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I have a potential job opportunity that could be quite a drastic change from my current situation.
I work 7:30am - 16:00 monday to friday. Commute is 30 mins in a car or 1 hour on a bike (rounded up for ease).
Job opportunity has a few options:
4 day week (either a mon - thurs or Tues to fri) 7:30 - 18:30
or a weekend shift of Sat, Sun & Monday, which is 6:30 - 18:30
The job pays similar to current, with a potential for end of season bonus, but overall a much better benefits package.
so far, so dreamy! The big sticking point is the commute. Its basically two hours each way. Which pretty much writes off the weekday shift. But could work for the weekend if i can either stomach 3 ruddy long days to then reap the rewards of 4 days off (or potentially rent a room for sat and sunday night).
But then working weekends would change my life quite dramatically. On the negative, no parkrun, riding with mates on sunday, quality time with family, socialising etc. But on the plus i could take and collect my 8 year old daughter from school 4 days a week. Not have to work BH mondays, so a two day working week from time to time. More time to ride (alone mostly), my wife is self employed so can have flexible working hours, so we can spend time together. Plus probably a million other pro's and con's.
Not really sure what i am asking here... have you done similar? do you work weekends? Am i seeing a 4 hour daily commute through roses tinted specs? Would it grind me down?
Thoughts, experiences, bringing me back down to earth etc all appreciated.
40 mins each way is the longest i have done and that was more than long enough
4 hours a day? Horrific. Thats meaning 12 hours out of the house for 8 hours pay?
Nope from me
Many moons ago I worked for Halfords at their head office in Redditch whilst living near Peterborough 93 miles each way One hour 45 each way on a good day - up to 4 hours if traffic was bad. I stuck at it for a year but frankly whilst the job was great the commute was awful. At the end of the year my wife and I decided it was best to keep the kids in their current schools, so I found a new job closer to home.
Now self employed, my commute is under a mile and I do the four day a week thing (more if I have catching up to do). It is the future. My office is open Monday to Thursday 8.30am to 5.30pm, all the staff love it and so do the clients.
Similar pay but surely a big uplift in travel costs. Have you factored this in?
4 hours a day is a big ask, would be a hard no from me.
2 hours each way? Not for a golden pig!
Went from an hour each way to 20 minutes a few years back. Wouldn't go back.
nope, add the time you are sat in the car to your working hours and value it like that
however, if you get free riding instead due to the route/distance then that is valuable
i'm weighing mine up atm, went from 9.5 mile30-40 min drive/ same on bike
to 14m 45-1 hour average drive, or 18m 1:15 pedal.. however the pedal is fine in decent weather except the route is hight risk in my opinion...
Current job is 40 miles each way & about 50mins time-wise. I used to lift-share with a colleague, which made it a lot less stressful, more enjoyable & less expensive. He has now retired though so that's gone out of the window.
But, I work Mon & Fri at home, so only have to drive into the office 3x per week. It's manageable but I would prefer to have a shorter commute.
My previous job was 60 miles each way & generally 1hr 20 or so, but on a route more prone to traffic if you timed it wrong or there was an accident.
After 2.5 years of it, I had definitely had enough. This was way before WFH, so core hours were 9-5 each day but realistically to beat the traffic I had to leave the house around 6:30. Leaving before 5 was frowned on, so it was a long working day and definitely had an impact. This was before my daughter was born. I would barely have seen her, had I been doing that job after she was born!
It would be a very hard sell for me.
I used to do an hour each way and it’s only when I stopped I realised how much time and energy it took. You just kind of got used to it.
office now is 500miles away but I only go once a month or so for a couple of days.
4 hours a day commuting! Not a chance in hell!
A long time ago I did Colchester to Farnborough. It was only 6 months max or until house sold, ended up just using hotels a lot as the M25 commute was a killer.
30 miles which is 45-50 minutes drive each way. I actually don't mind it. I enjoy driving, and just relax and listen to a podcast or an audiobook.
I'd love to lose the travel costs though. That needs to be factored in to your very long commute!
damn you all for speaking sense!
I appreciate all the input.
