Monday, November 21, 2011
How to Decide When to Turn Down a Job Offer
Lifehacker: Jobs are scarce these days, but barring a survival situation, getting a new job offer doesn't automatically mean you should accept it. Even if you've been interested enough in a company to apply and go on an interview, when it comes time to sign on the dotted line, you should take time to consider whether or not this job is actually right for you.
Subscribe to:
Post Comments (Atom)
18 comments:
I am always kinda amazed by how much of what Lifehack says just comes off as things people should know. Maybe I am spoiled with having a class like PTM Professional Practices, but every point this article raises seems like things that any intelligent person should and would consider when looking at a job offer. There's more to every job then just the salary, and often it's not the pay that can make the job hell or not.
These are important points to make, and sometimes it is important to look back at these points, although they may seem basic, because the pressure of not wanting to say no can really get to a person. It's good that this also provides resources that can help a person make sure they are being paid in the correct range, especially for people who are new to a field and have nothing to compare an offer to.
I agree with Charley. Sometimes I feel like a lot of these articles are common sense. That doesn't mean that reinforcement does not help, but one should always be looking for jobs, even if you have an offer. Having multiple job offers means that you can have some leverage at the negotiation table. Especially when negotiating your salary, benefits, moving expenses, etc.
This article, though largely common sense, is particularly applicable to us as college students who often times are looking into internships that do not pay well at all. When looking at these internships, the things that are included, the hours and output expected, and the educational and political value received tend to be the deciding factors, and are indeed why so many unpaid internships are flooded with applicants.
Additionally, the tip at the end of the article about a job interview being two-way is one that we all too often overlook in today's scramble to get any work available.
Because I am particularly new to the job hunt/ internship process, this article seemed an important one to be reading, whether or not the points made should have already been store as common sense. I guess that with time- such facts should be give ins- but I viewed this article as an important reminder not to jump at a first job opportunity, no matter how exciting it may seem. I also found it interesting how heavily emphasized the importance of meeting potential co-workers was during the job application process- something that could be overlooked but still also very telling of a job's credibility.
Daniel and njwisniewski point out how important all the facets of the job you're actually doing (projects, co-workers, job title and name strength) become the primary motives in the selection of internships when pure salary gets dropped out of consideration. However, the notion of a two-way street is not necessarily so accurate when most of those factors are intangible and cannot be negotiated to the extent that a salary can. It's important to keep in mind your different alternatives, weigh the pros and cons and potentially realize that the internship you fought for may not be the best option at this time. Yes, common sense, but a very bitter pill to swallow in a time when getting any job may be worth as much celebration as getting your dream job.
LifeHacker seems to just writes articles that are often too common sense to write about. As Charley mentions, having classes like PTM Professional Practices gives us a head start on some of this basic information. Though much of what is listed, pay, benefits, travel, vacation, etc, all seem like pretty reasonable items to compare. All the other questions also seem like pretty common knowledge questions once you have been at the job hunting game long enough. These are all good reminders before you take that first plunge and learn from your mistakes.
Another interesting article to read, that may be posted to this blog later, is about finding where to apply in the first place based on where your interests, skills, and opportunities meet. http://www.fastcompany.com/1796688/work-smart-finding-the-overlap-where-great-things-happen?partner=rss&utm_source=feedburner&utm_medium=feed&utm_campaign=Feed%3A+fastcompany%2Fheadlines+%28Fast+Company+Headlines%29
Daniel makes a great point about internships. I have begun thinking about this for the summer and I get so confused by the process. I forget to realize sometimes that I don't have to take the first offer that is sent my way. Much of my time this year has been spent on constantly thinking about what assignment is due next and what am I going to do after this is done that I forget to think about myself and what I actually want. Im very glad I read this article. It reminded me to stay focused and be true to yourself!
This article is great with a lot of great points. I wonder if when you ask all of these questions and meet with all of these people if companies sometimes push back and will definitely not hire you ever after this. Then that is a company that you probably don't want to work for if they are not that open to their workers needs and wants. The fact that if a company can’t give you the pay that you want, try to get some more vacation time and if they are offering you the job they want you to come and work for them. I wonder if companies read this and are like this is not at all how we work things but we are going to start to work this way.
