Isn’t it great to be faced with choosing between jobs? It’s great in that you suddenly feel financial security creeping back into your life. It’s not so great when you’re really facing it and hoping you don’t choose unwisely.
I have an interview next week with a major pharmaceutical. It’s a contract job, one year in length, paying up to $25/hr for medical proofreading. And as is typically the case, the very next day I get hired to work from home for $40/hr with ongoing work. If I look at it from a dollar perspective, the choice is obvious. However, is it worth my while to work in pharmaceuticals since this area is teeming with major pharmaceutical companies?
What would you do? See, the contract job is onsite and 9-5. The other is from home, which allows for more projects than just one. I know which one I’m choosing and why – I have a number of ongoing projects and a full-time temp gig right now just isn’t in the cards. I may be shooting myself in the foot, but I think in the meantime, my bank account will be happier for it.
You? How do you determine what to take and what to pass up? Have you ever faced it? Would you like to? Let’s discuss….
I’d take the gig from home, especially if it paid more! :0 I’m much more productive when I can keep my own schedule and work from wherever I please. I dislike sitting in someone else’s office.
And I’m getting ready to drop a client who’s more trouble than that one is worth . . .
Oh, I want to hear about that one!
Yes, I agree. I can get so much more accomplished at home. I tend to overwork myself from my own desk. Why is that?
Unless this whole freelancing gig suddenly goes to pot (as some of my recent foes have suggested it might LOL), I would never take a job that had me on site for that long. Heck, I have yet to accept a gig that has me on site for ANY length of time. And since the work-from-home job is paying so much more, well, it would be a no-brainer for me!
I’ll confess – I had no intention of sticking it out the entire year. I thought a month or two tops, then duck out gracefully. I cannot do onsite longer than that without sacrificing the freelance connections, and I’m not willing to do that.
It really is a no-brainer. 🙂
I would take the work from home one as well but my reasons would be different. The kids are accustomed to having me around now and trying to fight traffic to make it home in time for scouts, practice and such… ugggh that’s why I never fought for my job back after the baby was born in the first place. Plus… I am back in school. However, I would love to have the option to be in the position you are in!
Lori:
No brainer — the work from home. In fact, even if the pay rates were reversed (with the onsite job being higher), I’d take the at-home option. I’m too spoiled with the flexibility that working from my own “mansion” (ha!) provides.
Oh, and congrats on landing the gig! Awesome!
Angelique
Work from home! It’s all about flexibility for me and I wouldn’t take an on-site job unless I was really desperate or it paid astoundingly well and was a short-term contract position.
For me, working from home is the only way to go. My husband’s job keeps him away for long hours during the week and he often has to travel. I need to be the one who can put our daughters first. Plus, I need to continue my own work on my MG novel and picture books. Freelancing lets me stay home, put my kids first, and work on my fiction. What I need is more freelance writing work. At the moment all I do is write for a real estate company, which is pretty cool. I get to see some fabulous houses, but I am a victim of the real estate market then with all its seasons of feast or famine. Any suggestions for how to get more freelance gigs?
Sheri
Sheri, market market market. You have to approach new clients cold – I send out an informative e-newsletter or I send them a brochure. Then I follow up with a phone call asking if they’ve received it and if they had any questions.
It’s the best way I know to get solid work (not this $3 an article crap).