Job offer abroad, not sure if I should take it

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ItalianCavalier

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Hello everybody,

I am having a doubt, maybe just because I like overthinking, but I wanted to ask for your advice because it is making me rather anxious.

In the next days I will receive an offer for a different job in a different country, and I am wondering if I should accept it even if I have been looking to change my current job for some time now.

I’m quite methodical, so I’ve made a list of pros and cons of this new position to help me choose.
Pros:
  • I met with the boss and a few colleagues at the interview and they seemed very nice and professional
  • on the contrary I find my current work environment to be quite negative (I mean the people and the relationship between them), I don’t much like my colleagues and I think this is contributing to making me quite demotivated and less productive than I could be
  • the tasks would be a bit better than the ones I am doing at the moment, but very similar
  • the company is in the same sector as the one for which I’m currently working for, but has a better reputation (more organized, higher quality products, better work life balance)
  • salary would be double(!), cost of life seems a bit higher there but not so much
  • I like traveling and seeing new cultures so I like the idea of working abroad
  • location seems very cool. A small town close to mountains and lakes so lots of possible free time activities. I live in the suburbs of a rather large city now (still pretty close to mountains but not as close)
  • they’d need me to learn the local language and might pay for a course (I like learning languages)
Cons:
  • I’d be far from family and it kinda bugs me that I’d see my parents a lot less, and especially I have a little brother (12) for whom I’ve almost been a father considering the age difference (it is also true that the new place is just a 5 hours drive away, so I could see them monthly at least)
  • I’d be far from friends (I don’t have so many to be honest, as I’m quite introverted)
  • I feel a bit guilty about leaving my work, as it would mean an increased workload on my colleagues who are already overworked (hiring few people and overworking them is sort of the company policy)
I know the pros outnumber the cons but I am afraid I am not valuing enough things such as family and I don’t want to lose them because of excessive ambition or greed ($).

Also, people I talked to, told me i should be happy to have a job in the first place, and that the one i have now is quite a good one (to be fair, they don’t know the company from the inside).
I know there is some truth in this, but is it wrong to try to get a better one?

Thank you very much in advance, and sorry for the long post, I needed to get this out of my chest 🙂
 
Hi ItalianCavalier,

It is natural that you are apprehensive, but sometimes opportunity is an invitation to flourish in a new and positive way, a gift from God.

I accepted that my son worked around 9500 miles away, because it was to his benefit.
He acheived a great deal in his work in the United States, to the benefit of many other people.
He did return home permainently a few years later. The work he undertook, and the valuable experience he gained in the United States, enabled him to continue an upward trajectory in his career. He now is in a position where he is able to assit a great many of our own young Australians.

It is possible to keep close contact with family and friends through the internet, including face to face contact via internet. Some of my siblings and their families live as much as two to three days drive away, but conversing with them through FaceTime /Skype, feels like a visit.

Your appreciation of your family and your friends is a testimony to your caring nature and God’s grace in you. Your desire to remain near your family may of course be the deciding factor for you. And you could experience loneliness if separated from them.

If you do decide to leave your current employers you may be missed, but we can always be replaced even if we seem to be indespensible. My husband was indespensible and worked for many more hours each day than he was paid for. He pushed himself past what was beneficial to his health because of his extreme loyalty. He was finally quickly repaced with two men after his health failed due to work overload. Where does loyalty end?

It is possible that you will always regret not accepting such an opportunity … but in the end only you can make the decision. None of us in CAF can advise you, but we can pray for your guidance.
May the Holy Spirit guide and support you regarding this scary big decision that is facing you.
 
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What an amazing opportunity! I really would encourage you to go for it.

I think something to remember is that this move doesn’t have to be forever. You could always move closer to your family in the future if you wanted to. Also, technology is great 😉 there are so many ways to keep in touch nowadays. And as you say, you could see them still quite often.

There’s nothing wrong with wanting a better job, especially when you’re unhappy where you are and all the doors it will open for you.
 
Thank you very much for sharing your family’s experience Trishie! I am surely not indispensable yet here, so I guess that’s one more reason to go 🙂
 
Thank you for the encouragement Lou!
My parents are not very tech friendly at the moment but maybe I can try to change that 😁
 
I think that taking a job in a new country now, when (I am assuming) you are young is a great experience. One of my few work regrets is that I did not take a job offer in Canada back when I was young and marketable 🙂

Your work will do fine, they will hire someone else and they will go on without you. We all have a sort of pride that we are irreplaceable, however, unless we are maybe the most skilled surgeon who is the only one who can do this special operation, we are all replaceable at work.
 
Start Skyping or Facetime or Facebook video chatting with them now so it becomes a normal thing.
 
Thank you for the advice 🙂
And I’m not a surgeon, so yes, I guess they will just have to find someone else if I go
 
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It sounds like you want to go. You can still see your family, you aren’t crazy about the old job/bosses.

I’d go! With the info you’ve given, this is a great opportunity. You should take this opportunity!
 
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