And to be fair, i get annoyed enough with my 30 minute commute 😀
So on the weekend shift you'd be doing 12hr days plus 4hr driving? That's a massive no for me. The time off in the week would be lovely, but that's basically three days where there's literally nothing but work and sleep.
Might be a daft question, but are there any public transport options? If you could train it in a similar time at least you could read a book or something for four hours a day.
Sacked off commuting for that sort of time over 36yrs ago & wouldn't ever go back
The big sticking point is the commute. Its basically two hours each way.
I would be filing that squarely under "**** that" unless they're standing you a hotel.
I commuted around an hour for several years and it is soul destroying. Unless it's a stupid salary and you can hang it out for six months before taking the money and running, then not while I've got a hole in my arse I'm afraid. My most recent commute is 15 metres, is it a job you can do remotely?
Yup,as said 4 hours is a big chunk of time and would be hard in the dark months. Life's too short..
15 miles each way ( Mon-Fri) was my standard commute for years ,but it was around flexible working hours.
I loved it
I've worked weekends in various variations of shift patterns for 25 years.
The time off to yourself on the week is great, it's where most of my riding is done, and I missed that whilst recently seconded into a mon-fri role
Current shift pattern sees me do 3 weekends in a row. We have a 9 yr old. Whilst we're lucky and she's not hard work, I know it has been quite draining on my wife over those effectively 4 weeks where she's working full time then has no down time at the weekend because I'm not there. And to me it feels like I barely see my daughter over that time given that during the week I get home and she's off to bed not longer after tea!
Bear in mind that you won't be doing any family activities at the weekend.
At for the commute, not a sniff, mine is currently a 10 minute walk, couldn't voluntarily give that up!
I used to work with a guy who commuted from somewhere around Peterborough to London Victoria 4 days a week. 2 hours+ each way; he thought it was fine, we all thought he was mental.
I think some people are wired in a way that makes it seem feasible, but most people aren't. And if you're not, you can *try* the 4-hour daily commute, but I'd say you're not gonnna stick it out for long.
It's not just the time, but the cost as well. 2 hours each way is what, 2 gallons of petrol each trip, let's say £20 per day of work. Monthly, that's either £240 or £360 in fuel costs alone which you aren't getting any extra pay for. Add in other consumables as well. (I'm assuming that's it's not an electric car, but something is telling me that the OP likes an interesting car...)
I did Woodbridge to Cambridge every work day for 18 months before I caved and moved to Huntingdon. That killed my car at the time (shitty Rover), but the cost of a mortgage was still cheaper than the cost of fuel and I gained two hours a day.
I took my current job (with a reduction in holiday and pay (in real terms) because I have a 20km commute instead of a two hour commute into Stockholm and then back out. I figured the time saved would compensate for the drop in salary/holiday, that I get to work from home as much as I want is another benefit. I've been asked what it would take to get me to move back to the city (mate wanted to pimp me out as a consultant), but even the salary uplift would mean I was poor when I factored in the mortgage in even a cheap area of town. Somewhere nice and/or central would be ruinous.
Do not underestimate how exhausting and how much a long commute can grind you down over time.
Doing it day after day, you end up with no energy, or time, to do anything else in your life.
That's my experience anyway, but everyone is different.
I had two jobs that were 25 and 30 miles from home, but about an hour travel in the car. Moved back to 10 miles that is easily rideable in 40 minutes, but the car can take 60-90 minutes (traffic). An hour is the max I want to travel each way.
No way! I did 1.5hrs each way a long time ago and not only the time taken, there's so many more opportunities for something bad to happen on the roads. I rolled the company car in the end. Well, near the end, I left shortly afterwards.
Current is 30mins on the bike (or, very occasionally 20mins by car) and it's so nice to get home from an easy commute.
Don't see the question asked (after a skim read of the thread) - any chance of moving closer to this golden job offer??
unfortunately the job isnt possible to do remotely. its fully hands on.
I do work with chaps that commute an hour and a bit each way daily and i think they are nuts, which probably tells me all i need to know about this job. I think the lure of working for an F1 team, a 3 day week and decent benefits is clouding my judgement.
