u/anar511

I've been working at a small HSE training provider in for almost two years. I started at $400/month, and after nearly two years, I earn only $600/month, despite taking on a wide range of responsibilities.

I handle social media management, advertising, daily operations, and administrative work. Whenever something goes wrong or an urgent task needs to be completed, I'm usually the first person everyone in the office turns to. I hear my name from each person in the office 10 times a day.

I also speak two additional languages that the company needs, besides our native language, which makes me an important point of contact. On top of that, I'm responsible for managing the office's cash flow, although the accountant handles the company's formal accounting and financial reporting.

In practice, I wear several hats, and the company relies on me for a lot of things that go beyond my official role.

Recently, I expressed my dissatisfaction with my salary increase. I had received a $90 raise after 3 months as we deald before starting, and, followed by another $120 raise only 9 months after. It is been almost years, they dont pay any overtimes, for additional work and etc. I felt that this wasn't enough considering my responsibilities and workload.

My boss's response was that money shouldn't be the source of my motivation and that I should focus on the opportunities and chances the company provides me instead (we don't even have a basic coffee machine in the office).

What makes this even more frustrating is that my boss earns approximately 2.5 times my salary, despite struggling with basic computer tasks, such as using ChatGPT or deleting a column in Excel. Meanwhile, I'm expected to handle multiple responsibilities, solve problems independently, and take care of urgent tasks whenever they arise.

I understand that experience, seniority, and responsibility can justify differences in salary. I'm not expecting to earn as much as my boss simply because I work hard. However, I find it difficult to accept being told that money shouldn't motivate me when my responsibilities keep expanding but my compensation doesn't seem to reflect the value I bring to the company.

I also understand that a small company has financial limitations. However, if the company cannot afford to pay me more, I don't think it's fair to expect me to keep taking on additional responsibilities based on vague promises of future opportunities.

Should I negotiate more firmly, stop taking on responsibilities outside my role, or focus on finding another job?

Actually I'm already looking for other jobs, so leaving is not really the question. I'm more interested in how to handle situations like this in general.

I’m 27 with a university degree in Industrial Organization and Management.

My background is quite mixed. I spent around 7 years freelancing as a 3D sculptor for 3D printing. It was a real source of income for years, but the market declined, and AI, increasing competition, and freelancers lowering market rates made it much harder. Eventually, the freelance work disappeared.

I also worked for 8 months as a Junior Quality Management Systems Specialist, and for the past 1 year and 7 months I’ve been working at a small training and consulting company in an operations/training coordination role. My responsibilities include client communication, training coordination, offers/contracts, invoices, administration, social media management and general coordination.

So I have experience across 3D/creative work, freelancing, quality systems, operations, coordination and client-facing work. I’m a serious and responsible worker, learn independently, take responsibility, and regularly stay after hours or work on days off when necessary.

I started my current job at around $380/month and now earn around $600, but I’m essentially still in the same position with no visible career progression.

There is actually an opportunity at my current company to learn marketing and potentially move toward managing both marketing and operations, including work connected with another country’s office. On paper, it sounds like a good opportunity, but I’m strangely not very motivated by it. After discussing it in meetings, I often find myself looking at other career paths instead of wanting to continue with marketing. So I’m unsure whether I should take this opportunity seriously or move in a completely different direction.

The bigger problem is that I’m very confused about what to do next. I overthink important decisions, worry about choosing the wrong path and wasting years, and keep searching for the “right” direction. My previous freelance career disappearing, current job, finances, age and uncertainty about the future all affect my thinking.

My financial situation makes this even harder. I don’t have someone who can financially support me if I make a wrong career decision, and I can’t rely on having that kind of support in the future either. So I feel a lot of pressure to make the right choice and keep earning while I transition.

I want to build a real profession and specialization - something I can develop through courses, training, certifications and practical experience, eventually becoming genuinely skilled and valuable anywhere.

I’m willing to start from zero and work hard. I’m also open to working full-time remotely for an international company if the profession allows it.

Generally, I enjoy solving real problems, working with things directly, and seeing a tangible result from what I do. I think I may actually prefer practical, hands-on work more than purely administrative/desk-based work, so I’m also considering whether I should make a significant switch toward a more practical or technical profession.

What career/profession would you seriously consider in my situation, and why?

I’d especially appreciate advice from people who actually work in the profession they recommend.

"You worked hard to make it Level 1". No! I worked hard to make Level 2, and I did it! And was about to become a Top Seller! Then you with your new anti-seller Level system dropped it to Level 1, then New Seller Level.

I honestly find this email from Fiverr incredibly frustrating.

They sent me this cheerful “It’s crunch time” email telling me that my stats are slipping and that they’re giving me a 30-day “grace period” to prove that I have what it takes to be a Level 1 freelancer.

Seriously?

I’ve been on Fiverr for years. I have 343 completed orders and 257 reviews, with 4.9+ overall rating and I’ve built my profile through years of actual work and effort. Yet now I barely receive orders (once in 6 months may be), sometimes I don’t even receive messages from potential clients and somehow I’m the one being told that I need to “prove” that I have what it takes.

What makes this even more frustrating is that Fiverr keeps changing and playing with the Level system on its own. Your level can be affected by metrics and changes to the platform that are largely outside your control, and then you receive an email telling you to “get back on track.”

Back on track to what? Getting orders that simply aren’t coming?

And then there’s the wording:

“We’re giving you a grace period.”

“Prove what we already know.”

“It’s crunch time.”

The tone is honestly ridiculous.

I’ve spent years building my reputation on this platform. I’ve delivered hundreds of orders, dealt with clients, revisions, deadlines, and all the usual challenges of freelancing. And after all that, Fiverr can essentially change the rules, affect your level, leave you without orders or messages, and then send you a motivational email telling you that you have 30 days to prove yourself.

It doesn’t feel motivating. It feels disrespectful.

The worst part is that the email is written as if Fiverr is generously giving sellers another chance, when sellers are the ones doing the actual work and generating the business for the platform.

Maybe I’m too frustrated about it, but after years on Fiverr, receiving something like this genuinely feels arrogant and completely disconnected from the reality of being a seller.