How do you decide when it's a good time to change jobs?

Ryan — Fri, 08 Nov 2019 17:32:49 +0000

I know I know,

It is an age old question that is as contingent on my career "wants" as it is in my personal feelings about the situation.

I've found myself in an interesting position that I've never been in before as a junior developer. I was hired 4 months ago as a Problem Analyst and was recently approached by another company, not once, but twice in hopes of hiring me. Though I declined the first time, the second time the CEO contacted me directly saying that he wants to know what it would take to get me on board.

What would you do in this situation?
Have you been in this situation? And if so how did it pan out?

For some more information:

I just passed the 90 day trial period at my current workplace and it's been great. They've made me feel welcome and have made it clear they are hoping I stay long term. Its a great work environment, with a mix of older languages and newer ones.

The new company is on the forefront of a rising tech trend that could really boost my knowledge and worth if it blows up in the near future. Its also the job I originally wanted before getting an offer at my current company that I took due to the urgent need for a job.

To throw a wrench in it my wife and I are expecting a son any week now (due end of Nov) and I plan on taking paternity leave next year in Q4.

My initial thought is to throw a crazy (to me) offer at the new company and see if they accept. Something like a 15% raise, instant benefits and some other stipulations that would make it worth it to me to change jobs.

As this is my first time in such a situation I'm curious how other people would handle it. To me it seems like a win win, either they accept my offer and I'm making more money, or they decline it and I stay at my current, also great job.

Thanks for taking the time to read this, I look forward to your responses.

Happy Friday

DEV Community: Ryan

How do you decide when it's a good time to change jobs?