[Catch 22]

Which do you all think is better? $150k doing a full time job in Manhattan? Or $60k working on your own with location-independence?

I did the horrible DC thing for awhile, live in Florida now, and thinking maybe doing Poland next (love me some sweet blonde girls, even if I have to take them on a few dates) and South America during our Winter, if staying location-independent.

[iknowexactly]

I don't think choices like that occur in a vacuum, for instance, does the 150K job increase your chances of getting a 300K job later, which even in NY would get you into an incredible lifestyle with a top apartment, opera attendance with models, weekends in the Hamptons/ Vermont.....

Does the 60K location independence reduce your chances of later getting the 150K job in NY.

150K in NY with city, state and fed taxes taken out will only be something like 85? 90? and a really nice apartment is at least 3K (36) so people who have lived there can comment on that.

[CleanSlate]

Although I don't live in NYC or make that much bank, this is the very question that I have been wrestling with. I am striving to be location independent, even if it means taking a huge cut in earnings. But I would love to make as much money as I do now, if not more, with a lower COL and being mobile. THAT is the dream I am trying to achieve within a year or two.

[8ball]

I would choose 150k in NY every time.

1. the # of of bangs will be unmatched elsewhere, unless you move to a resort town and you are in charge of entertainment.

2. The opportunities to make even more money, we are talking "fuck you" money. You won't have those opportunities living in Bolivia.

[CleanSlate]

(05-19-2015 01:20 PM)8ball Wrote:  

1. the # of of bangs will be unmatched elsewhere,

You sure about that?

[The Beast1]

How's your energy level these days?

If it's high and you're feeling ballerish go to NYC. Can't pass that up. Though your lifestyle may suffer for it. Is 150k a do-able salary for a decent one bedroom apartment and not a studio?

If it's low and your patience for the high falootin' life style is too thin, go location independent. I can think of a lot of nice places $60k will go really far in. I'd only go location independent if I wanted to "retire". It's hard to undo this type of lifestyle after you start.

[Phoenix]

The latter, without blinking.

[WestIndianArchie]

150k @ 40 hours or 80-100?
And how many hours is the location independent gig?

If it's 40 hours, nyc easily.

If the location independent gig is 40 hours of system n administration from 12 pm to 8 pm, That would be hellish.

Need more data

[8ball]

(05-19-2015 01:23 PM)CleanSlate Wrote:  

(05-19-2015 01:20 PM)8ball Wrote:  

1. the # of of bangs will be unmatched elsewhere,

You sure about that?

While there will be no exotic niche or western male advantage, in terms of ONS or same date bangs VEGAS is probably the only place that comes close. But its pretty hard to get those kind of salaries in vegas.

The favorable ratios, alcohol laws, and good logistics and with 150k, the setup i can have in Manhattan is pretty much unbeatable. Though i can understand why others might vote for the second option.

[viajero]

(05-19-2015 01:26 PM)Phoenix Wrote:  

The latter, without blinking.

I agree wholeheartedly.

The choice becomes even easier if the location independent gig is well under 40 hours a week.

[Catch 22]

It's hard to say for sure, but I'd have to think the $150k job would give a better shot at a $300k job one day. I don't think it would be 80-100 hours, probably in the 40-50 range.

Location independent job is very uncertain, but so far way less than 40 hours. Much more like the retired life. Energy level has been low lately, the Beast. Hadn't really thought about it and not sure why that is.

[VolandoVengoVolandoVoy]

(05-19-2015 01:08 PM)iknowexactly Wrote:  

I don't think choices like that occur in a vacuum, for instance, does the 150K job increase your chances of getting a 300K job later, which even in NY would get you into an incredible lifestyle with a top apartment, opera attendance with models, weekends in the Hamptons/ Vermont.....

Does the 60K location independence reduce your chances of later getting the 150K job in NY.

150K in NY with city, state and fed taxes taken out will only be something like 85? 90? and a really nice apartment is at least 3K (36) so people who have lived there can comment on that.

Ummm...not quite. A 300k a year job pre tax does not equal a top apartment + opera with models + weekends in the Hamptons. Double that at least, and more like triple.

If you saved nothing at all, and had no debts to pay off, you might do a low rent version of the above on 300k pre tax. But 300k pre tax is by no means living large in NYC.

A good apartment alone will be 5k a month or more.

If you cut corners, and spent every penny you earned, you might give off the appearance of wealth at 300k/year, but you would be going into debt and not getting ahead.

