I recently worked with a client who was then job hunting. This particular client had a need to find a job in order to get out of a hostile work environment. But the client did not want to accept  a job offer just because they needed to leave the current workplace.

There are three things I asked this client to do when evaluating job offers. I will share them with you.

Write Down the Pros and Cons

The first thing you want to do is write down the pros and cons of the offer. When looking at the pros and cons think about the benefits, location, vacation, bonus, cost of living adjustment, signing bonus as well as salary. You can look at other variables too.

These are the most common areas to review to measure one employer against another employer. But here are a few others that many people miss. Company culture, ability to be promoted, diversity within the organization in upper management, and  location of the facility. These are often thought about after accepting an offer and an employee realizes they didn’t make the right decision.

Write Down Your Goals

The next thing you should do is write down your goals. I know you’re like, “Why would I write down my goals when considering a job offer?” You need to know if your goals are in alignment with this job offer. Your goals which focus on personal relationships, career growth and finances should be at the top of your list. If you have other goals which are extremely important to you, they need to be assessed too.

Many people do not have written goals. When you don’t have written goals they are just dreams without deadlines. What do I mean? Unless you are intentional about reaching your goals they are truly dreams. They are no different than what you see at night while asleep.

In order to change a dream to a goal you must be intentional. This means writing it down, adding a future target date to complete it and actively working on it daily.

I have worked with a client on his goals. I’ve had him put a deadline to reach them. I also advised the client to come up with solutions or workarounds to reach goals which have barriers. Why?

Many times we stick to one solution to a problem. In reality, there are several different methods to reach your goal. Sometimes we have to take the road less traveled in order to reach our goals.

Follow Your Gut

Lastly I told the client to follow their gut. What did their instincts tell them about the job offer? If their body, their instincts told them, it was a bad offer, then trust their instinct. Trust it was not a good move to make in your career.

The client made a decision. Then asked me what I thought of the decision. All I can respond with was, “If you’re happy with the decision, then I’m happy with the decision.” The client insisted that I state whether or not I would’ve done the same. I explained that my experiences, goals, needs, and pros and cons are different than his. So my decision would have been based on them and may have resulted in a different decision.

How do you evaluate job offers?