And there isnt an option to move closer either, due to various other commitments, jobs, schools etc etc
I did have a half hour commute, whether it was by train (incl walking to / from the station), car or bike. We then moved office from Hyde to That Manchster. No way I'm driving: when I take the train it's an hour each if I cut it fine, or more usually 1hr 15 when I leave time to spare. Cycle commute is 55 minutes on theway in, 1hr 20 on the way home (guess who lives on top of a hill). I'm not happy about it, but I only go in one day a week, so I can live with it as I enjoy my job and both like and get on with my colleagues. There's no way I'd go for a 2 hour commute
My commute is 55 miles each way, about 1.5 hours each way (when the M1 is truly broken add an hour, but I know all the back routes so it needs to actually be shut). I now do 2 days a week, I used to do 3 or 4 days a week, arriving before 08:00 and leaving after 18:00. It was hard but I took the hit for the family - wife kept her jobs, kids stayed in the schools they liked and were doing well in.
I think I made the right choice but it was tiring and wracked up miles quickly. Cured me of any desire to drive fast - it makes no difference and just adds stress.
Factor that it maybe hard(er) to get a room at weekends. They may cost more as well.
They may have minimum number of nights say at Bank Holidays etc.
I think the lure of working for an F1 team, a 3 day week and decent benefits is clouding my judgement.
Now you tell us the sexy part! 🤣
As long as it isn't Alpine!! 😬
I knew a bloke who worked at Mercedes F1 (and Force India before that) and travelled from mid-Derbyshire every day (think he spent one night away each week).
And I would imagine most who work in F1 accept the hours and family time will be compromised.
No way would I spend 4 hrs a day commuting. In my working life t've never done more than 1 hr each way by train, and it's mostly been more like 30 - 40 minutes by bike. I'd consider a longer one if I could do it by train and it was a couple of times a month or something, but that's it.
Ten years driving 60-80 miles each way daily was 1/12 of my life in a car. That was enough for a lifetime. At least I liked what I did when I got there. I wouldn't commute more than 90 minutes, and that's max cycling. My bike/train/bike to central London is 70 minutes and x2 per week. I'd not go back to driving to work - a third of a million miles was enough!
It would have to be a VERY special job for the commute you are proposing. And I'd consider staying over one night a week at least.
Question that gets asked in some site inductions - how far is your commute? That sort of daily commute would have your permissable working hours on site reduced by a few companies.
As someone currently doing such a commute...absolutely no way, would not recommend.
It ruins your mental health, makes you stressed before day even starts and you feel knackered by the end of it.
Delays can quickly add up.....then you're spending 6 hours a day commuting.
In your scenario, it would only work if your employer (this obviously isn't likely to happen) pays for you to stay somewhere local during that 3-day shift. So then you're just doing the big commute there and back once per weekend shift.
For Reasons I had a steadily increasing commute in my late 20s (Liverpool-Southport, Liverpool-Macc and finally Liverpool-Halifax, followed by the slightly less horrific but still not fun Rochdale to Leeds/Bradford). It's miserable, it's dead time, and it goes through windscreens.
As above it's doable if you're going to commute there Fri am and return Sun night but that depends on family circs etc.
I do 50 minutes/75km each way, 3 or 4 days a week. And it's really nice.
There is mostly bugger all traffic once i get clear of work (the 10-15 minutes closest to work can be a bit slow) and it's beautiful scenery and an open road. Even in the winter/dark it's not exactly stressful. If anything, i get home nicely relaxed after a tough day.
Or i take a bike and stop off at one of the places between work and home to do a couple of hours riding.
Saying all that, my last job in the UK was less than 10 miles and took nearly 30 minutes of dealing with shit driving, crowded roads and arseholes trying to get to the next traffic snarl up as quickly as possible. Also, all but impossible to move closer.
The only way I'd even vaguely consider 2 hours drive each way, was if work location was in a good spot for stuff I do outside of work compared to home, such as cycling.
If there was a direct train that worked well with your work times, at least you could spend most of the journey eating a meal and on the internet, essentially chilling. But probably $$$.
But 2 hours of driving each way is a very hard ask and petrol ain't cheap these days.
I think the lure of working for an F1 team,
Now you tell us the sexy part!
It would have to be a VERY special job for the commute you are proposing
Cleaning the toilets at Sauber is a very sought after job, I hear.
