What are some possible downsides to accepting a position with a salary that you believe to be too high?
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VTC nothing but opinion here, which is off topic.– NeoFeb 2, 2018 at 14:54
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3"Can you be paid too much?" Yes - though I suspect you already know that. Besides that, did you have an actual question?– Masked ManFeb 2, 2018 at 14:54
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Any better now?– J DosaFeb 2, 2018 at 15:00
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@JDosa Is this really the question you have? I feel you might already know the answer and you have other fears or question stemming from this. For example if you not biting off more then you can chew. If the question really is about the money and the effect of earning to much maybe psychology.stackexchange.com would be a better place. Your co-worker will not know what you earn most likely. So it should not be a workplace problem.– JeroenFeb 2, 2018 at 15:05
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Based on my experience, you will either earn your pay, or you will be let go in these positions. If they are paying way above the going rate when hiring for a position there is a reason for that elevated pay that is probably not clear to an applicant. Usually the nightmares involved in the positions make the excessive compensation still be far short of what you would want to endure the abuse.– IDrinkandIKnowThingsFeb 2, 2018 at 15:15
1 Answer
Yes, you can be paid too much.
I know a successful small businessman who paid his employees in "shares" - each of the 3 employees received about 20% of the net income the business received each month.
In slow months, they might not get paid at all, but in good months they'd make a lot.
The employees were doing basic customer service work - answering questions, taking orders, etc. They were making almost 10x what they would make anywhere else doing that work.
This meant they could never afford to quit the company and if the company were to fail for any reason they would be in deep trouble because their skills would never justify that salary anywhere else.
The solution for the employee is to live as if they made "typical" or "high typical" wages, and put the rest into the bank. The extra money can fund retirement or perhaps some expensive vacations, but should never be used for living expenses (e.g. a big house or fancy car)
That requires an enormous amount of discipline.
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2Neither of these points really have anything to do with being paid too much. They're more a symptom of living beyond your means. Feb 5, 2018 at 20:05
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Good advice, save the additional high income then if you do loose the job and go back to a much lower wage your not going to be saddled with payments that far exceed what you could ever earn again.– StormyMay 7, 2018 at 9:35