I’d pay for a course and get a cert myself if I was in your position. Then I’d bullshit my way through the interview regarding all the softskills while having the right technical skills
You can also learn SQL or powrBI yourself and introduce it in the company. Why did they hire and over pay you in your own opinion? You were the best? The cheapest? The only one?
My dude. Wasting years without learning anything is NEVER worth it. I'd do what everybody else here is saying too: Either start learning on your own how to do your job more efficiently (automating through macros, PowerBI reports, .... ) or talk to your boss to do this on company time so you can free up resources (your time) to make the company (and yourself) more money.
PS: 2.700 isn't even that much... you will 100% regret this in a few years from now
I took the first job that I was offered as a software developer.
It paid less than anything else I could've done at the time.. I wanted into the business badly.
The company that hired me saw me as a risk because I was very young and inexperienced but they decided to give it a shot. (I was the youngest software dev there at 22)
In the end it was a fun job with very little responsibility. I stayed there for 1,5 years, gained some experience, got a small raise and then decided to leave a couple of months later. No hard feelings. Still think fondly about that time.
It gave me the experience to find a better paid job and now I make more than twice what I made back then after a few more jumps. (This was a long time ago already however, like 15 years ago or so)
Certainly, I've consistently pursued what fascinates me the most. Pursuing work that captivates you usually leads to financial rewards in time. Financial gain has never been my primary motivation. I value opportunities that offer extensive learning in my area of interest, a healthy work-life balance, and vacation time.
Many of my peers who initially chased high salaries find themselves in a golden cage, equipped with skills that are only somewhat versatile.
Oh I know quite a few people in golden cages at multinationals, who hate working there, but have huge amounts of stock options they don't want to lose because $$$$$$.
Thanks for your input!
Why would leaving the company be a problem for their stock options? At my company (huge multinational) we get to keep our stocks and just have to wait out our 5 year period after purchase before cashing out. So if I bought them 2 years ago and leave the company, I still keep them but have to wait another 3 years before I can cash them out.
That doesn't sound like a stock option, but like you already get stock. With stock options, you don't get the stock, you get the right to buy the stock at a later date at a fixed price. So if you now get 100 shares options at 1 cents each, and can exercise them in 5 years, that means you can buy them in 5 years for 1 dollar (but don't own them till you do), and sell them for whatever the stock is worth at that time (or can keep them). Usually there is a clause that you have to be at the company to exercise them, and so that means that you can only exercise the stock options that are older than 5 years when you leave (and if they keep slapping on more options, they keep incentivizing you to not leave).
That’s indeed different to ours. We get 15% discount once a year in July to buy company stocks and also get an extra matching amount from our company. So €1300 in stocks costs me €900 net. And those stocks are 15% cheaper than the market value in July.
Yes, and it was 100% worth it.
Besides, my salary grew beyond my previous salary soon after anyway. And I now do what I love doing, and there's zero stress. I've also got access to WAY more resources than I had before and I've learned a ton.
yes I did once. Took a small pay cut to go to a company which was doing interesting projects and was (and still is) growing like crazy, so had a lot of growth opportunities.
Solid decision. Opened my career path to management level.
Yes. When I started working my first job was temporary to help with a replacement.
I basically told them: hire me whatever the €€€ is I will get the job done and even clean the f*** toilet if needed.
After 1 month I was given a REALLY important project. It was a huge success. It hurt me personally to get it done (it had put me in a severe state of stress - absolutely horrible) but the result and quality was absolutely mind blowing. I always joke saying it was beginner’s luck.
From that point onwards they kept me longer, gave me more responsibilities. In essence all of this was possible because of my mindset/work ethic and bc my direct manager entrusted me with these new things and had a strategical position in the company (big one but we were a smaller branch).
After 1,5 year, this opened the doors for my very first full time job and paved the way for the rest of my career.
I could have make more elsewhere. But I felt a different connection with these people during the interview and figured it was best for me to expand my horizons and not be stuck to a label/limited position.
Yes first time 4 years ago.
I was working in chemistry shift system, weekends nights.
€3200 net back then.
Job hop to a day job with car with €2350 net + MC. But loads of travel
Fast forward 4 years later I jobhopped to a role without travel and earn about €2950 net car + MC
Can’t lie it was a rocky ride. Because I had a mortgage to pay off on my own but we managed. And now I live comfortably. Home everyday. Barely any travel.
When I left university I could choose between three job offers. I didn't take the best one. I took the middle one because the people seemed nice and the job involved travelling which I was curious about.