😀
Even heading downstairs seems too far some days
Cleaning the toilets at Sauber is a very sought after job, I hear.
...long commute to Switzerland though! 😜
long commute to Switzerland though! 😜
😀 I was making a guess, and I guessed wrong!
I once did a daily 1hr 30 commute (on a good day) driving back and forward 5 days a week (late 90s). Left after i fell asleep at the wheel and went up a verge. Wake up call - literally.
For the 3 day week, cn you stay over the Sat and Sun nights in cheap digs like a Premier Inn/Travelodge/B&B. Saving in time and money (fuel) pay for the cheap nights stopover?
I used to do an hour and a half every day, but that was on the bus so I could read or snooze or whatever. The only way to think about it imo is to include the commute in your working day, I wasn't working an 8 hour day, it was a 9 and a half hour day and that spreads, it dilutes the payment, etc. I realised after a while it just wasn't worth it. But equally it's a good way to analyse the cost/benefit
I probably wouldn't do it any more tbh but it's all just about weighing the full package. I absolutely would not stay away from home routinely for work, unless it was some amazing dream job, I've seen people do that and it always crashes and burns even for the most career motivated people (actually, I'm pretty sure every last one of them ended up having an affair). I've done travel for work with nights away and even that's disruptive enough.
Did 45 miles each way for four years, 50 minutes to an hour without traffic, beteeen Brum and Banbury. Novelty wore off sharpish - to save fuel I would put a bike in the back of the car, drive to Gaydon and cycle from there which was nice but made it an even longer day. I wouldn't do it again unless it was short hours, big money and zero stress.
For me to do much more than 45 mins each way, there would need to be some onsite facilities, reasonably priced canteen with healthy options so that I can roll out of bed, get showered grab a coffee and get breakfast and lunch on site without any prep or worry, I would probably also want an onsite gym (or close by) so that I could workout a couple of lunchtimes a week.
Commuting isn't my time, so I would want to kind of gain my time back in other ways.
My current commute is 30 mins by car or bike, I can ride through the forest nearly door to door from home to work, cuts the distance in about half and avoids the traffic, but I am only a fair weather bike commuter. There is good bike storage on site, and it is easy enough a ride to wear normal clothes, I like it like that a lot.
Used to do 90 mins into that London place, 20 years ago. Had to drive, as it was both much cheaper and quicker. I had black hair at the start of the 4 years and grey when i left. Great job, but i was worn out.
I did 2 hours each way for 10 years straight out of uni. I stuck at it it for 3 reasons.
1. the pay was ridiculous and it funded my "live for the weekend" lifestyle.
2. I had no dependants and and a very understanding girlfriend. Basically, we both worked silly hours all week and then had extravagant weekends and holidays.
3. It was my first job out of uni so I knew no better and thought that was normal.
It was only when I left that job for one that was a mere 1 hours commute that I realised how much time I wasted on the commute, how much more you could do out of work with that spare time and how unhealthy that lifestyle is. I now work an hour away from work and commute in once per week.
So in summary, run away. 2 hours is bad when you're young and stupid and getting paid loads, if you have any life away from work you'll find it very quickly ruined.
currently doing 35 miles or 1 hour each way not great but ok till this morning on M1 south 5 M in 2 hours then 1 more hour. something else to consider... over running roadworks apparently, well they were overunning cos there was no one in sight doing any actual ****ing roadworks. regular 2hrs no way
There's a big difference between commuting on the train, or driving. For some years I spent round about a short hour commuting on the train, and with a walk at both ends it was 50- 65 minutes , and was pretty ok. That time driving would be grim.
I'm circa 20 minutes by car now and that's just fine.
For what the OP describes, that 3 * 16 hours back to back really - that 4 days off will soon be ruined.
I did a long commute for four years, 75 minutes from Moray to Aberdeen, often longer in the winter, along with two weeks of days two weeks of nights. It made me a tired, unhappy, miserable arse and probably contributed to a relationship break down. Never again, life is too short for that crap.
I drove a 150 mile round trip 5 days a week about 20 years ago, no motorways, mostly A roads. 6 months of it nearly killed me and HR were told to get their fingers out and finalise my permanent move before it did.
