How long do you stay on the first job?

Got my first real job the first week of my junior year of college - Sept. 1989. Seventeen and a half years later I'm still at the same paper. When you've got the combination of good pay, good co-workers, good benefits and an area you like to live in, no reason to look to move on to a different paper.

 

Agree with EStreetJoe, you have to consider every angle and question whether it makes sense for you. If you're looking to move just to move, because you feel you're supposed to move on, that's probably not a great reason.

I stayed at my first job for nearly two years. Small-town PM paper that published six days. Great place to be, despite the two-man sports team, long days and crazy road Division II road trips. But that paper made it easy for me to leave -- my mentor left for a bigger paper down the road, still able to enjoy small-town life, and then management passed on me when it came time for the new SE. They instead hired the guy I recruited to slide into my position, when I became SE.

I moved to a bigger paper within months and carved a great niche for myself in our coverage area for the next six years. No complaints here, it all worked out for the best.

 

and you're a lucky bastard estreet.

 

Two-and-a-half years, two years, six years, two-year break, one year, now.

 

A year and a half at the first one, eight months at the second one, now almost 20 years at the third one. Like EStreetJoe said, if you find a place you like, there's no need to leave.

 

After I got out of school, I took a job with my hometown paper and left after about four weeks. I'm still in my second and been there for the last 17 months.

In both cases, I felt like I was ready to move on. At the first gig, however, I wasn't ready; just anxious to advance -- and a bit cocky. After I went through two seasons at the second, I realized my writing wasn't as good as I thought it was. So I worked my ass off, developed my style and improved a ton. Now, I know I'm ready to move on.

But, I agree with the Cougar; you'll know when you're ready to go.

 

35+ years. Never moved.

 

Three months (as a news writer...left to get back into sports), 10 months (laid off), out of work for a year, moved to bumfuck for 18 miserable months, now six months in what seems to be a good situation. It took a while for me to find the right situation.

 

Whatever works for you. I was at my first paper in North Carolina for about 10 months, then left for a bigger paper in my wife's hometown. It did seem to be a good move for me for other reasons, but I really wanted out because the managing editor was an idiot and my low pay didn't look to get much better. Just make sure you have good reasons for leaving, just in case a future possible employer asks you why you left. Even if your reason is valid, "the people I worked with are f'tards" or "I had a better opportunity at paper X", there's always the chance that the person you are interviewing with places heavy emphasis on loyalty or putting in your time at yoru first gig. If you can say, "I had a chance to return home or I really thought this could have been a good career move," They really can't fault you for that no mater what their philosophies are.
On a side note, I remember something that I heard from a Newstrain speaker at a management seminar I went to. He said that 10 years ago, someone would see multiple jobs and short stints at newspapers on a resume and say they person wasn't reliable, only looking to use the paper as a stepping stone. Now, a lot of hiring editors would look at it as a sign of ambition. It really does all fall on the hiring editor and what they think about it.

 

What is a rule of thumb for, all other things being equal, how much of a salary bump you should get for a move? I'm thinking 15 percent or so?

 

Not to threadjack, but the first thing I thought when I read that was, "You have kids that are two months apart? That's unusual." Anyway, carry on.

 

flip has very potent, well, you know.