The last two days I have had a very difficult decision to make. One decision I had already made last week is that I wanted to work at a Consulting firm to gain experience. Consulting is a great way to be exposed to different technologies, different types of projects and work at different companies. I had my mind made up and I knew which company I wanted to work for. Just yesterday a new offer surfaced that made me re-consider my options. It was an opportunity to accept a position as a Project Manager for a another Consulting firm. This is a step up for my career and would be a great opportunity for me to advance my career to the next level. It would take me about 6 months to get the proper training to fill in any gaps I currently have and prepare me to become a Project Manager.
So the two offers that I was strongly considering was the original offer to be an Internet Consultant and the offer to be a full blown Project Manager. Accepting the Internet Consultant position would get me all around more experience in develoment, consulting, and I would even be involved in the Project Management tasks, but on a smaller scale. The other part is that the company offering the Internet Consultant position has a great reputation as having high integrity and specific focused knowledge. Everybody that works there has pride and passion. That’s one thing that was pulling me toward this company, the opportunity to learn and the opportunity to feel like part of a community by working closely with other consultants and learning from them. The Project Manager position can’t offer the same learning opportunities. If I choose the Project Manager path, it’s hard to go back to a consultant position after that. But the PM route has its own pros, such as the opportunity to go down the sales route and the opportunity to be a leader and manage people.
So I put a list together of the pros and cons of each offer. PM is more money but more stress, Consultant is less money but more opportunities to learn and grow. There are many variables that influenced my decision. But ultimately I didn’t want money to be the main deciding factor and I’m financially happy with both offers anyway. I wanted to make a sound decision based on where my heart is, and where I feel I will grow the most. I think if I was ready to be a full blown Project Manager and if my heart was there, it would be an easy choice and wouldn’t require any contemplation. If I went that route I’d be turning down the opportunity to learn and grow in other areas because my learning would be focused specifically on Project Management.
So I’ve decided once and for all to take the Internet Consultant position as an opportunity to grow myself. I think if I decide two years from now that Project Management is the direction I want to go, I will be a better Project Manager because of the consulting experience I’ll be gaining. So there is nothing to lose by choosing the Consultant position, and hence the reason for my decision.
Sounds like a good decision, Jim. Good luck.
barry says,
That is a very mature decision,Jim.
99% of people in that kind of situation would take the highest
paying job without thinking of the stress and lack of experience they have.I have seen this many times.People think they can move to the top job with no experience.They soon find out they can’t handle it,can’t or won’t go back to their old job and end up unemployed.They also become bitter and lose their self confidence and some never get out of it,while others end up starting all over again in a different field.
Congrats on your multiple job offers. If I were in your position I would have chosen the consulting position too. But then, I might be a little bias because I am a consultant myself. HA. I was faced with a similar situation having two job offers last year: bank IT or consulting. Working for a bank would have been an easy job. 9-5. Same kind of support/maintanence everyday. But where is the challenge in that? So I took the consulting job, knowing full well that it would be longer hours and more stressful. Never regretted my decision. Longer hours sure, but the challenge and the learning experience has been awesome. But then I do work for one of Canada’s best small businesses. 😉
So once again, congrats!