I work for a small company, everyone knows what everyone else is up to.
I work in a specialised role, I'm fairly new to it. The earning potential and flexibility in the area I work in is substantial and I had decided to take on my specialism and become an expert. If i stay in my current role it is likely that I will be promoted within the next 2 years and ultimately I could leave the company I work for and work from home full time and earn a substantial amount once I've built up my knowledge and experience.
An opportunity has come up in another area of the business, a promotion at the same grade as the promotion would be in my current role, further down the line. It is a more general role, would offer less flexibility as it needs to be in the office more and whilst obviously things are never certain, I believe in the longer run the earning potential could be lower due to not having a specialism as such. That being said, as it's more general it could offer a greater amount of transferrable skills to move around. I have previously worked in the department the role is in, and really enjoy it and obviously, it's now, as opposed to a probability further down the line.
I applied for this opportunity and have an interview. But I'm wondering if actually I'm being short sighted by seeking a promotion now, and if I'd be better biding my time to progress in my specialism. I would rather pull out before the interview than turn down the job should I be offered it.
For context, I currently earn £50k and the new role would take me to £70k. The expected promotion in my current role would pay similar. I currently have a 4 year old and plan to have another.
Part of the reason why I've applied for the promotion currently is because I believe I could do it well and there's a bit of my ego at play I think.
It's been such a quandry in my head but writing it down I feel like it's clear!
What would you do?