Take the first job – or wait?

It’s a classic job search dilemma: If you’re just starting your search and someone offers you a job, should you accept?

Perhaps the answer seems obvious, particularly with the recent recession so fresh in mind: Take the money and run! But wait. What if you’re not sure it’s the right amount of money for the work involved? Or what if you don’t feel confident you’ll do the job well, or that you’ll like it?

Or maybe – and this is the one that will drive you crazy – maybe a better job is just around the corner. How do you know you’re not being rash?

For the most part, I have a standard answer to this round of queries: “You don’t know. Get over it and take the job.” Of course, since I’m a counselor, I’ll usually say that more nicely. My perspective is shaped by having had more clients over the years who regret not taking an early offer than clients who regret jumping too quickly. On the whole, people seem to fare better with an ill-fitting job than they do with extended job searches.

On the other hand, what if I’m wrong? Just to be sure that I’m responding with care and not from habit, I have my own queries for job seekers facing this dilemma. And surprise: Every once in a while, the answers tell us that waiting for something better is the strategic choice, rather than taking the bird in hand.

In case you’re wondering, here are the questions I use for this situation:

1. Can you afford not to take this job? To find out, you need to look at both your cash flow and your liquid assets. Cash flow encompasses any income you anticipate over, say, the next three to six months. Liquid assets usually means your savings.

The crux of the question: Can you meet your bills if you don’t take this job?

2. How will it affect your family if you don't take this job? It's a harsh reality, but you should expect that your family would rather see you working at the wrong job than not working at all. It's not that they want you to be unhappy. Rather, it's that they can actually see your unhappiness when you're unemployed. When you're unhappy at work, that's less visible. Plus, it usually makes something else easier at home if there's more money coming in the door.

The crux of the question: Will it cause tension at home if you don’t take this job? How will you explain your decision?

3. How will it affect your state of mind if you don't take this job? If you're currently working in a toxic situation, then turning down an opportunity might be akin to waving off the rescue ship when you're stranded on a deserted island. Expect a feeling of let-down to ensue. Likewise, if you're unemployed, it might be difficult to come to terms with letting an option slip past. Some people do fine with being out of work while others experience an erosion of self-confidence with each passing month.

The crux of the question: How long can you go before your current situation wears you down?

4. Will you get another, presumably better, offer? Naturally, this is the question most people would like an affirmative answer to before they make this difficult decision. And of course, that's the answer that can't be guaranteed. If you have other possibilities in the pipeline, it may be easier to justify saying no to this one. Or, if yours is a field with a lot of hiring activity, it's a logical assumption that more offers will be coming along.

The crux of the question: How much effort are you willing to put into your search to ensure a variety of new offers?

When the answers to these four questions align just so, I can agree with turning down the offer. Even so, my bias will be to advise the candidate to accept the position. Why? I’ve learned that what sometimes holds people back isn’t actually job-related. For example, someone may tell me they’re just not ready to go back to work yet. Or perhaps the commute for this job is particularly unappealing.

Whatever the issue, there’s a magic solution: Negotiation. It might not work, but then again, it might. If the terms of the job can be improved enough, the decision will become clear. And if the terms can’t be improved, then the decision will also be clear. That’s what I mean by magic.