Rejected a great job offer

needhelpguy

I appreciate any responses to this one.

I'm severely underpaid in work for what I do. Work also have me doing work not related to what I want to do, and it's taking over. Last year I began job searching and had many, many interviews where I did well but was ultimately unsuccessful. Just recently I was head-hunted by a company and asked to go for interview. All went very well, it seemed like a good team and it would have given me great experience and exposure to exactly the type of work I want to do.

They made me an offer and it was 50% more salary than I am on now. "Wow!" I thought. However I work in a state owned company and for whatever reason I became extremely panicky about leaving the security of this job. Things like the annual leave and pension were better and it is 10 mins from home. Suddenly I was filled with an awful fear of leaving. The commute was much longer for the new job aswell, and I had a fear of being in the unknown, where I could be fired at any time.

I was under huge pressure to make a decision quickly on the new job and I had many sleepless nights over it. Every fibre of my being was screaming at me NOT to take the job. But I really didn't want to pass up the massive pay increase and good experience. In the end I rejected the offer. It was like a huge weight lifted off my shoulders, and I thought that was that.

But it's been a week now and I wracked with guilt. Work have offered me an increase but it will likely only be 10% at most (I'll still be severely underpaid). I'm not getting enough exposure to the work I want to do. I'm wrecked that maybe I've made a terrible mistake and I'll never see that kind of money again.

Was I mad? Was I stupid to reject it?! I had a bad day in work the other day and I left thinking, jesus, why didn't I take that offer. It was exactly what I wanted, what I had searched 9 months for, and I turned it down. What the hell was I thinking?

magicmushroom

Look, it's done now. No point in thinking about it too much.
Worrying won't change things.

If every fibre of your being was screaming not to take it, then maybe it was the right decision - there was obviously something not quite right about it for you to feel that way.

Stick with the job hunting, something else will come along - but make sure that you give each role you apply for plenty of thought so you don't make the same mistake (if it was even a mistake) again.

Also, have you spoken to your current employers about how you're feeling about your current position with them?

Ryan Mac Sweeney

Hi there
I have read your post. I am sorry to hear that but I am in the very same position as you at the moment. Last September I started working in [mod snip]. As it was quiet the time I started the hours I was given were only 1 day a week which was Tuesday morning from 930 to 1130 which werent even proper hours to begin with and I wasnt even doing many jobs just slicing lemons and oranges in the kitchen and then cleaning tables and doing refills of coffee so in November I gave in my notice to my boss and told her that I was quitting. Since then I have been finding it very difficult to seek employment as between December and now I have handed in about 100 CVs to lots of establishments but I have havent heard anything back from the majority of them or else when I went in to give them my CV the manager would say to me we are not hiring at the moment but I will keep your CV on file and as soon as a position comes up I will contact you but they never did. I also had 3 interviews since January but I got rejected each time as they said that hired someone else who had more experience than me. [mod snip] I have applied to do a Hospitality Course [mod snip] see if there is a course that you like and apply for it as you will be placed on work experience and then at the end of it you will get a job out of it so it is something worth doing. Also check out any courses in your local Further Education Colleges and there might be something that interests you. Its a bad situation to be in but keep trying and never give up until you find your perfect job.
Good Luck

Ursus Horribilis

Maybe mentally you weren't ready to leave? Changing jobs is always a leap of faith to a certain extent. You hope that you're moving onto something that'll be better but there's always that element of risk.

You can't change what you turned down but you can learn from the experience. Why did you say no? Was it your gut screaming at you that something was off? Do you think that if you get another job, that the same thing will happen again? On the other hand, the feelings how experiencing now may help make it easier for you to leave this job. You're obvious unsettled and unhappy. Maybe you're one of those people who needs something almost seismic to budge them?

This isn't the only job in the world. By being offered it you'll have learned that you are an attractive employee to other people. Take confidence from that.

Ursus Horribilis

@Ryan (if that's your real name). I think you should edit your post. There's an awful lot of specific details there. More than I would've put up on an open Internet forum for all to see...

Neyite

Mod:

Ryan, I've snipped identifying information out of your post.

JeffKenna

Being underpaid or overpaid is all in reality very subjective.

You have a state job with a pension and more than likely additional holidays to the 20 days the private sector gets.

This all has value you need to factor in.

jester77

I don't think you are mad, trust your gut feeling. There is a lot more to life than money. Plus, it is just the salary that is increasing 50%. You have to also take into account the time you would lose every day getting to/from work, plus additional transport costs. Then the benefits are also important, pension, days off, flexi-time, healthcare, bonuses, training, etc.

50% is really not a true figure when you take everything into account. The only mistake was maybe not taking your offer and challenging your current employer about your salary. But then you would have to have been prepared to walk if there was no satisfactory outcome.

sashafierce

This post has been deleted.

The_Conductor

OP- I went in the opposite direction- I took a 50% salary cut- to take a state sector job, a short commute- and a different lifestyle. Its hard to put a price on not sitting in traffic jams for 3 or more hours a day alongside job security etc. Everyone told me I was stark raving mad to even consider the job- however, I don't regret the choice I made.

There is far more to life than money- actually working to live- rather than living to work- is a massive thing that quite a few people just don't get.

Don't beat yourself up over the payrise you might have had- you have other non monetary benefits- such as working 10 minutes from home- which as you get older- may be priceless to you.

Dughorm

needhelpguy wrote: »

However I work in a state owned company and for whatever reason I became extremely panicky about leaving the security of this job. Things like the annual leave and pension were better and it is 10 mins from home. Suddenly I was filled with an awful fear of leaving. The commute was much longer for the new job aswell, and I had a fear of being in the unknown, where I could be fired at any time.

You made the right call - the above is most important to you.

Work on getting promoted in your current employer. Failing that, go on the look out again for a job - without the commute this time!