4 ms·

How much of a hit did you take on salary, and how much did your cost of living decrease? Would you do it again? I've thought about leaving my career to do somet

How much of a hit did you take on salary, and how much did your cost of living decrease? Would you do it again? I've thought about leaving my career to do something that wouldn't require a commute, and would allow me to live in a very remote area, but I'm not brave enough to take the plunge

anoncoward111 8y ago
Thank you so much for your questions. My high year in sales was 110k W2, 70k post tax, and 35k post expenses like food rent and car. My low year was 45k, aka just plain old base salary, and after taxes and expenses I broke even. I was living in a pretty expensive part of Boston. I'm sure I could have found a really nasty bedroom for like $650 if I wanted to haha. Right now as a waiter I'm making about $600 a week pre tax. I just came off of a $400 weekend working only 16 hours! My rent here is $650 in a very very nice new apartment and I'm 15 mins from the beach, forest, and farms. I absolutely would do it all over again. I thank my girlfriend every day for basically forcing us to move out here to Eastern Long Island NY for her medical job, because I never would have had the courage to make this move myself. And, I thought it would be really hard to find a job in software out here, so I just applied to literally anything and the restaurant I work at now was the first offer I received. I plunged headfirst and got lucky! Other restaurants are less of a family than we are. Life isn't perfect and you need a few thousand in savings to get this all started without going insolvent, but so far I'm loving my new location and new industry. If you do go for it, maintain contacts elsewhere just in case! :)
- pc86 8y ago
  Just to run the numbers for everyone, this is $31,200 assuming no vacation all year. So making less money gross as a waiter than you're able to put into a savings account (after taxes and all expenses) as a software developer. I don't think that will be surprising information for anyone here. I've waited tables before and I'd rather be a software developer for half the median software developer salary than a waiter for 3x the median waiter salary.
  - anoncoward111 8y ago
    Some points in response to this: I keep nearly all of my gross because of the standard deduction and the nature of cash tips. My rent is $650 a month whereas most people in the bay or in Boston are paying $2200 for equivalent quality. I dont spend 2 hours stuck in traffic or a hot subway every day-- most days I ride my moped which gets 90mpg and uses a hilariously cheap blend of oil and fuel from the hardware store. And, what is most important to me, and this is subjective, is that I actually feel stable and welcome at this employer. I was laid off from the job where I was making 110k gross and banking 30k. So, why not take a job where I'm grossing in the 30s and banking 15k?
    - toomuchtodo 8y ago
      Because you could be making $100k and banking $50k. Every hour you work is an hour you'll never get back. But, as you said, you feel welcomed by your employer and feel the job is stable. If this is what you prioritize, that's your decision.
      - okmokmz 8y ago
        >Because you could be making $100k and banking $50k. But is it really worth it if you have to live in an area you don't want to live, spend time commuting that you'd rather work on something else, etc. that could potentially affect one's stress/anxiety and even cause health issues? I'm aware that there are people with jobs making 6+ figures that are also very happy with their jobs, but I also don't think it's fair to frame his situation as a negative simply because he could be making more.
        toomuchtodo 8y ago
        > But is it really worth it if you have to live in an area you don't want to live, spend time commuting that you'd rather work on something else, etc. that could potentially affect one's stress/anxiety and even cause health issues? Of course not. I'd encourage a passive job search of remote roles. One should always be looking for their next job. One should always be padding their emergency fund, so they have 6-12 months of reserves. The better your financial position, the more power you have over your own destiny.
- wonderwonder 8y ago
  Good for you, Cant put a price on reduced stress and happiness. I quit a developer job because of the massive stress and travel involved and took a 50% pay cut. I left software completely for 4 years. I was much happier. I am back in software now making 50% more than the prior software job I quit but I work from home and enjoy the industry. Sometimes a break for a few years is just what the doctor ordered.
  - rootusrootus 8y ago
    There are so many places that pay well but are pleasant to work at. Especially in software development. If someone is unhappy they should pick up and leave, the market is good and the choices plentiful right now.
    - wonderwonder 8y ago
      absolutely, market is great right now, plenty of well paying choices out there.
- jdhn 8y ago
  The fact that you're in Eastern Long Island along with talking about the $400 weekend makes me think you're near the Hamptons. What are you going to do once the summer crowd winds down and it's only the locals frequenting your restaurant?
  - anoncoward111 8y ago
    Not the Hamptons :) I would probably be doing $1000 weekends if I was on Dune Rd lol! The town specifically is Head of the Harbor. We've got a year round retiree crowd that comes out even on Mondays and Wednesdays to hear an 85 year old woman sing Sinatra ahha
- TylerE 8y ago
  Can I suggest that experience is a bit atypical? Eastern Long Island is rural, but it is also very very much old money.
  - anoncoward111 8y ago
    It's definitely old money, yes. I don't think someone could replicate this in Kansas at the Cracker Barrel

