I worked at the same firm for 4 years. Pay was good, but the pay raises, as most experience, are always underwhelming.
I decided to float the job market, to get a better offer, to incite my current employer to give me an upward adjustment. I did find one “interesting” offer for what I felt was the right number for myself. It was about 20k (25%) higher than I currently had. This happened almost exactly the same time as merit increases were given at my current employer, at the time. 4%.
I went back to my employer at the time and said I had an outside offer on the table. I shared the numbers with them. They declined and wished me well, but did not force me out the door.
I took the new job, and left the old one on good terms, if that matters.
Now, a month into the new job, doing essentially (what I thought) would be the same job. Not really a competing firm, per se, but analogous. Wrong. In week one, I’m handed the responsibility, with a due date, to hire 3 more people. I’ve never hired three people before. These are positions that would report to me, but I’ve never done that. I’m not doing well with it. I’ve lost track of people these past two years, just for the reasons many of you have.
That’s not the worst of the new job that I’m suffering with. Yeah, it’s more money, but FAR less job satisfaction.
I’m short, I was making between 80-90k, had a bit of seniority, and felt comfortable doing what I was doing. Because life got more expensive recently, I wanted to push my employer to pay more, like they push me to do more. They relented. I walked away, and the new, higher paying job is a caustic nightmare. It’s had high turnover in the past, and it’ll continue to have high turnover. I have an ownership stake in this firm, but I don’t necessarily want it. Yes, I make more. But it is definitively not worth it. Fade me.