Would never ever consider doing it again, no matter how much I was being paid.
I'm going to half agree with everything above...
I think if you're driving 2rs each way, every day, that rapidly becomes very expensive wasted time. Not only can't you do any work, you can't switch off.
2hrs on the train is more doable, at least you can sleep, read or work. That said... a guy I used to work with changed job and it had him commuting down from Manchester to London. He tried all sorts. There and back in a day. Down there, stay over, back the next day. Stuck at it for a year before realising that standing around at Euston waiting for news on the latest delayed service was no fun. I did a nearly 2hr train commute for a while which was OK cos it was only one day a week but it was still pretty much dead time.
However....
I now do a 2hr each way cycle ride. Change of job location, I realised I could ride it so I bought an e-gravel bike and I do 2, sometimes 3 days a week in the office. I started out in winter getting the train part way which cut it to a 45minute ride in, now I just ride both ways. I absolutely love it. Done 1500 miles of commuting that I would never have ridden without the e-bike, the route options are mostly fantastic and (for me) it's very much relaxation and unwinding time. I admit I'd probably be saying different if it was 2hrs riding across Birmingham in the rush hour but it's not!
Last week I voluntarily went into the office one extra day just for the ride in and home. Had no meetings, nothing I needed to be there for. Just wanted an extra 100km of riding time!
So yes, dependent on commuting mode I'd say!
I currently do a couple of days each week either in Daventry or Northampton. That’s four and five hours round trip from my home in the Peaks. I try to do split days (usually Tuesday and Thursday) but even if they’re consecutive days then I’ll still tend to day trip unless there is a compelling reason to stop over. On the occasions I’m on three days then I will stop over one night.
That is quite do-able but tiring. The travel days are pretty much written off for work, out early then home late for a bit of food, TV and bed. Fortunately as the following days are usually work from home so don’t have to be an early start or incur travel.
I'm also lucky that my hours are fairly flexible (albeit in both positive and negative directions) but I rarely have to be there by a certain time so traffic doesn’t stress me, it does what it does and I get there when I get there. Sit and listen to the radio, podcast or audiobook. I also get a company car and neither location is my base so fuel costs are recovered and a new car comes along every four years.
I manage it because it’s fairly flexible and the travel costs are covered. I couldn’t imagine doing it without the perks on a fixed shift pattern over regular consecutive days. It would very quickly get me down and I’d find myself hating the commute and then the job.
You spend too much time working to hate it.
Nope,wouldn't do it. I grumble when I have to drive to the office in my works van.
I frequently do long drives to site, but I get paid door to door and it's their fuel.
If renting/hotelling somewhere local works socially and financially, maybe. Otherwise, hard no.
Its basically two hours each way.
Not a fkn chance. I did 60 miles each way for a year around the M60 - Halifax to Knutsford. When it was clear it was actually ok but I remember it being clear twice - once when England were playing in a tournament and everyone had gone home early to watch it and once after my leaving meal one evening. Absolute no way ever, ever, ever again.
Not a fkn chance. I did 60 miles each way for a year around the M60 - Halifax to Knutsford.
Liverpool to Halifax was the same. There were so many potential choke points and if I hit any of them at the wrong time the delays would build and I’d be 2h late.
My commute is a 40 minute drive, which really is my limit. Because I work shifts and not 9-5 there is very rarely any traffic so it pretty much always takes 40mins.
If it regularly took longer due to traffic etc I think I would tire of it pretty quickly.
4+ hours in the car every day, no chance! even for my dream job.
89k, 1.12 each way. It’s not glorious, but podcasts keep me amused and the car drives itself pretty much. I just have to keep an eye out for kangaroos. The great thing is it’s outs in the country so no traffic to speak of, and my favourite trail centre is en route. This means that I can leave super early twice a week and knock out laps and then shower at work. Overall, I make the best out of a bad lot.
So, going on the maths on the previous page, when you factor in fuel, tyres and whatever else, it'll be like losing £5-6k off your gross salary.
The weekend shifts + commute will take up more of your waking hours than your current setup, and the weekday hours will be an awful lot more. And in both cases you'll be far more knackered when you get home.
