How do you know if the next job is the right job?

Priston

I've been looking for a new job for a while now and every time I go on an Interview and sometimes before I send my resume I seem to always ask myself do I even want this job?

Sometimes after an interview I'm 100% sure I want the job (Sadly I haven't gotten an offer at any of these places). Other times I'm not really certain and wonder If I was given an offer how I'd respond.

Currently, I'm in a position with no on call, no overtime, and very flexible work hours. I also have an endless supply of Cisco equipment I can play around with. The only downside is there are only a few people on my team with good technical knowledge and I sometimes feel like I have no one I can learn from on my team. Since my work schedule is so flexible I've recently decided to apply to community college to take CCNP classes in the evening. Which should fulfill my need for technical growth and I've also heard I've been submitted for a raise.

When I apply to jobs and go on interviews with on call and non-preferred work hours sometimes I wonder how much value I should put on that to make it better than my current job especially since a lot of companies don't even want to pay anything extra for overtime and on call.

How do you decide if something is a good move or not? What's your biggest factor and what are other factors? Do you put a dollar amount on any of those factors?

soccarplayer29

You haven't found the right next job for you then.

If the pay increase, increased responsibilities, new learning opportunities and flexible schedule were to all fit into a position then we'd have a different story... But it sounds like the other jobs you're pursuing don't check enough "pro" boxes to make it worth leaving your current situation.

Always learn (which you're doing with taking community college CCNP). And I'd just be on the lookout for the "right" job that has a better mix of no on call and professional growth, etc. that makes you excited and eager to get in there and succeed.

NetworkNewb

Is the next job going help my career go to where I want it to go and does it allow me to spend the time I want with my family. Those are the 2 most important factors to me.

Money is 3rd on my list, I know that with each new job the money should be increasing by itself because I will be increasing my skills, knowledge and experience. And would even debate on taking a cut if it meant I reached my end goal faster.

beads

Do you live in an area large enough to have technical community get togethers? Security orgs are famous for these types of things not so familiar with infrastructure stuff anymore.

Either way. Those technical get together types of things whether its training or beers on the town are your best source of contacts and eventually jobs as people like to recommend like minded people to there bosses. Here is my favorite training of the year, a couple hundred geeks, a boat and all day to learn and socialize.

https://issa-chicago.org/event/2015cruise/

I understand this would have nothing to do with Cisco but I know there are similar infrastructure groups out there akin to this ISSA group. Why put up with the ridiculously long boat ride? Captive audience full of networking opportunities. Personally, I dislike boats, sailing, nautical anything etc so this really is challenging for me, personally but I do it every year.

Oh look! I can see my house from here!

Always looks more impressive from the water.

- b/eads

E Double U

I was always forced into my next role so it was always the right job under the circumstances haha.

1st role - work got slow as contract went up for bids; had to use vacation time to keep getting paid
2nd role - sent home when work was slow (seemed ok until I saw my paycheck)
3rd, 4th, & 5th roles - offshored (one to Brazil, other two to India - all 3 roles were w/ the same employer)
Current role - I like it here and plan to stay until we relocate

My pay and duties increased with each role. I performed well at each job and enjoyed the people that I worked with. It has always been the right job for me.

Chinook

OP, I'd say you want to constantly be learning & improving your career. If you're in a place that isn't doing that, it's time to move on. You work in an IT silo too long and you become stale.

It's always a risk changing jobs. On several occasions in my life, I took jobs which brought more pay and more duties. The end result was the jobs SUCKED and in 1 case I left a stable job for a place that closed down 7 weeks later. Do your research on the future company and read reviews on them. If you see trends in the reviews "company seems lost" or "it's a boys club" well there could be some truth to it.

kurosaki00

OP you need to sit down and think what you really want. Do you want more money?
Is that more important than an easy going environment? Do you want to learn new skills? Even if that means on-call duties, more stress?

Some people look for more money when they look for a new job, some look for a place that lets them have more free time to spend with family or w/e.

Depends on what you want.

scaredoftests

The thing is: You don't know. Sometimes, what is said at a interview is totally different than the real thing.

Kai123

scaredoftests wrote: »

The thing is: You don't know. Sometimes, what is said at a interview is totally different than the real thing.

That terrifies me, but having a walk-through the office before taking the offer should fix that, being able to chat with the current employees and try and suss it from there, and then you can always try and have it in the contract if they are promising training etc.

scaredoftests

There are times, it is impossible to do (talk with employees or to walk through).

TheFORCE

scaredoftests wrote: »

The thing is: You don't know. Sometimes, what is said at a interview is totally different than the real thing.

That's absolutely true. I never thought it would happen to me either but it did. First few weeks were very stressful as i thought to myself I don't know how to do this stuff. 3 months later I'm learning on my own, tapping into my past experiences and getting involved in an IT role i had never done before, kinda cool actually.

As the saying goes... the only constant in this world is change. For the better or the worse is how we respond and deal with challenges.

Chinook

Yeah, do ask for a stroll through the office. Pay attention to the staff..if they smile, appear happy, relaxed, casually chatting or are they angry looking & stressed out. Politely try to ask about things like staff turnover, etc. If there are cubicles, look to see if they're filled with the usual family stuff or empty. It can signify people hang around.

The first few weeks at any job in IT is difficult for everyone. This industry eats people alive. I architect things and sometimes I walk into snake pits. There is nothing, no passwords, no documentation, etc.

Priston

Definitely a lot of good advice here. Not quiet sure if it makes deciding any easier though. I guess I just need think about what's the most important thing to me and when/if I should make compromises.

TheFORCE

Priston wrote: »

Definitely a lot of good advice here. Not quiet sure if it makes deciding any easier though. I guess I just need think about what's the most important thing to me and when/if I should make compromises.

Generally speaking from personal experience and from other people's experience, it is better to take risks and make compromises earlier in your career so that you can explore as much as possible any potential a job may offer and at the same time gain experience in various areas. It because more difficult as you get older and you settle down and when you have a family to support. Take as much calculated risk as you can when you are still young.