@naila Yes. 1x a week is worth it. Will this be a new role where you take on new respsonsibilities/duties and learn new things? If yes, then you're also increasing your earning potential for your next role.
Why don't you take it, try for a year and then re-evaluate? As long as this isn't a slippery slope into 5 days in the office.
If I had a +40% comp oppty AND I was excited about the role, I'd regret passing it over. However, some of your new comp may need to be allocated to childcare coverage for early AM/late PM.
@naila This is my current schedule. It's only doable because I'm on the train for most of the trip. In the morning I get some me time in and read whatever I want, then on the way back I do house stuff (meal planning, research on whatever, or scheduling the weekend).
I also worked it out with my boss that I'm not in the office the entire day, so I get to beat some of the traffic and can still pick my son up from daycare at 5:20.
@naila I had a job doing exactly that. My husband and I had an agreement that any kid issues on that day were his responsibility. I took first-call for kids on the other weekdays, and if sick multiple days we would alternate taking off.
If your husband works locally and is available, or an extended family member, there shouldn’t be an issue with you being away that one day.
@naila I’m doing it once a week, but only work 4 days a week. Maybe consider asking for sg like this. It really works for me, on an office day I don’t see my LO, but then I have an extra day with her
@naila I do 2-2.5 hours of commuting per day, 3x a week, because it pays more. The other 2 days are remote. It is tough sometimes but manageable. As others have said, it’s a great opportunity for reading and other quality solo time that you wouldn’t otherwise get. As long as you’re not driving, which I refuse to do
@naila My spouse does this 2-3 times per week. It’s doable and he’s able to make it work because his schedule is so flexible. He can wait till after rush hour to leave the house and take calls at home beforehand or in the car on the way. Same thing on his way home. He can leave whenever he wants and flex his time when he gets home.
Obviously this doesn’t work for every role / company, but he’s been there for 2 years and is happy to make the trek. Another key thing is that his presence is needed. He is the only representative from the company on site and needs to be their eyes and ears. It’s not a situation where they force him to come in for “culture” or “team building” and provides no value, which I think makes a huge difference.
@naila I do this every other week (2 hrs) - it’s a 45 min drive and and 1.25hr train though so I usually do some work on the train and am in office for a little shorter. My husband is permanent wfh so he just handles mornings and evenings on those days as I usually am gone 8-8.
@naila If you can get it in writing that it will forever be 1x per week, I'd print out that signed employment contract and accept and store that contract in case they come back and try and force you in-office more. We went back in-office, but a few had this in their contract as not just a COVID benefit and they got to stay remote even though they are local. For 40% more, I'd find some good podcasts and say yes!
The commute sucks. You need the support of your partner or more childcare in order to accomplish it. I look at it as more of a "me" problem b/c I'm the idiot who settled down in an outter ring suburb. If I had viable options to work closer to home, it would be the #1 reason I'd be interested in changing jobs, but no one is going to pay me city wages to work out here in the suburbs.
If it's a 40% raise and an exciting opportunity, I'd do it. But you need a practical plan with your husband. Is he commuting too?