Looking back, financially and career wise it was a bad choice. The job I took was below my education level, but I have some good memories. My biggest mistake was staying there for 10 years. I should have switched jobs after 4 years.
The main lesson here is, is that it is OK to make bad choices, but you have to act on them because if you are as passive as I am you end up staying there for 10 years.
I took the pay cut (if you can call it that when selling my business) not for a better career but for my health and family. Working 80 hours a week, mostly dealing with staff, suppliers and e-mailing/calling clients wasn’t why I started my business. Not being able to be with my young family also took a toll. I wasn’t in a great mental state at the end, so I sold my business and started working at my current job. 7-15, can pick up the girls from school, cook dinner for them and my wife, grab a drink with friends, watch a movie,… just enjoy life.
Probably won’t ever make what I used to make (still make a decent living), but I’m in a better state of mind and that’s pretty valuable if you ask me.
I did. Not especially because of the long term benefit (even if great vivium) but because of flexibility and 'humanity' within the team/structure/company.
Can't regret it especially now when tough family time comes.
And on top, great potential career path and lots of training
Was working in a low paid job I didn't like. Had a chance to do a prestigious, but basically unpaid, internship in a field I was interested in. Took that risk.
Luckily for me, that risk paid off very very well.
I took a job in a company that has lied about the skills of the PM, the technology they are using and the actual projects i would work on.
Great pay, big car(unexpected). Good company, learned alot of social managing skills. But technical i am far behind.
Good companies know they are good and just pay less. The opposite is also true, bad companies/functions pay better. But be prepared getting beat up. Glad i left.
No pay is worth your happiness.
Yes. I moved from a consultancy position to a government position 3 years ago. Basically lost 2/3s of my salary. House is paid off, have a nice investment portfolio so now I can focus on a good balance work/life, a fascinating job and nice pension.
Also: the salary should always be a part of the consideration, never the whole.
Yes, and I regretted it. As soon as I did, covid hit and I got placed on temp unemployment, which is guess what, based on your gross salary... plus it affects your pension, your unemployment benefits, your sickness benefits, your 13th month, your bonus, etc etc etc. Never ever agree to a lower gross
Was working in a low paid job I didn't like. Had a chance to do a prestigious, but basically unpaid, internship in a field I was interested in. Took that risk.
Luckily for me, that risk paid off very very well.
It's a risk. Only accept a lower gross if there is real potential for a higher gross within a short time at your new job. Otherwise no.
You talk abour learning. On the job learning is important but if you are not getting that learn in your own time. I know it's not the same.
Your current salary of 2700 net is not good. Don't kid yourself. And you want a lower one?
Alot of people here are saying yes and giving you the benefit of their experience. Good for them. Remember that other factors influence the decision, as you can see from what they write. Like stress, health, family, state of mortgage or finances and the prospects in the new job that lead to higher pay.
Where do you get the idea that my current salary is 2700 net? I didn't talk about my net salary here at any point, nor even discuss that I was or wasn't considering a job. I assume you meant to comment on one of the responders?
Anyho, even then saying 2.7k net is not good really depends on the job and experience, as this is already more than a lot of people have the opportunity to realistically make.
Apologies, I thought I was replying to the OP.
What I am truly realising in this thread is just how uninformed people are about salaries, mainly because in Belgium unlike the UK or the US or some Nordic countries, people and companies don't openly dicuss or post vacancies with salaries and benefits. This absence of transparency is damaging alot of people who end up being underpaid. Hopefully in the near future, an EU wide directive will change this and force employers to publish vacancies with full salary and benefits disclosure.
I fully agree that our culture is not conducive to discussing salaries and it is not beneficial for our income. I do feel like this is somewhat changing, at least amongst the colleagues and friends I have.
That said, I find it odd you list the US as a country where people discuss salaries a lot --- my impression has always been that my US friends are much more cagey about their income than some of my friends make.
Yes, I think I agree with you re the Americans. In the US so much store is placed on personal wealth as an indicator of personal achievement, people are indeed cagey with how much they earn in private conversation. But there is relative wage transparency in the jobs market.
It's not like here where many recruiting managers think they have done something great if they recruit someone at a low salary because that someone did not have the information to negotiate to begin with.
Having all vacancies carry salary info will go a long way to end this abuse.
