How Picky Should I Be When Deciding Whether To Accept A Job?

The Great Resignation is on. Workers demand more from employers, vote with their feet if they don’t get what they want, and are picky about what they do next. There is no worker shortage. There are too many bad jobs. If you’re a job seeker, your time is now.

You may feel like you’re missing out on this shift and leaving potential opportunities unexplored. How do you get a seat on this gravy train? During economic upturns and pro-labor job markets, it’s natural for restless professionals to wonder how green the grass is on the other side. If you join the ranks of professionals on the move, at some point, you will receive a job offer and face the dilemma – accept the offer or not.

Personal circumstances vary. Depending on your specific situation, whether or not to accept a job offer may be a super easy decision or one you struggle to make. Just because it’s a favorable job market today does not mean it will stay that way indefinitely. That adds pressure to each decision. You don’t want to squander the goldilocks timing, but you also don’t want to settle. Those days are over.

Let’s start with the most obvious factor. What is your financial state? If you’re sitting on a nest egg, you have more options and less risk than workers who live check to check. If that egg is big enough, you may want to be part of the Great Resignation and resign from the job you no longer want. Should you? If you jump instead of quit, you have the advantage of a job search while already employed. You have more bargaining power, you can leave your nest egg intact, and financial obligations will not have an undue influence on your decisions. You may have the latitude to be picky.

The next step is to conduct an objective assessment of your position in the job market. Yes, it’s ripe for professionals right now, but is it ripe for you? If you want to be picky about job offers, you need job offers! There are many ways to go about this, but to get the process rolling, you may consider these questions:

1.     What type of move do you want to make – upward, lateral, or a new field altogether?

2.     How much experience do you bring to the table?

3.     What are typical compensation packages for the job you want in your area? (Payscale.com)

4.     Will additional education help you reach your goals?

5.     What can you afford to do?

Your answers to the above questions should indicate how picky you can be when considering job offers. For example, if you are a recent graduate, you will judge a job offer with a different set of criteria than someone further along in their career looking to make a lateral move. A younger worker may sacrifice overall compensation for valuable professional development, whereas an established professional may weigh factors like work-life balance with more discretion.

Next, think about and write down what you want from a new job – salary, benefits, location, title – everything. If you’re feeling bold, rank them. Put any deal breakers at the top. When you get a job offer, compare the deal points to your list. Where does it fall? Where are the gaps? This practice may help you decide whether or not to accept, negotiate, or pass.

If an offer meets your initial list of expectations, weigh any mitigating circumstances. There always seems to be at least one major curveball. For example, relocation is a big one. Maybe your dream job is a 45-minute commute that impacts your child care. Or the offer is from a start-up. The work is challenging and exciting, but will the company be around in a year? These are the difficult decisions that carry inherent risks. There is no “right” or “wrong” answer.  

If a job offer makes it this far, it’s time to do a deep dive into the company. Even though the job market is dynamite right now and the press goes bonkers for every story about major companies increasing worker salaries and perks, bad employers have not gone away. Start with  Glassdoor.com and continue your research from there. Note positive feedback and red flags. Build a profile of the company.

Moving jobs is a major life-altering decision. From the employer’s perspective, hiring someone is a major company-altering decision. None of this is easy. Regardless of how picky you are about job offers, how you pass on one is critical. Your goal should be to keep the door open with the company, hiring manager(s), and recruiter ­– be polite and gracious. Even if you would never consider working for a particular business, you never know where the people with whom you’ve interacted will end up.

Be cordial, friendly, and professional. Whatever you do, do not ghost the company or send an impersonal email. If you get on the phone with the point person and have a well-thought-out and respectful discussion about your decision, your professional network and reputation will most likely improve. One day, the pendulum will swing back to employers, and it will be their turn to be picky, and if you treat everyone along the way with dignity and respect, it doesn’t hurt your standing.

Philip Roufail contributed to this article.

Scott Singer is the President and Founder of Insider Career Strategies Resume Writing & Career Coaching, a firm dedicated to guiding job seekers and companies through the job search and hiring process. Insider Career Strategies provides resume writing, LinkedIn profile development, career coaching services, and outplacement services. You can email Scott Singer at scott.singer@insidercs.com, or via the website, www.insidercs.com.