How Compensation Shaped My Decision to Leave a Job

For five years, I worked as a wildland firefighter for the Bureau of Land Management. It was a job I genuinely enjoyed. It was physically demanding, team-oriented, and full of purpose. But even with all the things I loved about it, compensation played a major role in my decision to leave the position after several seasons. Looking back, I can clearly see how pay structures influenced my motivation and behavior more than I realized a the time.

Firefighting is unpredictable work, and compensation is heavily tied to overtime and hazard pay. In busy fire seasons, the pay could be great, but in slow years, the income dropped dramatically. That variability made it hard to plan financially, especially as my responsibilities grew and I started thinking more seriously about school and long-term goals. I found myself putting in long hours, taking on more assignments, and pushing through fatigue not just because of the mission at hand, but because I knew the only way to earn enough was to say yes to everything.

Overtime, I noticed that I was motivated less by passion for the work and more by the pressure to chase the next overtime assignment. The compensation system unintentionally encouraged burnout, rewarding constant availability instead of sustainable effort. By the end of every summer the morale and overall mood of the crew was very negative. Eventually, the financial instability pushed me to step away from firefighting and pursue a path with a more predictable income and growth potential.

This experience made me realize how powerful compensation is as a motivator. I was sacrificing a healthy work life balance in order to make a living and pay for school. My last year of fighting fire I had lost all enjoyment for the job itself and relied purely on the paychecks to keep me motivated. This realization was the deciding factor in charting a new direction for my future.

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