It may sound strange to some, but becoming bored in a high paying job is quite common. This week’s question comes from a guy afraid of taking a salary hit by a making a move.
Hi Eoghan,
I’m in a high paying job, I’m bored out of my skull, but if I move I’ll lose a third of my salary. What do I do?
Shane
Hi Shane,
The question is why are you bored? If you’re well paid and important to your company, there must be a way to challenge yourself. Try asking your boss, “Hey Mick, any chance of something new being thrown my way?” That’s normally a good start. If that fails then you get drastic.
One of my clients is a man worth nearly €200million who started with nothing. I asked him the obvious ‘secret of his success’ question. His answer stunned me: debt. Every time he got his head above water, he invested himself straight back into hock, and started paddling frantically. Not many people can handle that kind of constant stress. But sometimes it’s a useful catalyst to get you past your biggest risk – stasis – waiting for ‘something to change’ or ‘something to come along.’
Actually, there’s a second question – will dropping your salary leave you destitute? Research shows that once you pass about €40,000, your salary makes little impact on your happiness. So get ready to jump in above your depth. And paddle hard.
Good luck.
Eoghan
If you have a question about your job or career that Eoghan could help you with, why not email JOE at shout@joe.ie?
Eoghan McDermott is Head of The Careers Clinic in The Communications Clinic and is the author of The Career Doctor- How to Get and Keep the Job You Want.
Contact Eoghan at eoghan@communicationsclinic.ie
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