The money or the Honey

[bjh618]

Ah, that clears things up. I'll have to revise my advice:

It doesn't matter what course of action you choose. Your honey will take all of your money no matter what you do.

Nice!

I already call her my bank, because I've 'invested' all my money in her!

 

[Seraphim]

Take the job. You won't see your wife very much, and that increase in salary will mysteriously dissappear in direct relationship to the startling number of new pairs of shoes appearing in the Mrs's closet.

Married?
House?

Just take the job, you're toast already!

 

[tg16]

Take the money. Think how silly you'll feel when you discover the job that pays less is just as bad.

I always appreciate Ouch's direct and concise wisdom. He's absolutely right!

 

[bjh618]

I always appreciate Ouch's direct and concise wisdom. He's absolutely right!

+1 to that!

Thanks for all the advice.

 

[Uncle Erik]

Take the money. But be smart about what you do with it.

I got sucked into a job nearly seven years ago that isn't exactly what I envisioned, but pays very well with long hours. The workplace is OK. I have several coworkers I love dearly. My bosses are pretty good, some of the best I've had in 20+ years of work. But the hours are long and I'm coming up on my first vacation in over a year.

I don't have a wife or kids. I hang with family and friends when I can; they're pretty understanding.

Anyhow, I have used the money to kill off all my debts save for some student loans, bought my "dream" toys (there is something to be said for this, and I know it's materialistic, but the ADs are lying low and may never come back), an investment property, and I will be buying more investment properties with the substantial amount I've saved.

In the next 6-12 months, I'll find another job. One where 40 hours a week is normal... which would feel like a vacation to me. The rare times where I've gotten out before 6 are almost like a vacation.

So, yes, I've sacrificed for money, but it also looks like an early retirement. I'm 37 and if all goes according to plan, I'll go semi-retired around 45. That would not have been possible without the long hours and income.

Would I have done things differently? Maybe. This happened after a failed engagement. Maybe things would have worked out differently if I had gotten married.

But life deals some oddball cards and you just have to roll with it and maximize what you do have. There are things I wish I had done differently or turned out differently, but I can't complain that much about where I am. I won't be picking up a fractional share in a Gulfstream any time soon, but it's not going to be bad. I'll be able to hit the open road for a few weeks with my camera, explore new places, and so on withou having to worry about money. I'll be able to tear down an old car to work on, fiddle with tubes and my soldering iron, and much else. Those sorts of thing have always made me happy and I look forward to doing it without the pressure of having to be back in the office in six days.

You'll get the "materialism" knock for taking the money. But several years of hard work can also free you later in life.

Anyhow, think it through, and realize that a healthy income, properly used, can eventually free you. Save and invest what you earn. But buy a few toys and spend some on your sweetie. Just keep an eye 10-15 years down the road and set yourself up to enjoy your later years.

 

[BladeRunner001]

I read a lot of advice, but I don't know what the job is.

Is in on a BP oil rig?

You travel a lot?

You work 8 PM to 4 AM?

Does "honey" work or go to school? (If she works, she must bring in $)

Do tell...what's the job??

In general, stress is usually not the culprit...it's how you manage it that will tell you how well you will do...and that goes to speak volumes about your personality. But, that applies equally to your married and personal life as well as they have stresses of their own.

Robert

+1 to that!

Thanks for all the advice.

 

[HopHead]

Take the job for all the reasons mentioned by others. Also, think of all the cool shave kit you can buy to erase the hell that is your life for 5 minutes every morning...

 

[Seraphim]

UncleErik pretty well summed it up.

If you take the job with great pay, yet spend it all as quickly as it comes in, you will be on a treadmill in Hell. Sure, buy some fun stuff, and enjoy the $$$, but don't over commit on big ticket stuff (housing, car, yachts...), because then you'll be making twice as much as currently, yet still be a shmucko living from paycheck to paycheck like the rest of us poor slobs.

 

[toucanlamp]

Stressful and intense isn't necessarily bad if it's something you're interested in. Stress is all related to how you handle something. Just because a job involves a very large amount of responsibility doesn't mean it has to be equally stressful, that's something very important for a person to learn to manage.

It's not about being able to go wild and spoil yourself with luxuries, it's about being able to build a peace of mind, where you can go about your business each day with the knowledge that - if something happens, or I want to change things, I have the resources to do so.

As they say, we'll all have plenty of time to relax when we're dead, while we're young and healthy, pushing ourselves hard and sacrificing present comfort for future freedom is probably a good strategy.

You just have to assess the pros and cons. If it's something awful you will hate, of course don't do it. But in the future we almost always regret passing on something because it was going to be difficult.