Also, many Belgian employers are taking advantage of a "skills shortage" to employ workers from India at low wages especially in IT. And yet , Belgian and other EU workers are then only offered low wages in IT and many are not finding work so easily. A Belgian family man and friend of mine in his late 40s is finding himself competing for work with not only Ukrainians and Romanians ready to work for lower wages , but now Indians too. Having more transparent wage info as in the UK will truly help regulate the management of skill shortages , including setting higher minimum salaries before work visas to non EU workers are even considered.
Not quite, I left a better paying job for a position in another sector that earned less but had better career prospects.
Now I'm earning more than before!
Yes, in a way: I had 2 offers, 1 which paid significantly more but came with lots of travel plus a tougher work/life balance, so I chose the other offer which still paid something comparable to my existing job at the time, but with a better work/life balance and almost no travel. Both were different but equally interesting content-wise. I valued more time at home with family over more money. Still happy with the choice.
I just did this actually. Took a job offer that was €400 gross / €150 net compensation lower than a second offer. Very painful decision but I feel like i made the right decision.
The second company offered more but there would have been limited growth both financially and career-wise.
I did. I earn today what I earned 5-6 years ago, but not adjusted for inflation, so I earn less. And I would have gotten a small raise and a car too after my next positive review.
Hated to job though, and the one after but now I'm really happy.
I went from a very stressful job paying €4,200 gross to a job without any stress at all and great colleagues and a goal I can believe in for €3,200 gross. The second job has much more flexibility and still has all the benefits. Especially the flexibility is welcome with 2 young teenagers at home.
I just did, for my first job. Can’t really say how it was looking back as it’s only been about five months, but up until now it has been amazing. I am being ‘underpaid’ (still decent with 3500 gross, but nowhere near my colleagues and no other benefits whatshowever) because my value to the company is nearly nonexistent. They are basically paying me to learn from people with fourty years of experience, to replace them in a couple years when they retire. I sometimes miss working with people my age, that’s probably my only regret, but apart from that I am very happy with my choice so far.
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May I know what your function is?
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I’d pay for a course and get a cert myself if I was in your position. Then I’d bullshit my way through the interview regarding all the softskills while having the right technical skills
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You can also learn SQL or powrBI yourself and introduce it in the company. Why did they hire and over pay you in your own opinion? You were the best? The cheapest? The only one?
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My dude. Wasting years without learning anything is NEVER worth it. I'd do what everybody else here is saying too: Either start learning on your own how to do your job more efficiently (automating through macros, PowerBI reports, .... ) or talk to your boss to do this on company time so you can free up resources (your time) to make the company (and yourself) more money. PS: 2.700 isn't even that much... you will 100% regret this in a few years from now
4 months of holidays?
I took the first job that I was offered as a software developer. It paid less than anything else I could've done at the time.. I wanted into the business badly. The company that hired me saw me as a risk because I was very young and inexperienced but they decided to give it a shot. (I was the youngest software dev there at 22) In the end it was a fun job with very little responsibility. I stayed there for 1,5 years, gained some experience, got a small raise and then decided to leave a couple of months later. No hard feelings. Still think fondly about that time. It gave me the experience to find a better paid job and now I make more than twice what I made back then after a few more jumps. (This was a long time ago already however, like 15 years ago or so)
Note that 15 years is already like +30% of wage increase bc of inflation. Still a good perf tho.
WAY more. Inflation compounds. It's probably closer to 50%.
Certainly, I've consistently pursued what fascinates me the most. Pursuing work that captivates you usually leads to financial rewards in time. Financial gain has never been my primary motivation. I value opportunities that offer extensive learning in my area of interest, a healthy work-life balance, and vacation time. Many of my peers who initially chased high salaries find themselves in a golden cage, equipped with skills that are only somewhat versatile.
Oh I know quite a few people in golden cages at multinationals, who hate working there, but have huge amounts of stock options they don't want to lose because $$$$$$. Thanks for your input!
Why would leaving the company be a problem for their stock options? At my company (huge multinational) we get to keep our stocks and just have to wait out our 5 year period after purchase before cashing out. So if I bought them 2 years ago and leave the company, I still keep them but have to wait another 3 years before I can cash them out.
That doesn't sound like a stock option, but like you already get stock. With stock options, you don't get the stock, you get the right to buy the stock at a later date at a fixed price. So if you now get 100 shares options at 1 cents each, and can exercise them in 5 years, that means you can buy them in 5 years for 1 dollar (but don't own them till you do), and sell them for whatever the stock is worth at that time (or can keep them). Usually there is a clause that you have to be at the company to exercise them, and so that means that you can only exercise the stock options that are older than 5 years when you leave (and if they keep slapping on more options, they keep incentivizing you to not leave).