Unless it comes with a £20k pay rise, I don't think it's remotely worth it!
2hrs on the train is more doable, at least you can sleep, read or work.
I did this for a few years...around the time my kids were born. 15 mins on the bike to the station. 1h 30m on the train. A big hill to ride up on the way home. I was tired by the end of the week. In fact I remember not doing too much on Saturdays as a result.
My commute is 7 mile / 20mins and opposite flow to the city traffic so nice and easy. Cycle route isn't too bad and I've done it for years.
However the problem is that looking for another job I can't find anything with a similar commute so I expect to be here till I retire.
If I was hiring you, and you told me your plan was to commute 2h each way daily as a long term plan, I probably wouldn’t hire you.
if you worked for me and I sent you to another site for the day 9-5, I’d probably expect you to do their and back in a day. If you were starting early/finishing late - no way would I ask you to do that, for a one off never mind a regular thing. If I sent you there for two days in a row I’d expect you to book a hotel.
The weekend plan with two nights local might work, but even then it’s intense - your Thursday evening will be dull because you need to leave early next day and your Sunday night non existent. Monday morning may be recovery time so now your extra free time is Monday afternoon to Thursday afternoon, with the nice aspect of school run soon being a ball ache because you can’t do anything except 9-3…
Never had much of a commute but I did shifts which included weekends for a long time . Days off in the week are great for riding and time for yourself and when my kids were small I got to spend a lot of time with them during the week , lots of museums and park trips . It also made school holidays a bit easier if I was off in the week anyway.
We moved to New Zealand 2 years ago and with both the kids now at school I really wanted a Mon to Fri job so I could be around at the weekends more , I miss my mid week riding days but overall Mon to Fri and being around after school and in the evenings makes family life a lot easier .
The thing I like about not having a long commute anymore is the pre-work mid-week rides and gravel commutes... except i'm currently doing the long train commute again twice a week (supposed to be 50% but i'm hoping nobody notices). This time I do short days in the office and work on the train or make it up on WFH days. Even still I find it a bit of a grind.
I used to commute 22 miles mostly on the A82. In summer it could take over an hour by car in tourist traffic. In winter with few tourists less than half an hour. I was living in a village which I really liked but the commuting and twelve hour shifts didn't work. Moved into town, I miss village life but my commute is now a 5 minute plummet down hill to work and a 12 minute winch back up the hill home
Definitely a no to the new job if I was in your position OP
2 hour bus, 1.5 hour cycle (because its direct rather than the shitty Edinburgh bus system), Minute drive.
We single carred for a couple of years but one car became two and i don't regret it.
"Doing stuff on the bus/train" isn't all its cracked up to be. Its still an extra 4 hours a day, its missed breakfast/late dinner or both.
So I do a 90 minute commute each way to the office (door to door) so three hours a day. Leave at 6.40am and get home at 6.30pm. I only have to do that usually 3 days a week though thankfully and can work from home the other 2.
I took the job after 7 years in a very similar job which was only 30 minutes each way but paid about 15% less, but on the days I do travel it’s £18 train fare.
It took a lot to weigh it up and I’d definitely have not moved jobs if I couldn’t do it on a train, as driving that journey would be hell. But trains can be terrible too it turns out.
So I’m still undecided if it was the right decision.
When I started proper work I had a 45 minute drive. Felt perfectly normal and that was my life. Sometime later I got a new job and more by accident ended up with a 15 min bike ride in. Total game changer. Life was so much better but it had never really occurred to me to do it. Since them I've never had a long, or even medium, commute.
Nowadays I work in a shed at the end of the garden. Very happy with that. I occasionally have to work in London, once or twice a year. That's 3 hours each way and more than enough commuting for the year. No way would I do a 2 hour regular commute. Might consider it as a very short stop gap but I'd definitely want a plan for change in place.
I used to commute to London from near Aylesbury. 5 mile ride to the station, 55* minute train journey, 3 mile ride to work, get changed (into a suit in those days), rinse and repeat. The cycling bit I enjoyed all year round, but the constant 4 hours a day that you're not getting paid for grinds you down. I can't imagine doing it now.