[PainPositive]

I can't deny the allure of NYC but travel is too easy going to choose a rat race type job.

You can live a great life with 5OK outside the US. I spend only fifteen hundred USD per month and still live very well.

Girls, drinking, eating out everyday AND taking trips on that has never been a problem for me. I'd kill to make 5Ok and travel working only a couple dozen hours a week.

[elcidcampeador]

60k isn't a lot to live on internationally either.

Plus, if you want to return to the US in the future your employability and social value will be limited because of the time spent abroad and the low salary. 60k is pretty much an entry-level salary in a major city these days.

A much better solution would be to find a job that pays 150k in the international locale you fancy.

[speakeasy]

(05-19-2015 01:20 PM)8ball Wrote:  

I would choose 150k in NY every time.

1. the # of of bangs will be unmatched elsewhere, unless you move to a resort town and you are in charge of entertainment.

So are we to assume men in NYC have more sex than man anywhere else in the world? More than the Dominican Republic or Brazil or Thailand? Sure the opportunity is there if you're at the top of your game, but then again, I think there's a reason NYC isn't known as a sex tourist destination.

Quote:

2. The opportunities to make even more money, we are talking "fuck you" money. You won't have those opportunities living in Bolivia.

But you can only say that if you know what industry he works in. If he's not in finance, what industries in NYC are paying "fuck you" money? Outside of finance, NYC incomes aren't much higher than any other major city in the country. At least not relative to of cost of living.

@ The OP

More info is needed. Like how many hours you'd be working for each income and what industry. It also depends on whether you value money more than time. I personally value time, freedom and relaxation far more than money. I'd rather make less and have more freedom, time and low stress. So it all depends on your priorities. I figure when I'm on my death bed one day the last thing I'll be thinking is how I wish I'd spent more time working hard and making more money, especially if it comes at the cost of personal freedom and ability to experience the world on my own terms. I've never lived in NYC but it seems like a stressful rat race type of place. Maybe cool for a year of two for the experience of having done it but I couldn't see wanting to be in a place like that long-term. But some people thrive off that environment and money is their main objective and if that's the case, then NYC is your town.

[DJ-Matt]

I'd take 60k and an RV please Alex.

I'm after that myself right now.

[CleanSlate]

(05-19-2015 01:38 PM)8ball Wrote:  

While there will be no exotic niche or western male advantage, in terms of ONS or same date bangs VEGAS is probably the only place that comes close. But its pretty hard to get those kind of salaries in vegas.

I've been to both NYC and Vegas and did not get a single lay out of those cities. To be fair, I never had good logistics while visiting NYC. But Vegas, I've gone 3 times and I stayed right on the strip and still could not pull.

Sure, you can argue that I have no game, and that would be a fair argument. But if you've read my PH sex spree thread or visited the LINUX bangs Colombia thread, you'll see that there are places outside of the US that absolutely blows NYC or Vegas away in terms of getting notches.

The others have a point about needing more data from the OP, such as industry type of job, and how many hours worked.

$150k in 40 hours/weekly from a 9-5er leaves plenty of time and energy for gaming in a high octane, high volume location that's sure to yield quite a few notches provided you have great logistics (Manhattan).

$150k in 80-100 hours/weekly is going to leave you pretty drained and high stressed, and the last thing you are going to want to do is game in a high octane atmosphere if you are left with low energy levels. Sure, you'll make lots of money, but you'll spend most or all of it, along with all of your energy, leaving you burned out with little savings.

[8ball]

(05-19-2015 02:51 PM)speakeasy Wrote:  

So are we to assume men in NYC have more sex than man anywhere else in the world? More than the Dominican Republic or Brazil or Thailand? Sure the opportunity is there if you're at the top of your game, but then again, I think there's a reason NYC isn't known as a sex tourist destination.

I guess i was thinking about what I would do in that situation. The numbers I hit in NYC and my financing calculations makes location independent not worth pursuing. Unless of course i am getting paid to work very little -> 15-20 hours week. But then I asked myself whats easier, hitting 150k here or making location independent income abroad..

Quote:

But you can only say that if you know what industry he works in. If he's not in finance, what industries in NYC are paying "fuck you" money? Outside of finance, NYC incomes aren't much higher than any other major city in the country. At least not relative to of cost of living.

