Good working environment vs Money??

[clumzy1]

I have met many people who take work as work, whereby, they dont enjoy it but just do it. There a always a few lucky ones who tend to enjoy what they do..

So, what is the importance of money vs a good working environment? If you were earning $45 000 and the environment is really good would you stick OR would you jump ship if you were offered $60 000 but a possible toxic environment?

[beerbaron105]

No amount of money is worth your mental health, although there is a difference between being able to handle a toxic environment, vs. letting it all get to you, and turning you into a stress bag. That being said, 45k for a "happy go lucky" environment, or 90-100k for a "toxic" environment would definitely sway me, but only because my personality allows me to handle it.

[JoeyMBA]

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Hot, easy secretaries.

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Blonde, hot, easy, young, discreet secretaries.

That should be an option.

[uber_shnitz]

A good working environment would make it more motivating for you to go to work and do good work and therefore get a promotion.

Salaries can change but work environments (especially bad ones) can stick with you a lot longer.

[thunderchunky]

I don't think and extra $15K is worth being miserable at work in the long term, although I might consider doing the $60K job on a temporary basis if it meant better prospects for later.

[BoogieWilliams]

Every situation is different, it depends on how much more you are getting paid and also you have to factor in if a wage increase will put you in a different tax bracket thus making the move less lucrative. You also have to look at your goals for example if its a starting role, then most likely you will jump ship after a couple of years which can be tolerable depending on the type of person you are and how bad the working environment is.

[BananaHunter]

I have met many people who take work as work, whereby, they dont enjoy it but just do it. There a always a few lucky ones who tend to enjoy what they do..

So, what is the importance of money vs a good working environment? If you were earning $45 000 and the environment is really good would you stick OR would you jump ship if you were offered $60 000 but a possible toxic environment?

This questions is highly hypothetical. In reality, there are places that are both good environments AND good pay. I never understood why people always have to make money vs happiness as mutually exclusive. It's like the classic rich guy vs good personality. There are people with both. Likewise, there are also workplaces with both poor work conditions AND low pay. I think it's rare that you'll have to make a choice between the two.

In a work place setting, if it's toxic, you usually won't know until you start working and meet the a-holes. So in practical situations, imagine if you work in a toxic environment with high pay, but want to jump ship and is willing to accept a lower salary. You go on interviews and have an offer that pays less than current job. You have no way to tell if the new job is just as toxic. You could guess but you could be wrong.

It's a lot like dating. Sometimes you meet someone nice but later they turn out to be a big douche/ ***** .

I think everyone's answer will depend on their situation. People with a family will likely want less stress. Ambitious people are likely to suck it up and get more pay.

[forthewinwin]

Depends also on your living conditions.

Do you find something you need or desire greatly, out of your financial reach but could be remedied through getting this job with a higher pay? Do you need that extra money?
If you need the money, then do it, but if you can live without it and care less, then perhaps stick with your current job if you don't think the new one will pan out ideally.

And as others have said... you never know for sure how it'll go :lol:

[Chigu]

I don't think and extra $15K is worth being miserable at work in the long term, although I might consider doing the $60K job on a temporary basis if it meant better prospects for later.

+1 it really matters what stage of your career you are in, and if taking that temporary toxic environment can be a springboard to future success. But I am not emotional when it comes to work, gotta realize that you can't get a long with everyone, and in that circumstance, I'd just do my job and go home. For long term mental health, I would like to find an environment that I enjoy!

[ConsoleWatcher]

I think that while I am single I would stick with the $45k a year job, as there's really only one person that would benefit from the extra money (me). If I had a wife and kids, though, I would probably take the $60k job, since I would then be a better position to provide for them.

[Nyte]

Realistically, I would go for both, since it's rarely either, or as as previous poster said.

Having said that, I'm probably in the "good working environment" camp right now, but switching out the 45K/60K for very different numbers.

[Aristophanes]

I have met many people who take work as work, whereby, they dont enjoy it but just do it. There a always a few lucky ones who tend to enjoy what they do..

So, what is the importance of money vs a good working environment? If you were earning $45 000 and the environment is really good would you stick OR would you jump ship if you were offered $60 000 but a possible toxic environment?

45k with no prospect, good working environment
60k with prospect, toxic work environment

I'd jump in a second if I can get promoted after 2-3 years. It's called sucking it up.

[redrockinhot]

I'd rather go for good working environment. I once made a wrong choice by going for a good pay thinking I can disregard the not-so-good ambiance in the office. But I was wrong. I find it difficult to cope with stress caused by office politics, unhealthy competition among co-workers, deaf bosses, and etc. I ended up quitting the job after 6 months. Now I am happier with the new company and I have been promoted several times in 2 years. I also earned the same amount after 6 months with the new job.

[rapashoo]

For 15K, I'd go for good working environment where you can really enjoy working. Well, I don't think it's professional to get lazy and all relaxed just because you are close to management and execs. You will be working as hard as 60K job and some day, you will get promoted to 60K job in good working environment. :) Sounds like a dream? I have seen it happened to many.

[Ascott]

A bad environment is a bad environmental, but that's $15,000. I guess it's a matter of degrees. How much do I like my current environment v. how bad the new environment can be at its absolute worst. In all liklihood I would choose the good environment over the increased earnings.

[peanutz]

"Toxic environment" seems to be a pet phrase I keep on hearing on this forum and which I am getting tired of. The people who typically use it don't go into the specifics as to why the environment is "toxic", which I think is important to discuss because obviously different personalities deal with different situations, well, differently. There has been more than one instance of me knowing a neurotic control-freak who described their work environment as "toxic", just because it didn't fit into their notions of an ideal workplace, and because of this it was actually them who didn't fit in with the other workers.

*ahem*

Anyway, there is only one thing that would stop me from taking a pay-raise or promotion due to environment, and that would be if there were people in the same office/level who would actively try to sabotage your reputation or character in order to try to eliminate you as potential competition for another position. Only heard of one instance of this occurring, but I'm definitely glad it hasn't happened to me (yet) and NO amount of a pay increase would allow me to tolerate that.