anoncoward111 8y ago

Thank you so much for your questions. My high year in sales was 110k W2, 70k post tax, and 35k post expenses like food rent and car. My low year was 45k, aka just plain old base salary, and after taxes and expenses I broke even. I was living in a pretty expensive part of Boston. I'm sure I could have found a really nasty bedroom for like $650 if I wanted to haha. Right now as a waiter I'm making about $600 a week pre tax. I just came off of a $400 weekend working only 16 hours! My rent here is $650 in a very very nice new apartment and I'm 15 mins from the beach, forest, and farms. I absolutely would do it all over again. I thank my girlfriend every day for basically forcing us to move out here to Eastern Long Island NY for her medical job, because I never would have had the courage to make this move myself. And, I thought it would be really hard to find a job in software out here, so I just applied to literally anything and the restaurant I work at now was the first offer I received. I plunged headfirst and got lucky! Other restaurants are less of a family than we are. Life isn't perfect and you need a few thousand in savings to get this all started without going insolvent, but so far I'm loving my new location and new industry. If you do go for it, maintain contacts elsewhere just in case! :)

pc86 8y ago
Just to run the numbers for everyone, this is $31,200 assuming no vacation all year. So making less money gross as a waiter than you're able to put into a savings account (after taxes and all expenses) as a software developer. I don't think that will be surprising information for anyone here. I've waited tables before and I'd rather be a software developer for half the median software developer salary than a waiter for 3x the median waiter salary.
- anoncoward111 8y ago
  Some points in response to this: I keep nearly all of my gross because of the standard deduction and the nature of cash tips. My rent is $650 a month whereas most people in the bay or in Boston are paying $2200 for equivalent quality. I dont spend 2 hours stuck in traffic or a hot subway every day-- most days I ride my moped which gets 90mpg and uses a hilariously cheap blend of oil and fuel from the hardware store. And, what is most important to me, and this is subjective, is that I actually feel stable and welcome at this employer. I was laid off from the job where I was making 110k gross and banking 30k. So, why not take a job where I'm grossing in the 30s and banking 15k?
  - toomuchtodo 8y ago
    Because you could be making $100k and banking $50k. Every hour you work is an hour you'll never get back. But, as you said, you feel welcomed by your employer and feel the job is stable. If this is what you prioritize, that's your decision.
    - okmokmz 8y ago
      >Because you could be making $100k and banking $50k. But is it really worth it if you have to live in an area you don't want to live, spend time commuting that you'd rather work on something else, etc. that could potentially affect one's stress/anxiety and even cause health issues? I'm aware that there are people with jobs making 6+ figures that are also very happy with their jobs, but I also don't think it's fair to frame his situation as a negative simply because he could be making more.
      - toomuchtodo 8y ago
        > But is it really worth it if you have to live in an area you don't want to live, spend time commuting that you'd rather work on something else, etc. that could potentially affect one's stress/anxiety and even cause health issues? Of course not. I'd encourage a passive job search of remote roles. One should always be looking for their next job. One should always be padding their emergency fund, so they have 6-12 months of reserves. The better your financial position, the more power you have over your own destiny.
wonderwonder 8y ago
Good for you, Cant put a price on reduced stress and happiness. I quit a developer job because of the massive stress and travel involved and took a 50% pay cut. I left software completely for 4 years. I was much happier. I am back in software now making 50% more than the prior software job I quit but I work from home and enjoy the industry. Sometimes a break for a few years is just what the doctor ordered.
- rootusrootus 8y ago
  There are so many places that pay well but are pleasant to work at. Especially in software development. If someone is unhappy they should pick up and leave, the market is good and the choices plentiful right now.
  - wonderwonder 8y ago
    absolutely, market is great right now, plenty of well paying choices out there.
jdhn 8y ago
The fact that you're in Eastern Long Island along with talking about the $400 weekend makes me think you're near the Hamptons. What are you going to do once the summer crowd winds down and it's only the locals frequenting your restaurant?
- anoncoward111 8y ago
  Not the Hamptons :) I would probably be doing $1000 weekends if I was on Dune Rd lol! The town specifically is Head of the Harbor. We've got a year round retiree crowd that comes out even on Mondays and Wednesdays to hear an 85 year old woman sing Sinatra ahha
TylerE 8y ago
Can I suggest that experience is a bit atypical? Eastern Long Island is rural, but it is also very very much old money.
- anoncoward111 8y ago
  It's definitely old money, yes. I don't think someone could replicate this in Kansas at the Cracker Barrel