Accepting a Job Offer

Points to Consider Before Making a Decision

You need to consider several points before accepting a job offer. Most importantly- Do you want this job?

If the answer is YES. Great!

You can jump to my page on how to accept a job offer.

If you are not sure that this is the job for you read on!

So you have spent many weeks, if not months, searching for your perfect job. You are now at the most fun and stressful part- evaluating the job offers.

If you have been searching for a job for an extended period of time your first instinct may be to accept any job-even if it is not what you have hoped for.

Or you may be tempted to turn down a great job solely based on compensation.

The decisions you make at this time are very important to your career. So take the time to fully evaluate the job before accepting a job offer.

1- Is this the job you want?

Do you enjoy the field of work?

Do you like the company atmosphere?
This is not just a question of how the office looks. More importantly, how does staff interact? Do they look happy? During the interview process make sure to pay attention to the company’s employees. You can tell a lot about the company atmosphere by observing and asking a few questions to the staff.

Will you be challenged/excited to work there?
The main complaint of employees is that their job is too routine and does not utilize their full capabilities. Will this job be challenging for you? Does it offer you the possibility to advance?

Are the work hours/ load manageable?
Will you need to travel? How far to you live from work? Is flex time available? Is overtime expected? Reimbursed?

Does your prospective manager seem like the type of person you want to work with/for?
We spend most of our waking hours at work. It is important that we like the people we work with! Your boss will set the tone for your job.

3- Does the financial compensation meet your expectations?
Okay, this is there many candidates get nervous. The most important point is to know what you are worth and what your salary expectations are. You are in the best position to negotiate if you know what your industry salary structure is before going into salary Negotiations.

What do you do if the potential employer says that salary is non-negotiable?

Well, that depends on many aspects.

a. How badly do you need the job?

b. Are you salary demands reasonable for that type of job? i.e. You may have been making $60,000 as a sales manager in company X. However, you are applying for a sales representative job in company Y. Therefore, the job level of payment would not necessarily be equal to your previous salary just based on job qualifications/level of work.

c. Do other benefits out-weigh the lower salary? e.g. Opportunity for advancement, working hours, location, car allowance…

d. Remember even if salary negotiation is not possible, there are other areas that are negotiable.

See Salary Negotiation Tips page for a list of other negotiable items.

Finally, you can ask for an evaluation and salary review after 6 months. A salary review implies that there could be an increase in salary based on good performance. Or, you could ask for a bonus system that would be based on attainment of objectives.

View a sample Letter to Negotiate a Raise

Keep in mind that it is important not to compromise too much. Starting a job at a salary that you are strongly dissatisfied with will only lead to long-term frustration and may ultimately result in poor performance. Take the appropriate time to evaluate all aspects before accepting a job offer.

If you ultimately decide that this job is not for you follow these guidelines to successfully decline a job offer

View a sample Job Acceptance Letter.
Learn how to manage multiple job offers.
Return from Accepting a Job Offer to Finding the Perfect Job Home Page.