Eating my hat

Welcome to The Thinker, a twice-monthly newsletter where I provide thought-provoking questions to help you cultivate a fulfilling and high-performing career.

Hey,

I’m about to do something pretty rare… give you some good reasons to stay with your current employer. 😆

Even though I coach both job seekers and keepers, I spend a lot of my time trying to help y’all muster up the courage to quit your job. Oftentimes, we find ways to talk ourselves into staying in a dead-end role because it’s freaking terrifying to make big changes. I totally get it.

But I will admit, sometimes there are some pretty golden reasons why you should stay.

Here are 3 questions to ask yourself to assess if you should keep wearing your golden handcuffs:

1. Are you overpaid? (yay you!)

→ Are you getting paid above market rate?

→ Is your base/bonus ratio working in your favor?

The job market is quite competitive at the moment. I help my clients bust through it regularly, but there is one challenge that I’m noticing more and more: Companies that are going to make it through tough fiscal times are likely going to be offering new salaries that are at or just above market rates. 

And, because you want to pick a company where the CEO makes good financial decisions, this isn’t necessarily a bad thing. That being said, if you’re making below market, gather your gumption and get interviewing - if you’re a highly strategic candidate (like all of my clients 😉), you can still grow your compensation and lifetime earnings in this market. 

2. Do you have a stellar strike price and need the cash to buy out your equity?

→ What is your strike price? (this is X)

→ How much are you vested? (this is Y)

→ X * Y = $?

For all my startup loves, if you’re confident in the performance of your company and you can see them going public or getting acquired in the next 5 years, then you should consider buying out at least some of your equity. The thing is, you have to actually put down cash to do that. 

You can get loans for this sort of thing (yes, there are startups that give loans to startup employees to buy out their startup equity…), but it’s not necessarily the best financial investment. If you’re getting at or above market and you can pinpoint a moment where you’ll have enough in the bank to buy out your options, then it’s worth staying. 

Note that I am not saying to stay through an IPO. Don’t drink that Kool-Aid! Email me if you want me to get on my soapbox about this. 

(Psst this is not financial advice. Talk to your financial advisor before making any key decisions.) 

3. Are you planning for parental leave in the next year? 

→ How good is your leave?

→ If you started a new job in 3 months, would you clear a year before you needed to start parental leave?

If your company has an excellent parental leave policy (say, 4+ months paid for mamas) and it’s relevant to you, then it might be worth staying. Good pat leave is becoming the expectation for Tech companies (...at least we’re seeing progress somewhere), so you can certainly prioritize this benefit during a job search. 

However, you want to be mindful of the logistics and timing: Companies often have a one-year cliff before you can fully maximize paid leave. If it’s going to be more than a year before you need to take leave, and your current company has a mediocre policy, then it might be worth moving quickly.  

Alas, there are good reasons to stay at your current company—but not all golden handcuffs are created equal! Be mindful of why you stay. You’re always in the driver’s seat, my friend. 

Cheers, 

McKay