The future is of particular concern to me right now. Aside from our crumbling economy, higher gas and food prices, and Atlanta political turmoil, I'm finding myself now more than ever wanting to make sure my shit is in order for the future. Finances, relationships, family…and career.

Especially career.

It's no secret that I skip from job to job like hopscotch. Sometimes, it's a good jump, other times it's a bad one. But I own up to each one, and still managed to get recruiters chomping at the bit to employ me even with a lengthy job history. Mostly I even get job offers out of the blue, but I usually pass them over because a) I'm already employed and not looking at the time or b) it's totally out of my range.

The latest offers I've received though, met neither option. But we'll get to them in a second.

After leaving the Startup from Hell, Big Company, Inc. gave me my old job back with a slight twist — a little more money and a new title. And for a while, my time there was cool — people were glad to have me back and it seemed like things had changed since I last left.

That is, until the rumor started: I'm leaving in six months when I get my degree.

I made the mistake of telling one of the lead designers that I couldn't take overtime for the weekend because I had school work to do. The conversation went something like this:

Lead Designer: Oh, so you're still in school?
Karsh: Yeah - finishing up my Masters degree.
Lead Designer: Nice. Is it in web design?
Karsh: No…it's project management and MIS.
Lead Designer: Oh…so what are you going to do when you graduate? I'm guessing you're not designing websites anymore, huh?
Karsh: I never said that.

Then we both laughed…and then the lead designer spread the shit around that I'm leaving in six months and that this job is just temporary until I get my Masters. Soon, people were talking around me in hushed tones, and eventually, it got back to my manager, who started treating me like…well…like I was leaving in six months. Scaling back my tasks, not assigning me to long-term projects, etc. I brought it up with her, and she said that she did hear me tell someone that my days here were numbered, so she's just "acting accordingly".

Riiiiiiight.

You know the saying "all great lies are half-true"? While it is a rumor — an unsubstantiated one, at that — it's partially true. Once I get this degree, I'm definitely going to want to work in a position where I can use my new skills. Right now, that's not designing websites for a corporate entity. And I damn sure won't be able to pay back my loans with what I make there, nor could I move to a comparable position within the company since I'm still there as a contractor. So while I may not have said I'm leaving, it is inevitable. Might not be in six months, but it's coming.

So back to these offers that just dropped in my lap.

Offer 1: "Director of Design". It's a lofty title, but hold on…it's for another start-up company. This guy is looking to start a religious social network and wants to bring me on. He talked a good game though, and happened to be extremely hot, but after the last start-up company, I'm not really that interested in jumping into another risky venture like that, regardless of the "millions in unrealized fortune" that his company has (according to him). Regardless of how hot he is. Did I mention he was hot? In any regard, I'm not taking him up on his offer, but he is paying me a nice little amount to mock up a few versions of the site's homepage, as well as a few logos.

Offer 2: "Senior Webmaster". I mentioned it on Twitter the other day as follows: "Say you have a perm. job opp. with more responsibility and flexibility, work a 35hr wk, and ups your current salary by 10K." Basically, that sums up the new position. Of course, taking it would mean leaving Big Company, Inc. for a second time, but I'm not really overly concerned about that. What concerns me is that I would leave there to go to this new place, and hate it. In a way, the job sounds a lot like what I did with Micro-Manager (the duties are nearly identical, but this pays a lot more), and it would be just what I needed (a permanent gig) after two and a half years of contract work. It would even involve me using my new degree with some project management work.

In theory, I'm chomping at the bit to take it. In reality…eh, not so much. I'm chalking up my overall ennui about it to the fact that I'm still shaking off my slump and trying to get back into the stride of things. I do know that my days at Big Company, Inc. are numbered, and it's time for me to kick things into adulthood. What better way to do it than at a permanent job, right?