Accepting the right
offer
You are sitting at home, looking at three offer letters on
the table, and you are struggling to pick just one. What to do? It’s a great problem to have but
the wrong decision could be the worst decision of your life.
The key to making the right decision is preparation and that
begins the very moment you start your search. Let’s take a look at a few simple
steps that will allow you to make the right choice for yourself.
Why are you looking?
Whether you are unemployed, unhappily employed or blissfully
employed the reasons that motivate you to find the right job should depend on
what you want in your next job. In your current or last role, you will need to
identify what you liked and disliked about your position. Make a list and order
them from the most important to the least. When listing your dislikes, you will
also wish to state how would like that particular part of your job to improve.
You may have a long commute now and wish to have a shorter one in your next
job. You may be working with limited resources and may want to make sure that
your next employer invests in resources and technologies that will allow to be
successful in your next role. You might like the mentorship you are receiving
now and want to ensure that your next opportunity offers a similar learning/development
environment. Essentially, what you are looking to achieve, is a short list of
three of the most important things you would like to see in your ideal job.
This short list will be critical in determining what job is best for you. This
is your “top three”.
Money should never be
a reason
This may seem backwards but it is not. Money should never be
a motivating factor during your job search.
(That being said, when comparing multiple offers, each promising your “top
three”, then money does become an important differentiator.) Many have the made
the mistake of taking a higher offer whilst convincing themselves that they can
live without one of their “top three”. Remember the old adage,” Money can’t buy
you happiness”? It could not have a stronger meaning in the professional world.
Pros and Cons list
For each position you interview, build a Pros and Cons list
as you go through the interview process. This will allow you to do a number of
things. Firstly, it is a simple way of checking whether or not the opportunity matches
your “top three”, secondly, it allows you to ask the right questions during the
process so that you have a better understanding of the position and what it
would mean to you and, lastly, when you are comparing, similar opportunities,
this may be the only way you may be able to separate them.
Talk to Family and
Friends
Now I say this with caution. At the end of the day, you have
to pick what is best for your situation and the input of others may not always
be in that interest. Be sensible about whom you approach and from whom you seek
counsel. When making a decision about
your search, or even when accepting an offer, you must speak to those who will
be most affected by such a decision. Your next job could affect the dynamics of
your personal relationship, it could mean relocating or it could mean more or
less time with those who mean the most to you. Don’t leave this discussion to the eleventh hour
because it will give those that matter little time to really absorb the impact
of your choice. As a result their response may be a knee-jerk reaction based on
emotion and not rationale.
Ask for another
conversation
So you liked many of the people you had met with during the
interview process but for some reason you didn’t understand what the main
stakeholder really expected from the person who would step into this role. Here
is when you ask for another conversation. It is important to understand the
relationship you will have with the new employers. You will need to have a good
understanding of their expectations and you must feel like there is some
working chemistry. If the employer is not open to you having an additional
conversation, whether it is in person or over the phone, then that is not the
place for you. Just remember that as much as you’re interviewing for a role at
their organization you are also vetting them for your services.
Research
This is entirely your responsibility. You must research as
much as you can about the company you are considering and that should start prior
to you submitting your application. The internet is a wonderful thing and you can discover almost anything
about a company. You can use tools like linkedin.com , zoominfo.com, press
releases and publicly available financials to gather sense of the company’s
profitability, sustainability, stability and culture. Using certain sites you
can get a sense of what the turnover at the organization is like. Don’t be afraid
to reach out to a former employee of that organization to learn a bit more.
Before the final
interview
At this point you should know that you are ready to take the
job. You should know what compensation will be acceptable to you. You should
know when you will be ready to start. Based on what you have learned thus far
from previous interviews and the research that you have done, you should be
confident that this position is the right one for you. Go in with the mindset
that you want this job and that you will be successful in this role. A strong
final interview will make your future employer confident that they are making
the right choice and they, in turn, and will give you a stronger offer.
Finding a new job is a stressful experience but, with
preparation, accepting the right offer may turn out to be less daunting.