By the time I finish college I will have so much debt with student loans I will probably have to take any job I can. That said, the pay, benefits, travel etc. all seem like things to consider, but for me, the big question is "Will I be happy?" Is this job something I can see myself doing day after day week after week and will I enjoy that time or look longingly to the weekend. If I am living my life hoping for time away from my job, it is probably not the right thing to do. I could do that now without being in debt for college. Thinking about this scares me, but it is something that must be considered.
There are a lot of jobs out there that look very good in an offer letter, but when you see what's actually going to happen it's a very different story. I've had jobs that I enjoyed doing but wouldn't pay the bills any longer, and I've had jobs that paid more than I thought I'd ever make at the time that turned out to be less than I expected in the end (including one where my employer with only a few hours notice asked everyone to come in early on a Saturday morning wearing work clothes (not office work clothes, but shop work ones) to help him to move the office to a new location, and as we found out on Monday, also a new phone number and company name. While I'd hope that companies that pack up and disappear to try to avoid creditors and former customers are a rarity, it's still something that you can run into. Maybe more than an interview with the company itself is needed, perhaps interviewing the company's clients and suppliers might be useful as well.
Yay for common sense. So yes, I agree that when you are making a decision about what you want to do with your life you need to weigh all the important elements that go into that decision, as this article told me to do. Great. But I think what is more important, is knowing how long you will be in that position. For a lot of us young professionals in this industry, we will be going from gig to gig for a while (I'm anticipating, maybe over-generalizing). But if I need to pay rent and bills this month, I'm going to take a gig that may not be my first choice, but that I have to take to get by this month. Thankfully, we are in the position of rapid turn-over, so once this gig is over in 3 months, I will be able to have something that may make me happier, while getting bread on the table.
I agree with everyone else that these all seem like points that people should know, but I feel like when you are going through the stress of trying to get a job, it is easy to forget these "obvious" points. I think that when you are in a position where you really need a job, it is easy to give up things that you normally wouldn't just for the comfort of having a job. Something just looking good on your resume is not enough for it to be a job to go for. People spend so much of their time at work, so they should be happy and content with what they are doing.
These are topics that I am noticing more and more throughout my classes this year. While a job may look good on paper, especially in regards to salary, we should never rule out the cost of living of the city where we will be working and benefits we are getting with the job. These considerations are definitely easier to make when comparing multiple job offers, but I think the real challenge would be having only one job to choose from, and having to decide whether that job is acceptable, or if you should hold out to see if other offers come down the line. That is a decision that many of us as new graduates will not have the experience in making.
So, all the other comments on here are saying how great all of these suggestions are, and for the most part I would agree. Unfortunately, sometimes for the jobs in our fields these don't always apply. With so many people in our field freelancing and going job to job, you don't really get the luxury of vacation or sick leave. And although the article states "assuming you're not in a survival situation where you have to take whatever job offer comes your way", more and more that IS the case, especially for new graduates that don't have much else to go on. Though when you are in a position to be pickier about your selection, this is a good reference to come back to.
This article is addressing a real problem, especially because in this job market we're all likely to apply to a whole lot of jobs at one time because the success rate is so low. But none of these tips are really all that useful I feel. I know how to compare all of these tangible parts of different jobs, but it's much harder to compare the less tangible, more personal aspects of a job. Where would you be living? What opportunities for growth are there? Is this the kind of job you can leave at work or a life-consuming type of job? Is that worth it? Are you going to make friends with the folks you work with or is work life going to be completely seperate?
When I was fresh out of undergrad I took every job offered to me that I could. I didn't worry about pay or vacation, or even who my manager would be. I was just trying to get my foot in the door, but now, I am very concerned with all of these factors. I enjoyed this article. There where many things that I employ in my life, but I have always been concerned that I am caring about the wrong things. It is very difficult to turn down a job, but it is true that you need to do the right thing for yourself.
I hope everyone has the luxury to take the advice that this article has to offer. At the risk of sounding dour, I think this article is addressing a small demographic of today’s job seekers. In today’s economic climate, more if not most of the people I know are taking whatever employment they are offered, and not risking negotiating benefits for fear of loosing the job. Now, that isn’t to say that all the advice listed here is not appropriate. It certainly has educated me some topics that I never gave much thought to, like sick leave and unexpected travel responsibilities. The article also addresses the need to be confident in your abilities so that you can have leverage in negotiating any of the benefits that the employer is offering with the job. I hope that with the degree I earn I am one of the privileged few who are given the opportunity to scrutinize my job offers.
Post a Comment