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Comment by balls187 | Hacker News Reader

Hypothetical to the larger HN community:

If you got accepted a job offer, and within 2 weeks got a job offer for more money, and at your dream company, would you feel obligated to stay with your initial decision?

If you made the rational (but arguably unethical choice), do you think your reputation should be tarnished, and future employers think hard before extending an offer?

I know it's not the exact situation as the OP, but situations are rarely so straight forward, and often have nuances that we aren't aware of.

To the OP, at the very least, you probably dodged a bullet. So blessing in disguise.

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The answer is yes, you should absolutely switch to the dream job/company. Particularly if where you work is at will, like it is in much of the US. The same things that apply to an individual apply to a company: other candidates interviewed may still be available, you are leaving before becoming a valuable part of the company and are difficult to replace, not taking offer you prefer may leave sour grapes, etc. No one should be tarnished in such a situation. A worker has every right to the best deal and working environment possible, even if that environment is elsewhere.

I would even argue that any time your dream job makes an offer, you should feel free to leave your current job regardless of status, loyalty, and so on.

No the situation isn't analogous at all because unexpectedly losing a job has a much higher impact on a person than for a company to unexpectedly lose an employer. A person is made of flesh and blood and can have his or her life shattered. A company is an abstract entity defined by laws.

> losing a job has a much higher impact on a person than for a company to unexpectedly lose an employer

This is true, but not without context.

In my scenario above, the circumstances were similar. 2-3 weeks into a new job.

Excluding someone who has been unemployed for an extended period of time, it seems odd that in 2-3 weeks, losing your job would shatter their life.

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And I wouldn't exclude companies for being "shattered" either. It's very possible for companies to be formed around the reputation of a single individual, and if that individual left, would be shattering. Especially in early stages of a financing round.

I would say yes. Even in Europe, companies usually have a probationary period (of 3->6 months) when it's much easier to fire the new hire. If companies get that kind of flexibility to drop the employee, then the employee should have as much flexibility to drop the company.

You should actually ask this question before making decision.. and if your take it is that you would renegade on the decision, than you should delay making that decision.. and wait to find out if that dream job with higher pay actually came around.

Your current best offer will be willing to stretch out their offer for a week. And the other company will be willing to accelerate their decision process, so as to bridge this two weeks gap.

But once you made your decision, you should stick with your decision... at least for a year, all things other than this 'dream job' being equal. The dream company and the dream job-- if you got in today, you are likely going to get that again in a year.

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