One Snarky Chica with Issues

A few years ago I heard a character on the short lived Wonderfalls television show say “I’m over educated and under paid” when asked what she was doing in life. The main character that said this had went to an ivy league school and was working in a tourist gift shop as a cashier and was just passed over for the promotion to store manager in the episode.

I work with someone that was passed over for a promotion a little over two months ago. What do you do when you think you are worth more than you are getting paid but your company demonstrates that they do not agree? Do you settle for what you are getting or do you take action?

My thoughts on this is that you have to toot your own horn. I mean, no one else is going to look out for your bottom line, so that means that it is up to you. And if you settle then you are announcing to the world that you are not worth as much as you think. On the flipside of this, I know that there are times when you cannot do anything about it. Maybe the economy is bad and you cannot quit your job for fear of not being able to find another. Or maybe you just have responsibilities that prevent you from taking action. Or maybe it’s something as simple as you don’t have a vehicle and have to car pool or take a job that is on the bus line.

So, what did the girl that I work with do? Her last day was Monday of this week. Apparently she has been ‘hitting the pavement’ so to speak and found herself another job… in another state….22 hours away. I think it’s great. She’s going to a state that she has always wanted to move to and she got a great job with only a few phone interviews. And the kicker? She’s making almost $10,000 more a year at the new job. If she had settled she’s be making $10,000 less and living in a state she doesn’t like and spending her time dreaming of the place 22 hours away.

So, why do so many people complain about being “over educated and under paid?” There is only one reason I can think of - laziness. I’m a victim of it myself. It’s also hard to remain confident when people keep pushing you down. Clearly, all it takes is a little action to get the ball rolling in the right direction. And it looks as if you need to be a bit flexible too. You may not want to move out of state, but that may be what it takes to get you where you want to be in your career. You’re either all in or you’re just not.

If you’ve been settling like me, go ahead, jump into action! Just don’t apply for those jobs that I’m going for