There was only one problem with accepting the best job offer I had ever received: It meant taking a $12,000 pay cut. As attractive as the role was, I had to wrap my head around making such an unconventional career move. In the end, here’s why I decided to switch jobs for less money — as crazy as it sounds. There are all sorts of natural reasons to take pay cuts. You might be transitioning into a new career field and starting at the bottom of the food chain. Or you might be starting your own business and keeping your company’s expenses low. More likely, you’re taking a smaller wage because you have to, whether because you need the work in your current city or because you’re moving to a new one. In my case, there was no single reason for deciding to cut my salary by $12,000. In fact, there were four.
1. I was attracted to a better fitting role
Working mostly in digital media, I have been a producer, an editor and a content marketing strategist. But I had never been paid to write full time. Tired of jack-of-all-trades jobs, I wanted to jump at this new opportunity because it fit my desire to type words like these on a daily basis. For me, it wasn’t just about the opportunity to write. It was the opportunity to specialize. I understood that I’d have to lower my salary expectations. After all, you typically work your way up in pay by taking on more responsibility, not less. Maybe finding your better fit isn’t about a role but is instead about a better fitting environment. You might be willing to deal with a lower salary, for example, in exchange for rewarding work at a mission-driven nonprofit or for-profit company. Feeling like your work matters might erase your concern about being paid below market value.2. I couldn’t turn down a unique workplace perk
Often in the case of small companies and bootstrap startups, employers know that they’re offering less money than you can get elsewhere. They’re not fooling themselves. So, they try to make up for it. In my case, my new company offered me the ability to work from home, from a co-working space, and on the move. I now have colleagues based in every corner of the U.S., Chile, and Russia. A few of them travel the world as they work. To me, this closed the deal. I’m not the only one who thinks so. The average professional would be willing to sacrifice 8 percent of their pay to work from home, according to 2017 research from two Ivy League professors. Similarly, a 2017 survey performed by Qualtrics found that 37 percent of millennials would take a pay cut between 6 and 12 percent for flexible work hours. My company’s flexibility when it comes to location and hours is important to me because it helps me achieve a better work-life balance. The “work wherever” policy allowed me to work from California when my sister gave birth. It allowed me to play beach volleyball on a Wednesday morning before putting in Uber driver-like hours in the evening. When evaluating job offers, look past the salary to other perks. Decide for yourself if there’s something you can no longer imagine living without. That’s how I feel about working remotely.3. My pay cut wasn’t as big as I’d thought
As nice as it is for your company to show it values you in other ways, your salary is almost always a primary consideration. At the end of the day, many of us do what we do because we get paid for it. In fact, 47 percent of employed Americans describe their job as “just what they do for a living,” according to a 2016 report from the Pew Research Center. Although I have had the fortune of enjoying each of my post-college jobs, I’m like any young professional. I want to keep enough money coming in to pay off debt, cover current expenses and save for the future. Thankfully, my big decrease in base salary — $12,259, to be exact — wasn’t what it initially seemed. That’s because my new job offered five financial benefits that my previous one didn’t:- 401(k) matching contributions
- No premiums on health care coverage
- Stipends for education and wellness expenses
- Bonuses for the company’s performance
- Annual raises for experience and inflation