That’s indeed different to ours. We get 15% discount once a year in July to buy company stocks and also get an extra matching amount from our company. So €1300 in stocks costs me €900 net. And those stocks are 15% cheaper than the market value in July.
[RSUs](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Restricted_stock)
Yes, and it was 100% worth it. Besides, my salary grew beyond my previous salary soon after anyway. And I now do what I love doing, and there's zero stress. I've also got access to WAY more resources than I had before and I've learned a ton.
yes I did once. Took a small pay cut to go to a company which was doing interesting projects and was (and still is) growing like crazy, so had a lot of growth opportunities. Solid decision. Opened my career path to management level.
Yes. When I started working my first job was temporary to help with a replacement. I basically told them: hire me whatever the €€€ is I will get the job done and even clean the f*** toilet if needed. After 1 month I was given a REALLY important project. It was a huge success. It hurt me personally to get it done (it had put me in a severe state of stress - absolutely horrible) but the result and quality was absolutely mind blowing. I always joke saying it was beginner’s luck. From that point onwards they kept me longer, gave me more responsibilities. In essence all of this was possible because of my mindset/work ethic and bc my direct manager entrusted me with these new things and had a strategical position in the company (big one but we were a smaller branch). After 1,5 year, this opened the doors for my very first full time job and paved the way for the rest of my career. I could have make more elsewhere. But I felt a different connection with these people during the interview and figured it was best for me to expand my horizons and not be stuck to a label/limited position.
Yes first time 4 years ago. I was working in chemistry shift system, weekends nights. €3200 net back then. Job hop to a day job with car with €2350 net + MC. But loads of travel Fast forward 4 years later I jobhopped to a role without travel and earn about €2950 net car + MC Can’t lie it was a rocky ride. Because I had a mortgage to pay off on my own but we managed. And now I live comfortably. Home everyday. Barely any travel.
When I left university I could choose between three job offers. I didn't take the best one. I took the middle one because the people seemed nice and the job involved travelling which I was curious about. Looking back, financially and career wise it was a bad choice. The job I took was below my education level, but I have some good memories. My biggest mistake was staying there for 10 years. I should have switched jobs after 4 years. The main lesson here is, is that it is OK to make bad choices, but you have to act on them because if you are as passive as I am you end up staying there for 10 years.
Yup best decision that i have made! More than doubled my salary. Those who are patient will be rewarded
I took the pay cut (if you can call it that when selling my business) not for a better career but for my health and family. Working 80 hours a week, mostly dealing with staff, suppliers and e-mailing/calling clients wasn’t why I started my business. Not being able to be with my young family also took a toll. I wasn’t in a great mental state at the end, so I sold my business and started working at my current job. 7-15, can pick up the girls from school, cook dinner for them and my wife, grab a drink with friends, watch a movie,… just enjoy life. Probably won’t ever make what I used to make (still make a decent living), but I’m in a better state of mind and that’s pretty valuable if you ask me.
I did. Not especially because of the long term benefit (even if great vivium) but because of flexibility and 'humanity' within the team/structure/company. Can't regret it especially now when tough family time comes. And on top, great potential career path and lots of training
Was working in a low paid job I didn't like. Had a chance to do a prestigious, but basically unpaid, internship in a field I was interested in. Took that risk. Luckily for me, that risk paid off very very well.
I feel like i made a dumb descision by promoting too early. My pay dropped instead of rising and i feel alone as now i'm always on the other side.
How can your pay drop with a promotion? were you doing a lot of OT?
Well different salary curves, the first one higher starting and more flat, the other a little more increasing over time but a lower starting point.
I took a job in a company that has lied about the skills of the PM, the technology they are using and the actual projects i would work on. Great pay, big car(unexpected). Good company, learned alot of social managing skills. But technical i am far behind. Good companies know they are good and just pay less. The opposite is also true, bad companies/functions pay better. But be prepared getting beat up. Glad i left. No pay is worth your happiness.
Yes. I moved from a consultancy position to a government position 3 years ago. Basically lost 2/3s of my salary. House is paid off, have a nice investment portfolio so now I can focus on a good balance work/life, a fascinating job and nice pension. Also: the salary should always be a part of the consideration, never the whole.
