When I graduated with my MBA I had not much else than a degree and good grades. My work experiences in the field were slim and I took the first job offered. After a while, and through various poor company choices, that job ended when the company folded and I was unemployed for a short time before landing my current gig at entry level. I developed the position and with it came yearly salary increases, but I've stalled and started considering my options.
There are so many good things about my job and I am grateful to be employed. There is schedule flexibility, copious time off, great supervisor and coworkers, predictable schedule, short commute... the list goes on. The issue is that I am bored. BORED. It doesn't seem like a reason to leave, and on its own it may not be. The daily downtime gets to me. I am severely overqualified for my job that honestly any competent college grad can accomplish. I know I can get a new job elsewhere, but here are my issues.
Paid Time Off
My current schedule flexibility is a big deal and so is the excess time off for legal and Jewish holidays. I have been at my current position for several years and they know me so I don't have to prove anything, whereas if I go to a new job I need to start from scratch and work extra hard to prove myself. I know I'm not at my best when I'm hopped up on hormones, let alone adding hours to make point.
Salary
The current salary is ok, not amazing. It's good enough and I'm ok with that, but I know there is a lot of earning potential if I switch jobs. For instance, I am on track to receive 2-3% raises yearly, unless something spectacular and surprising happens. If I switch to a new job, I can request a 20% hike or more as a starting negotiation. The thing is there are some perks that money can't buy.
FMLA
If I switch jobs and then get pregnant, I will not be eligible for the Family Medical Leave Act because you have to have been at your job for a year before that kicks in. That means that when I go on maternity leave they don't have to save my job for me and I may lose the job before I even get a chance to prove myself. The other part of my brain says that there's no baby yet, and even if I start interviewing tomorrow there's still 9 months before a baby is even an issue.
Timing
On one hand, now may be the perfect time to make a transition -- before we get into treatment again for the 2016 year (waiting for insurance), before there's maternity leave, before there's an infant at home to care for. On the other hand, I don't want to add any extra stress to an already stressful situation of fertility care.
I have this conversation with myself (and lucky family members) every few months and the answer is always the same: better to stay put. First, we maxed out fertility benefits on my husband's insurance and recently switched over to mine. I want to use that benefit to its max before moving on, keeping in mind that some time in the future either he or I will have to get new insurance depending on how many cycles we do and how many succeed. Second, as much as I think I would want a stimulating job, I know if I'm honest with myself I don't want to deal with new responsibilities as I'm trying to get pregnant. If I need the distraction I can start a new hobby or add hours to Netflix, but trying to mix a new job and treatment just seems like such a terrible idea.
I don't want to look back with regrets. Hindsight is 20/20 but at this point I can only decide based on the facts in front of me. I may regret not making a career move, but I will never regret giving treatment the best shot possible. With that in mind, the choice to stay put becomes clear. I can, and probably will, revisit this conversation again in a few months.
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