Many of us have faced Monday mornings that inspire us to surf LinkedIn jobs on an incognito tab by Monday afternoon. At year-end, we often see an uptick in job searches, terminations and overall employment changes.

For those facing the prospect (or dream) of a new job in 2020, here are a few questions to consider before making the move.

Is it always about the green on the other side of the fence?

Theoretically, business coaches, job boards and advice columns tell us not to take a job just for the money. Practically speaking, almost all of us look first at pay when deciding whether to leave our current job and whether to take a new job.

That said, pay can only keep us so satisfied if our immediate supervisor is a jerk, the company is toxic, or the commute is brutal. When deciding whether to take a new role, how do we reconcile the need for pay with job satisfaction? It can help by thinking of what not to do.

The first mistake many people make is not having a clear grasp of their current financial situation.

Specifically, we should have a detailed financial map that includes everything from the minimum realistic amount of money we need every month to pay bills to the ideal amount we would like to have in retirement, by when and what that translates to in an investment plan today. With this information, we will be prepared to immediately understand the impact of a salary increase or decrease.

The second is thinking that anything we previously believed still holds true today. In other words, we may have been striving for a specific title, work at a certain company or minimum salary level.

The professional we were the last time we changed jobs or even last year is not the same professional we are now. As such, we need to recalibrate our goals and expectations.

Where are your peeps?

Sticking with the theme of what not to do, many of us often forget the importance of our work relationships. We should be paid fairly and have the opportunity to make whatever type of professional contribution is meaningful to us. However, both of those are heavily impacted by the people around us.

Whether it is the type of people drawn to the industry (think hedge fund investors vs. nonprofit activists) or the people in our field (accountants or IT); the people around us can make or break our daily lives. Like the financial assessment above, before taking a leap, we should take a look at our current professional circle and those in the new work environment and realistically assess whether we can see ourselves spending the majority of our waking hours with them.

The bottom line is that with the new year comes new opportunity. Before completely leaving behind 2019, if we take the time to create a realistic status report on our financial health, career goals and professional circle, we will be better prepared to decide whether seek, accept or decline a new role in 2020.