<prompt> Human: so i have been working in a state job for the last 15 years. im currently making 110k a year. im hourly and do about another 10k in OT. when they hired me, i was already maxed out at 85k. the rest came from COLA. i have not seen a raise or anything while here. management always says this is how it is in government. in any case, i was hired on to administer a very niche enterprise application, which i know very well. however, over the years people left or retired and i took over their work. at one point i was the sysadmin for a dozen applications. no one seems to appreciate the work, but i know this place will be in trouble if i just left. im wondering if i should just find another job back in the private sector? realistically i can make about 140k now with my experience, but i do like it here and not many people bother me. i have 4 kids and am single income but this job offers good family, work balance. im just tired of it sometimes...burned out for sure.im conflicted too on whether im in position to leave. i have 5k in cc debt, 6k in savings. both cars are paid off and i owe 89k on mortgage appraised 240k. i have 250k in pension too. i guess only benefit is i can retire in 13-15 years if i fight it out here. rantvent  <response>: There is no harm in looking around, especially if your pension is near maximum. If you get an great offer, great! If not, no harm done. 