Where do you see yourself 5- or 10- years from now?

I finally heard back from one of the recruiters that contacted me earlier, and I'm having an interview with a potential employer in the next few days. I still need to read up on the company and prepare my questions. At the moment I'm not nervous. Maybe as the hour approaches I will be peeing multiple times in a span of 5 minutes. I think the job is something I can do well. I'm not afraid of the job. However, I'm hesitating because I will receive a 15% pay cut from what I'm currently getting. I know, I'm greedy but it will be a demotion. The contact person asked about that, would it be okay with me if the pay is lower than what I am getting now. I said my decision would depend on different factors not just the pay. It would still be alright, but 15% is still a huge amount of money I can save for retirement or maybe a space in a retirement home.

Another thought came, where do I see myself 5 or 10 years from now? I always dreaded that question. I honestly still don't know. I'm middle age already, and by this time a lot of my contemporaries are now managers, directors, heck-- even vice presidents. A few more years, some of them would become presidents or some kind of chief officers. I don't really aspire high positions, administration or management is not really my thing. I'm not a people person. I'm more of a technical person but even then I'm not really outstanding in my field. I only want more pay, of course, and not so much responsibility. Hah! But I would like continuous learning, where everyday I learn something new at work. I like getting challenged to do something more, to push my comfort zone little by little, and maybe take up a bit more responsibility. And to be honest, I'm getting all that from my current work. With all the people leaving, I'm getting opportunities to level up faster than I'd imagined. And if I'm being honest, I'm kind of liking it.

I'd consider this new employment a career change. I would be doing something "very different" from what I've been doing in the past 12 years. I'm always up for something different but how will this contribute to my career growth? Am I ready to let go of my specialty and dive into something new and become sort of a newbie again? Again, what are my career goals? How do I see myself 5- or 10-years from now?

I'm tempted to grab this job if they make an offer. I'm hoping it would provide more stability in my everyday life. I would get paid in a timely manner, I would not have to worry if my insurance will be accepted or not at the middle of the year or not worry if my retirement fund contribution is being remitted or not. That I would not worry that if I performed poorly that I will be fired. Or that I would be the only person left to work on the project because all my team mates have left. I do not think I can put a price into these peace of mind indicators.

We'll see, I haven't got the job yet. Maybe they won't like me, maybe they'd think I'm asking too much for what I can offer. How many times have recruiters contacted me this year and never hear from them after the interview -- at least 3 times now. I guess I'm getting ahead of myself. But I have to admit, I raised good questions and I'd better start thinking about what I want to do with my life. *sigh*