Regardless of the industry if you are getting 150k, the networking and opportunities that are available will make it easier to get that "fuck you" money. If you are 30y @ 150k in NYC, think about how much you would make at 36 or at 40. Now think about your finances being location independent at 36 and 40. I am still in my 20s and already pretty close to that mark if I up and leave now I would lose out on any future "fuck you" opportunity.

[Laner]

I work for myself and have managed to keep between 96-98% of my income. So if I pulled in $60,000 I would be able to live off around $58,000 a year, or $5,000 a month. Not bad, especially if I chose to live in a cheap place.

New York at $150,000 gross is not a lot of money. But being able to fast track to something close to 7 figures by 45 yo and only work 40- 50 hours a week is a good bet. I like working, but not necessarily on someone else schedule, so I tend to factor in lifestyle and freedom into the mix.

But I agree with some others that if your location independent job sucks and the NYC job is dope then go for NYC.

You have low energy? I get that too sometimes, part of it is that some weeks I really only "work" for 20 hours yet my schedule seems to keep me from being able to go and do cool shit.

[speakeasy]

(05-19-2015 03:21 PM)8ball Wrote:  

(05-19-2015 02:51 PM)speakeasy Wrote:  

So are we to assume men in NYC have more sex than man anywhere else in the world? More than the Dominican Republic or Brazil or Thailand? Sure the opportunity is there if you're at the top of your game, but then again, I think there's a reason NYC isn't known as a sex tourist destination.

I guess i was thinking about what I would do in that situation. The numbers I hit in NYC and my financing calculations makes location independent not worth pursuing. Unless of course i am getting paid to work very little -> 15-20 hours week. But then I asked myself whats easier, hitting 150k here or making location independent income abroad..

Quote:

But you can only say that if you know what industry he works in. If he's not in finance, what industries in NYC are paying "fuck you" money? Outside of finance, NYC incomes aren't much higher than any other major city in the country. At least not relative to of cost of living.

Regardless of the industry if you are getting 150k, the networking and opportunities that are available will make it easier to get that "fuck you" money. If you are 30y @ 150k in NYC, think about how much you would make at 36 or at 40. Now think about your finances being location independent at 36 and 40. I am still in my 20s and already pretty close to that mark if I up and leave now I would lose out on any future "fuck you" opportunity.

I hear what you're saying. But keep in mind "location independents" can make a shit ton of money too. I think we tend to assume they are all copywriters and graphic designers. But there's this podcast I've started listening to from the Smart Passive Income blog: http://www.smartpassiveincome.com

And the guy that runs it posts his monthly earnings breakdowns from various online businesses. He's pulling like 150k a month as of late.

So we shouldn't necessarily assume that going your own way is going to stunt your financial development. If you know what you're doing, you'll make way more money running your own show than working for others.

[HighSpeed_LowDrag]

I'd take the 60k + location independence in a heartbeat.

[rudebwoy]

^ I agree.

I doubt it the $150k gig would be 9 to 5, also it would be high stress. Nothing beats working for yourself.

I would look at the high paying gig and see how much I could save in a few years. With the experience and a wad of cash I would leave New York for warmer climates (Brazil etc).

Rat race is for rats.

[Dantes]

(05-19-2015 01:04 PM)Catch 22 Wrote:  

Which do you all think is better? $150k doing a full time job in Manhattan? Or $60k working on your own with location-independence?

I did the horrible DC thing for awhile, live in Florida now, and thinking maybe doing Poland next (love me some sweet blonde girls, even if I have to take them on a few dates) and South America during our Winter, if staying location-independent.

Is this hypothetical or are you in a position that you can choose 150K in NYC or 60K Location Independent?

[NovaVirtu]

You can't put a price on freedom.

I'd pick the 60k and location independence every time.

Besides, that 60k is gonna go a lot further in much of the places talked about on here. You could very well have a lifestyle close to or better than what you might get with the other option depending on where you choose to go.

I'm also curious, is this a real scenario for the OP or just a hypothetical question?

[mrnomer14]

This is a dilemma I may be facing soon myself only I will be choosing between Sydney or Melbourne, Australia and ,well "the rest of the internet enabled world"

As somebody said, you cant put a price on freedom

If I choose to stay in Sydney / Melbourne I will no doubt feel trapped in the the anglosphere BECAUSE I WILL BE. And really gentlemen, who wants that? Give me freedom or give me death - particularly in these hazardous times.

No way Im staying in a place that engages my fight or flight mechanism

"Flight" it is...