To Relocate or Not to Relocate? That is the question.

Sorry Shakespeare, the temptation was just too strong to resist.

No one is unemployed.   If you are not working for someone else, then you are self-employed and working for you.  Job hunting is a full-time job and don’t let anyone tell you differently.  It is YOU Inc. and you are looking for income.   Unfortunately, the best opportunities for your next source of income may not be where you live now.  That’s when YOU Inc starts to think about relocation.

You Inc has shareholders:  your spouse, your children,  and perhaps, your extended family.   I suspect that every family discusses relocation as an option during an extended job search.  If an excellent opportunity comes up that requires relocation, it should always be discussed unless you are looking for grounds for divorce.

When applying for jobs, it is not unusual to send out a few resumes to other cities (i.e. Calgary and Edmonton) that are hiring more people than they are terminating to get a feel for the market place.  Occasionally, the request for a first interview by phone comes in and the discussions with your spouse become very serious. If you make it to the final interview, you will be flown out to the other city at the company’s expense for the interview. They want to meet you in person before extending a job offer.  This is your opportunity to check out the city too.  It is unlikely that the company will pay for your spouse’s ticket but it is good idea for the spouse to come with you to check out the city before accepting a job if they have not been to the city before.

Every family has their own checklist of the pros and cons of relocation, the job itself, the spouse’s job, the new city, young children, aging parents and the list goes on and on.   Assume nothing and discuss everything.   If there was a magic formula for figuring it out, there would be far fewer sleepless nights.