*Chiltern Railways timetable was aspirational in those days. Occasionally surprised me by arriving on time.
Shed based since Covid. Before then was driving to universities all over the country and staying away from home 5-8 nights a week. Again could never go back to that.
In some ways, the commute I used to do set me up for the job (working for myself) I do now. So it's not a black and white equation.
35-45 minutes for 60% of my working days.
It is annoying but tolerable.
I would not ever go back to full time in an office, or do a longer commute unless it was train and I can count it as working hours
2 hours each way would be an absolute no go for me. I go to one of our offices once a month & that’s a couple of hours each way & it’s miserable.
Also, I’m not sure the allure of F1 should be clouding your judgement. I work for a company that works with 90% of the F1 teams, and across pretty much every other form of motorsport & it’s a ruthless world that I wouldn’t want to be a part of.
That commute + the industry pressure = unhappy.
again, thanks for all the feedback folks. Now the initial excitement and dust has settled, as many have said, i dont think its realistic.
Shame, as it wouldve been a good opportunity, if only i lived closer!
Now the decision is do i use the job offer as leverage to try and improve my position here.... moral compass time 😀
Makes me appreciate my job - something I enjoy, office once a month, pre-work dog walks and post-work biking etc. Work/life balance counts for a LOT. I know I could earn more elsewhere but what I've got is worth literally tens of thousands. I could get a 20k pay rise but if it meant travelling to an office an hour away 5 days a week, I'd turn it down.
I could get a 20k pay rise but if it meant travelling to an office an hour away 5 days a week, I'd turn it down.
I think what a lot of people don't take into account is the sheer cost of commuting, or of commuting and staying over.
That £20k extra can be reduced to half of that very quickly once you factor in season tickets (for rail / bus) or fuel / parking / wear & tear (for car) plus the less obvious / less tangible costs like buying coffee and snacks on the go while commuting, missed family time and so on.
A friend did something where she stayed at a B&B 2 consecutive nights a week and she was thoroughly miserable - not having access to social opportunities, not being able to nip out for an hour on the bike in the evening, no space of her own. She coped with it for a year cos the pay was good (although equally, a significant chunk of the pay went on B&B).
15-16 hour days, if you're lucky. Not a chance, not even if the money was double.
I don't drive, so my commute is by public transport to the city, then either bike or subway to my work depending on the weather. In all, it takes me around 1.5 - 2hrs each way. I get up stupidly early in the morning, get into the lab early and leave early in the afternoon so I can get home at a reasonable time. I've been doing that for 20+ yrs now. It grinds me down at times, but I generally just bury my head in a book, or watch something downloaded from Netflix.
I love where I live, and I love my job. So I just have to put up with it.
dependent on commuting mode I'd say!
+1 a 2 hour cycle commute is great, all the fitness miles you could ever want, and it's offset against it would have taken an hour in the car anyway.
On the other realistic options though, it's a no. I've done jobs that were away 4-5 days on rotation, jobs that were away for months, jobs away mon-fri, jobs with 2 hour commutes. They were all horrible in their own way.
Even if you can do it on public transport, remember to factor in the first and last mile. An Estate agent would say I'm well located for a commute into London by train. In reality it's a 2 hours door to door to central / city because you have to get to the train station and then tube / Boris bike at the other end.
The worst commute I had, 40min by car. Because it's not 40min, it's an hour with all the other idiots doing the same thing. It's soul destroying. On a good day, you're 20min early and can waste time having breakfast. On a bad day you're late and have to make time up. Same on the way home, you can't make any plans starting ~90min from finishing work because you'll potentially miss them. I'm considering another commute, but heading the opposite direction against the prevailing traffic. And I'd probably use the motorbike on days I didn't cycle. The key thing is knowing how long it'll take, not having to constantly build in margins.
I did a just over 90 minute (assuming there were no delays) commute bike/train/bike every weekday for 18 months. I always got a seat and could read or write songs on the train. It was still v tiring and I was young with no kids etc. It amazes me how many people will handle long commutes for years, especially driving (my subsequent job was as an area sales manager and I hated when I had to travel in rush hour), but maybe I've just been lucky? Current commute is about 15 minutes by bike!