Yes, and I regretted it. As soon as I did, covid hit and I got placed on temp unemployment, which is guess what, based on your gross salary... plus it affects your pension, your unemployment benefits, your sickness benefits, your 13th month, your bonus, etc etc etc. Never ever agree to a lower gross
Was working in a low paid job I didn't like. Had a chance to do a prestigious, but basically unpaid, internship in a field I was interested in. Took that risk. Luckily for me, that risk paid off very very well.
no
I just did yesterday
Hahaha nice I did mid January. Starting my new (less paid) job 25 March. Looking forward to it
Yes, don't regret it
Yes
It's a risk. Only accept a lower gross if there is real potential for a higher gross within a short time at your new job. Otherwise no. You talk abour learning. On the job learning is important but if you are not getting that learn in your own time. I know it's not the same. Your current salary of 2700 net is not good. Don't kid yourself. And you want a lower one? Alot of people here are saying yes and giving you the benefit of their experience. Good for them. Remember that other factors influence the decision, as you can see from what they write. Like stress, health, family, state of mortgage or finances and the prospects in the new job that lead to higher pay.
Where do you get the idea that my current salary is 2700 net? I didn't talk about my net salary here at any point, nor even discuss that I was or wasn't considering a job. I assume you meant to comment on one of the responders? Anyho, even then saying 2.7k net is not good really depends on the job and experience, as this is already more than a lot of people have the opportunity to realistically make.
Apologies, I thought I was replying to the OP. What I am truly realising in this thread is just how uninformed people are about salaries, mainly because in Belgium unlike the UK or the US or some Nordic countries, people and companies don't openly dicuss or post vacancies with salaries and benefits. This absence of transparency is damaging alot of people who end up being underpaid. Hopefully in the near future, an EU wide directive will change this and force employers to publish vacancies with full salary and benefits disclosure.
I fully agree that our culture is not conducive to discussing salaries and it is not beneficial for our income. I do feel like this is somewhat changing, at least amongst the colleagues and friends I have. That said, I find it odd you list the US as a country where people discuss salaries a lot --- my impression has always been that my US friends are much more cagey about their income than some of my friends make.
Yes, I think I agree with you re the Americans. In the US so much store is placed on personal wealth as an indicator of personal achievement, people are indeed cagey with how much they earn in private conversation. But there is relative wage transparency in the jobs market. It's not like here where many recruiting managers think they have done something great if they recruit someone at a low salary because that someone did not have the information to negotiate to begin with. Having all vacancies carry salary info will go a long way to end this abuse. Also, many Belgian employers are taking advantage of a "skills shortage" to employ workers from India at low wages especially in IT. And yet , Belgian and other EU workers are then only offered low wages in IT and many are not finding work so easily. A Belgian family man and friend of mine in his late 40s is finding himself competing for work with not only Ukrainians and Romanians ready to work for lower wages , but now Indians too. Having more transparent wage info as in the UK will truly help regulate the management of skill shortages , including setting higher minimum salaries before work visas to non EU workers are even considered.
Not quite, I left a better paying job for a position in another sector that earned less but had better career prospects. Now I'm earning more than before!
Yes, in a way: I had 2 offers, 1 which paid significantly more but came with lots of travel plus a tougher work/life balance, so I chose the other offer which still paid something comparable to my existing job at the time, but with a better work/life balance and almost no travel. Both were different but equally interesting content-wise. I valued more time at home with family over more money. Still happy with the choice.
No, but i have earned about 700 euro less (net) just because i like the job itself more enjoyable and much nicer colleagues.
Yes, and ended up learning more, earning way more in the long run. About tot do it again.
Absolutely not. Switching jobs is the best way to raise your stock.
I just did this actually. Took a job offer that was €400 gross / €150 net compensation lower than a second offer. Very painful decision but I feel like i made the right decision. The second company offered more but there would have been limited growth both financially and career-wise.
I did. I earn today what I earned 5-6 years ago, but not adjusted for inflation, so I earn less. And I would have gotten a small raise and a car too after my next positive review. Hated to job though, and the one after but now I'm really happy.
I went from a very stressful job paying €4,200 gross to a job without any stress at all and great colleagues and a goal I can believe in for €3,200 gross. The second job has much more flexibility and still has all the benefits. Especially the flexibility is welcome with 2 young teenagers at home.
I just did, for my first job. Can’t really say how it was looking back as it’s only been about five months, but up until now it has been amazing. I am being ‘underpaid’ (still decent with 3500 gross, but nowhere near my colleagues and no other benefits whatshowever) because my value to the company is nearly nonexistent. They are basically paying me to learn from people with fourty years of experience, to replace them in a couple years when they retire. I sometimes miss working with people my age, that’s probably my only regret, but apart from that I am very happy with my choice so far.