When the job offer doesn’t cut it
In my opinion, if you are presented with an inadequate job offer, don’t take it.
When I refer to an offer as inadequate, I do not mean that the offer is less than you want to make. I mean that the offer is less than you reasonably need to live on.
This actually happened to me. When I left school I took an inside sales job at a Fortune 500 company which was opening and office where I lived. I worked there for 6 weeks before I realized that I hated the job (not the company) so much that I had to leave. So I started looking for other jobs.
I quickly landed an interview with a small internet consulting firm. The interviews went very well and I was quickly presented with an offer. However, the offer was for 15% less than I was currently making, before I even factored in my current commissions. At the time, I was barely scraping by.
So I called the HR manager and explained the situation and what I thought was reasonable in terms of compensation (about the same as I was currently making with commissions). I was told that he would look into it and I never heard from him again.
Looking back on it, even though I hated my current job, it would have been far worse to get into a different job and not be able to live. If you end up in this position, explain the situation to the offering company. The worst that they can say is no. If nothing comes of it, hold out for a different job.
Agree? Disagree? Feel free to make your case on the comment boards.