I'm somewhat ashamed to admit that I didn't follow my own advice here, but it may help someone else make a better choice.

Don't sign a retention agreement that requires you to pay back money to the company should you choose to leave early. Unless you're a psychopath probably (or an economist), that's going to set up some costs in your biased human mind that are way imbalanced between you and the company. at the very least, if you go for this, negotiate better terms than I did--I agreed to two years for what amounts to barely more than two months salary *if* I stick it out, besides the opportunity cost for what I could be making elsewhere.

If I do switch before the term is up, there's the slightly uncomfortable option of negotiating with my next employer to make up the difference in paying back my current employer. It seems pretty doable if I go to a similarly sized company, but it's a hassle for not all that much money relatively.
#career #work