Decisions, decisions....

[norrahe]

Hmmm!

Major dilemma.

Just got an e-mail to say I've been selected for cloggy masterchef.

Thing is, they require a full time commitment for filming for nearly 4 months starting in January.

Current project goes live in mid Jan with next phase kicking off asap afterwards. Gig ends in Jan but clientco have already been asking me if I want to stay on so they can factor me into next years budget.

Mr N still hasn't found a new job (he was seriously ill last year and didn't get renewed in his permie gig) and after this years extended bench time my warchest will not be in the position I'd quite like it to be.

There's also the problem of then having to find another gig which in the current market may take fecking ages if I get booted off in the early stages of the competition.

Am erring on the no side, have told them I'll need to think it over given the level of commitment they require.

Am opening up the floor to the general populous, so feel free to flame, poke fun or offer relatively sane advice.

[NotAllThere]

You're unlikely to get an opportunity like this again. I say do it, if at all possible. If you've good personal relationships with your client's staff and management, they're likely to be supportive.

[mudskipper]

Any chance of deferring for a year? It does sound like an excellent opportunity, but won't put food on the table... (Well it will, literally, but you know what I mean!)

[Chuck]

Do well and it could change your life.

Do badly and you return to what you were doing before. Along the way you may have a life experience that you look back on in years to come with great fondness.

Do it. Life will find a way of working itself out.

[cojak]

You're unlikely to get an opportunity like this again. I say do it, if at all possible. If you've good personal relationships with your client's staff and management, they're likely to be supportive.

WNATS.

[northernladuk]

Well they film it well before airing. Shouldn't be hard to find someone completely unrelated to place enormous bets on who you know won. That should cover the loss of contract income.

[norrahe]

Any chance of deferring for a year? It does sound like an excellent opportunity, but won't put food on the table... (Well it will, literally, but you know what I mean!)

If I'd been in the gig longer and had a bigger warchest, irrespective of Mr N's situation, it would be a resounding yes.

I do know two previous finalists and over here it doesn't seem to be the big life changing experience that it is in the UK.

Problem is clientco manager is away for several weeks so won't have the opportunity to talk face to face about this. I suspect that filming will start before the gig ends and also before my first go-live date.

As for life changing events, you're also talking to the person who turned down a stage at the Fat Duck and has no regrets about it.

[vetran]

what a pain.

It seems like a once in a lifetime opportunity. Congrats on just being offered it.

Can you defer?

everyone beat me to it -> blasted work interrupting while editing response. This however is new!

[Antman]

We've just had Brendan Lynch (2012 bake-off finalist) judging cakes for our Macmillan bake-off. So, you know, think long and hard about it.

[norrahe]

You're unlikely to get an opportunity like this again. I say do it, if at all possible. If you've good personal relationships with your client's staff and management, they're likely to be supportive.

WNATS.

I seem to be doing well on the foodie opportunities as I'm already taking part in another national cookery competition at the end of this month. Originally thought it was just summat on facebook but it turns out that it was well publicised in many food magazines and tied in with an annual huge food event. so had loads of entrants.