Most People Would Love a Boss Like Mine. It’s Making Me Miserable.

Good Job is Slate’s advice column on work. Have a workplace problem big or small? Send it to Laura Helmuth and Doree Shafrir here . (It’s anonymous!)

I’m feeling painfully unmotivated at my job these days, and I’m trying to figure out what the right solution would be. I’ve been working in property management for five years and have worked my way up to being a manager. However, my current property and team are small, and things run fairly smoothly. These aren’t bad things! But they kind of are, for me.

it means that my regional boss doesn’t check on us much, and I’m often working alone. I’ve never been good with intrinsic motivation. College was awful for me without parents or teachers checking to make sure I completed assignments or came to class. Now I’m feeling the same way at my job. I’m stressed about failing, but I still can’t manage my time or tackle my big tasks! My last assistant manager was good at reminding me if I forgot to do something (and had a stronger work ethic overall than me), but she moved over the summer. My new one is experienced, but still learning about the building’s needs and workflow.

I’ve repeatedly felt that I liked the lower-level positions I had in this business where I could do more clerical filing and interacting with people, but they don’t pay enough for my financial goals. There’s an administrative assistant role posted on the company career page for corporate that tempts me. I think a change of pace, an office with more people, and more direct reporting to higher-ups could be really helpful for me. However, the pay range is anywhere from 5-20 percent less than what I make hourly, and presumably wouldn’t have bonuses either like I get now for new and renewed leases , so potentially more like a 30 percent pay cut.

My company generally seems to be one of the better ones in the area for employees, so going to a competitor feels risky. I want to buy a house next year, and I know job stability matters for that, so leaving this field entirely feels like a bad move. Should I try to slog through one more year and hope I don’t mishandle anything big? Or is there a solution I’m not considering?

Everything else aside, voluntarily taking a 30 percent pay cut the year before you want to buy a house is generally frowned upon, to put it mildly, by mortgage brokers, real estate agents, banks, and anyone else involved in the financial aspects of buying a house. Unless you’re willing to downsize your expectations for your new house by 30 percent (or more), I would urge caution about taking this new position.

But if you’re staying in your job, let’s think about some ways we could set you up for success. Since you need external motivation, I suggest that you proactively ask your regional boss for weekly check-ins where you go over the agenda for the week and discuss which tasks are urgent, as well as the status of anything outstanding.