would stay on Bute - but I have already confessed to be a city/traffic hater. Mind you at least your option is Glasgow and it is the best city in Scotland by miles :D

What's for ye will no go by ye

Stephen

Sir, I would go for the more professional position, for the money, the challenge and the satisfaction. If it does not work out you can always change direction later. Sounds like a difficult decsion at best, and I hope these posts help clarify your own wants and needs rather than add to the confusion. God bless and the best of luck.

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Originally Posted by nun2sharp

Sir, I would go for the more professional position, for the money, the challenge and the satisfaction. If it does not work out you can always change direction later. Sounds like a difficult decision at best, and I hope these posts help clarify your own wants and needs rather than add to the confusion. God bless and the best of luck.

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I agree. I made a similar "receptionist" choice a few months ago and I've been trying to get out desperately. In the end though, it's all up to you. Some group of guys on an internet forum can't make the decision for you. Go with what you want and what you feel is right. In the very least you can say that it seemed like a good idea at the time:roflmao

Thank you guys all very much indeed. Its funny but my wife has just said exactly the same thing. "You cant let a bunch of guys on a forum decide for you." Yes I know this and I dont want anyone else to, this is my decision. But you guys may give me a different perspective, something I hadnt thought of before. And collectively you all have alot of life experience. So what you think does matter.

But at the end of the day the responsibility of the decision is mine. :hmmm:

I've taken a job (in fast food no less) just to make sure I had the income I needed, only to quit a very short time later because another opportunity came through. I felt no guilt about it because, thats the way life is, sometimes you have to have the income coming in but must always be looking for the opportunity to do what you want.

Besides if you get the counseling job will you really care what the other firm thinks of a short term receptionist.

Thought i'd give you gents who had been kind enough to vote an update.

I did indeed get an interview with the health centre. It came in two parts. A skills test on one day and a standard interview on the following day. The skills test involved audiotyping into word using a pre-prepared template in word. I'd used the exact same equipment before so I was very lucky. I had only a little trouble with the letter- alot of it was medical words and as such required a medical dictionary. I only had to look up one word though. Kienbock's disease. :shrug:

The next part required me to prioritize a list of tasks in a scenario and give reasons for doing so. Easy enough.

The interview was today and I cant be sure how it went. I was nervous enough for it to be helpful. A little adrenalin can be useful at those times. But I was not overly nervous. They asked questions about teamwork, my experience, my strengths and weaknesses... the usual stuff. I had some questions for them too. Then they asked what my hobbies were. I told them I played Trombone and am getting well into it. This is true, but i'm afraid gents I refrained from telling them all about my straight razor collection and use. They might be a little freaked at this early stage. :D

Anyway they said they'd let me know in the next couple of weeks. I know I will get an interview for the job in Glasgow since I ticked the disabled box. That means a guaranteed interview. And that means I am in exactly the situation I feared I would be in.

Oh well. I'll deal with it when the problem arises..... :o

SidneyKidney,

As someone who has worked away from family for a long time (12 years in Alaskan mining camps) I can tell you that you need to think very carefully about how this will affect your family life. Although this lifestyle has never been easy, my wife has been very supportive. However, I have worked with many people who thought their relationships could handle the strain only to find out six months later (usually when the cold winter sets in) that the wives were no longer happy. So, to save their marriages, they quit their jobs.

I'm sure you'll make the right decision, but don't underestimate how hard this kind of lifestyle can be, particularly on the wife at home.

Best of luck.

Kevin

At the end of the day having a job is all that counts. If you turn down the receptionist's job and you do not get the one in Glasgow you'll have nothing. I would take the first job that is offered to you. You usually start with a trial period that lasts a couple of months to see if you get on with them and they with you. During a trial period you can usually easily quit if another opportunity comes up.

My topence.

BTW when I was 18 I worked for a month in a holiday home in the Isle of Bute as a kitchen help. I loved the place! The natural beauty, palm trees along the shore, submarines coming by.

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Originally Posted by Kees

BTW when I was 18 I worked for a month in a holiday home in the Isle of Bute as a kitchen help. I loved the place! The natural beauty, palm trees along the shore, submarines coming by.

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Only place i've seen in Scotland with palm trees..... ;)

Sidney -
There is one health element that I am sure that you have thought about but I will mention it anyway.
Seizures like the one you experienced in July can be brought on by stress. Travel adds many different kinds of stress whether a person admits it to themself or not. Separation from a loved one adds stress.
Bottom line: While I know you want to follow a career path instead of just a job, consider the potential health implications also.
Best of luck with your interviews and your career!

