Haleigh writes in with this question:

Hello Ron, thanks for your great blog. I read it daily and enjoy your perspective. I have a question. Should my husband apply for a job that is considerably lower in pay and prestige than his last position? A little background – he is a an aerospace engineer and was working for a NASA subcontractor up until seven months ago when his job was “eliminated.” He hasn’t been able to find work in his field and we’re reaching the end of what emergency fund ^[2] we once had. He absolutely loves teaching kids and he is a whiz at math. A local school is needing a math teacher and since he already has his teacher’s certificate (he used to sub at the same school occasionally), he’s wondering about taking a teaching position. It pays 68 percent less than what he was making before but he thinks he should apply. We know the principal and several school board members so we feel confident that if he does apply, he will get the position, but we’re wondering about the pros and cons of taking a lesser paying position with less prestige. What would you recommend?

This is a tough one to answer because there are a lot of variables, but with the information you’ve given me, here are the pros and cons of taking a lower paying position from my perspective.

Pros of taking a lower paying position

He will be putting food on the table.

Sure he isn’t bringing in the larger paycheck you’re accustomed to, but he will be bringing in something.