Move for a job or stay for personal reasons?

[argonaut]

I think someone above touched on it ...but I would consider the move knowing that you can always move back in a few years and thus time perhaps more for your wife...e.g. each of you has a chance to do what is best for them "at that time" :)

 

Just my .02...I've lived in both Philly and NY...advantages/disadvantages to both...have cousins just outside center city who are doctors...PM if you wish for more info.

[yadayada]

This would be another few reasons against it

[luck]

don't leave NYC area for Philly and uproot the family.  NYC's the greatest city in the world.  Philly is not even close (only my opinion). 

[karthikpm]

I have to agree that I have been pleasantly surprised visiting Philly.  I live in the West Coast. The Eagles are a good team now that Chip Kelly's there  ;)

 

 

[Palantir]

Maybe your kid can get a free ride to UPenn if you move to Philly? I assume that is where the job is.

[cobafdek]

I'm in a very small field, and the hospital in Philly has has one of the top 2-3 groups in the country for this field.

 

I see your position, then, is university hospital/medical center-based, so your options for change would be different from what mine were.  A solo private practice, as one example, is impossible for some super-sub-specialties.  But like this Philly opportunity, others will pop up unexpectedly.  Or, you may reach a senior enough position in your current situation to be able to call more shots.

 

Here's another thing to consider, since you're a two-income professional couple.  My wife is also a doctor, but neither of us ever worked full-time these past 20 years.  We never thought the hours and stress of 2 full-time practices would be worth it.  Together, our combined household income is maybe the equivalent of the median income of 1 full-time physician.  It also allowed plenty of flexibility for family life.  If you, or your wife with her "crazy" hours, ever get in danger of burn-out, you're fortunate that perhaps one or both of you could go part-time.

 

The narrative I gave about my career is only just one way to connect the past dots, and the 5-10 year thing may just be an illusion.  (I was certainly wrong about the Buffett Partnerships, which lasted 13 years, not 10.)  Taleb might say I was just stumbling along, putting one foot in front of the other, exploiting some opportunities correctly while getting others wrong.  Very little of what actually happened could have been planned.  Sure, we actively tried to plan changes, but in reality, we were probably just adapting to changes thrust upon us.  As long as you and your wife are confident that you can adapt to anything, you'll be fine.

 

 

[cobafdek]

On an unrelated note I find it fascinating that two career profiles take to investing almost intuitively, doctors and engineers/IT.  My cousin is a doctor and knows zero about investing, asked about value investing, I gave a short little explanation and he 'got it' right away.  I've had a similar experience with other doctors, must be how they think.  I find it interesting that this board is full of doctors, engineers and IT people.  But not full of purchasing managers, marketing specialists, traffic cops and teachers.

 

The make-up of this board is self-selected and therefore biased.  I can assure you that you'll get a different impression listening to the average physician talking investments in the doctor's lounge---you'd be appalled.  As a group, because of our education and training, we MDs are prone to arrogance and over-confidence.  The purchasing managers, cops, teachers, etc., on bogleheads are wiser and get better results.  Hanging out on this board has been tremendous for me, lots of superior brainpower here, yours among them, and many of the mistaken notions I posted have been generously corrected and I've learned alot.

[rukawa]

I never had to make a decision like this but to the extent that I have made these decisions my calculus is usually the same: I maximize the minimum. I try to optimize for the reasonably probable worst case (lets say >15% probability of occurring). I don't make optimistic assumptions. I make reasonably pessimistic assumptions.

 

Here is how I would approach your situation:

 

Move to city - I will lose wife's family support, I will lose the great childcare, I will probably hate my job because a job is a job is a job and my wife may resent me if things don't work out. In addition there is a high probability my wife will hate her new job.

 

Stay - I will hate my job but everything else will be intact.

 

I would choose option 1 based on this analysis. It is not clear to me that your worst case in moving is better than your worst case in staying put. And because of this I would not make the move.

[luck]

People aren't hating on Philly, they're just giving you their opinions.  If you LOVE Philly, go for the adventure.  I would never do such a thing, but to each their own.