Do you earn too much ?

SauRoNZA said:
I don't understand the problem.

You don't seem unhappy with the work...and you complain about getting too much.

But you want to leave to earn more? So if you have too much...why do you want more?
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I actually enjoy most of the work. They allow me massive freedom, i'm at home right now.

Problem is I can't realistically do this for the rest of my life. My learning is slowing down and have been for a while.
 
On topic. Yes and no.
Yes because for my experience and age. My salary is very competitive.
No because I know I deserve more looking at my function, role and responsibility.

Smaller dev houses won't match it and only move is into another corporate :(.
 
Nerfherder said:
Looks like my only real prospects are with the big corporates where they have the money and space for growth, but I do like the indy/startup vibe that a lot of the Cape Town companies have. Once I go in to corporate I wont be able to leave, I'll get used to the money and benefits (like I have with my current comany) and be 'stuck'

Feels like I need to take a massive pay cut just to get in somewhere else and show my worth... then be in the same situation now as I am now in a few years time.
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A big corporate is likely one of the few places that will actually allow you to not get stuck - the scale and number of different departments should allow someone valued to move around the company, get promotions, do different work, etc. Don't get stuck on the indy/startup thing, it's cool for a while, but it's a lottery ticket - the odds are it won't go anywhere, and quite frankly if it does do well, and you aren't within the select few first hires where the founders drew some magical line, it won't really do much for you at all.

As for getting "stuck", that's in your head - just don't scale up your expenses to match your income in the first place. If you manage to save enough, then perhaps one day you can start your own start-up or some such. My take is that almost anything you do becomes so much better when you don't have to do it - getting to a position later in life where, you have enough saved that you can choose to do a different job, start up your own company, take a few years off on the beach, or perhaps to do a postgrad degree, is what I consider ideal - not living on the edge because you want to do something different now (especially when it's something like indy/startup culture where the hype very seldom matches the reality).
 
A more junior person could do my job too, but I'm being paid in part for my potential when something new and difficult comes along. Every few years it does, and that's when I shine.

I'd also love to join a startup though, looks like fun, but first I'm investing my way into a position where money will be a secondary concern.
 
You are still being productive. Trust me, in the South African context, your remuneration is justified.

Unlike the ANC bunch in parliament...

anc+group.gif
 
Method said:
What is this "too much" you speak of?
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Could you get another position with your skill set for a matching salary? If yes, then you are golden, if no you are earning too much and might be in for a bad time when you need to get another job for whatever reason.
 
heartbroken said:
Could you get another position with your skill set for a matching salary? If yes, then you are golden, if no you are earning too much and might be in for a bad time when you need to get another job for whatever reason.
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Yup, so while you are overpaid save the extra and make the most of it.
 
I can PM you my bank account if you wanna get rid of those access money you have lying around.... :whistle:
 
Method said:
What is this "too much" you speak of?
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According to those salary surveys i'm earning just under what a mid range developer would earn in Cape Town. That's excluding overtime that I'm just starting to get, looks like I have been doing about 10 hours overtime a month.

I saw a job advertised here doing pretty much the same as what I do for about 12k pm (support, diagnostics, investigations and installations)
I'm getting almost triple that and I don't have to drive to customers. My job includes reporting as well.

I have seen a few places looking for guys like that, most are surprised to see that support guys get to my level of specialisation.
 
I was in a similar position. I did not stay around that long for the money, but it also isn't the reason I left. The money was definitely decent, but my new company offers me a decent increase and very definitely many oppotunities to get to the next level.

Unless you are deeply unhappy with the type of work you are doing, I would stay put if I were you. Life really is much more than just chasing exorbitant salaries.
 
Nerfherder said:
According to those salary surveys i'm earning just under what a mid range developer would earn in Cape Town. That's excluding overtime that I'm just starting to get, looks like I have been doing about 10 hours overtime a month.

I saw a job advertised here doing pretty much the same as what I do for about 12k pm (support, diagnostics, investigations and installations)
I'm getting almost triple that and I don't have to drive to customers. My job includes reporting as well.

I have seen a few places looking for guys like that, most are surprised to see that support guys get to my level of specialisation.
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The problem with your situation, as mentioned by others, is that moving to another company might be difficult. Unless you're increasing your skill set and actually applying it to your job, you're not doing yourself any favours. Obviously you shouldn't ask them for less money, but you should try and take on more responsibilities IMO, even if that means becoming less technical and more managerial at the same pay...
 
Mike Hoxbig said:
The problem with your situation, as mentioned by others, is that moving to another company might be difficult. Unless you're increasing your skill set and actually applying it to your job, you're not doing yourself any favours. Obviously you shouldn't ask them for less money, but you should try and take on more responsibilities IMO, even if that means becoming less technical and more managerial at the same pay...
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Great Advice.
 
Mike Hoxbig said:
The problem with your situation, as mentioned by others, is that moving to another company might be difficult. Unless you're increasing your skill set and actually applying it to your job, you're not doing yourself any favours. Obviously you shouldn't ask them for less money, but you should try and take on more responsibilities IMO, even if that means becoming less technical and more managerial at the same pay...
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Yes, the problem is convincing people I can be managerial when I'm not actually in that role now.

That's going to be the trick.
 
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