A quick update.

I got back from a couple of days away to discover a letter from the medical centre. In it I was told I had been unsuccessful and that another candidate was more suitable.

Looks like the problem has solved itself. Now I have a deadline of the end of this month before I am out of a job and have no job to go into. Great. :( :cry:

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Originally Posted by sidneykidney

A quick update.

I got back from a couple of days away to discover a letter from the medical centre. In it I was told I had been unsuccessful and that another candidate was more suitable.

Looks like the problem has solved itself. Now I have a deadline of the end of this month before I am out of a job and have no job to go into. Great. :( :cry:

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I assume that this is the local job, the safe, secure job that you were sure you would get, right? I usually don't say "I told you so" but in this case, I was the first and only one to say, "Job certainty is an illusion". Keep a positive attitude and don't worry. You didn't want that job anyway (in your heart). A better one will come along.

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Originally Posted by sidneykidney

A quick update.

I got back from a couple of days away to discover a letter from the medical centre. In it I was told I had been unsuccessful and that another candidate was more suitable.

Looks like the problem has solved itself. Now I have a deadline of the end of this month before I am out of a job and have no job to go into. Great. :( :cry:

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Is the other gig in the bag? I hope so and I hope you are happy with your new job. Good luck.

Brad

As Chimensch pointed out no job is certain. No I dont have even the interview for the further away one yet. Pants.

A little late to post in all this, but here's my 2cents (pence? for you) when it comes to evaluating two jobs:

compare salary
compare benefits package (insurance, vacation, 401k, etc)
compare location (how much do I drive each day? is it accessible by public transit?)
compare career utility (will it get me up the chain faster? is it a dead end job? is it on the bleeding edge?)
compare job responsibilities (what will I be doing?)

once I know all these things, I'll usually try to talk to some of my future coworkers from each place and get a feel for the corporate culture there. that's a nontangible thing, but is a huge factor in workplace misery.

in the end it's all about perceived benefits vs. perceived costs. will the job give you net happiness? or net misery?

can't offer much advice on your particular case of "job in my field" vs. "job not in my field" because getting a job not in your field is pretty much career suicide in my line of work, so I've never tried for it.

As long as you can meet your basic needs, I would say hold out for the job you will get some enjoyment/satisfaction from. In my experience, nothing is worse than a job you care nothing about. It'll grind you down eventually. Don't sell yourself short. Just my opinion, obviously. :)

Jordan

Sometimes you can get one job to hurry up and let you know if they are going to make you an offer by telling them you have another offer and need to make a decision. And if the second job doesn't respond to that, sometimes that tells you something.

If that isn't an option in your siutation, sometimes you have to do what you have to do to take care of your family. If you need to take the lesser job while you wait for the better job, and then take the better job if you get it, then you need to do what you need to do.

It's better to act courteously on these things, but you have to prioritize taking care of your business above not huring the first job's feelings.

I've had a lot of jobs in my life ... I spent 25 years as a salesman and I think that, as a class, salesmen change jobs more than the average. In any case, I have two job search tips that have got me the best jobs of my career:

1. Choose the company/organization that you would like to work for and call and ask them if they have any openings, even if they haven't published an ad. Sometimes, you get in right under the radar and it impresses the hell out of them that you want to work for them enough to call. Also, don't call HR. Call the switchboard and ask who is in charge of the area where you want to work and ask to talk to them.

2. If you have interviewed with a company in the past, say a year ago, and you didn't get the job, call the person who interviewed you and tell them that you're still interested and would like to know if there's an opening. It makes a tremendous impression.

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Originally Posted by Kees

At the end of the day having a job is all that counts.

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As someone who has been out of school and worked two different jobs in three years now, this is not all that counts.

Try to get the one you want. You will not be happy otherwise. We spend way too much of our life at work, so you better find something that you like doing. It hasn't taken me all that long to figure it out. Now I have to figure out what it is that makes me happy.;)

Well the final result is in and.... I was rejected for the receptionist job and didnt even get a look in in the Glasgow job. On top of all that my current employer has found someone to replace me. Tomorrow is my last day of paid employment.

Crap.

Oh well, poll has served purpose. Please close thread Mr Moderator. :(

Sorry to hear it:( Good luck with your search.

Thread closed by request of Original Poster.