Seven Important Questions To Ask Yourself Before Accepting A New Role
Summary
Deciding whether to accept a job offer goes beyond pay and perks. It involves considering critical aspects that shape a satisfying career. Questions to ask include understanding work expectations, the potential career path, and office culture. Evaluating the company's value system and whether it aligns with your own is vital. Assessing the personalities that thrive in the company's environment is important to gauge your fit. Consider the commute to the workplace, as travel time can impact productivity. Lastly, ensure your work desk is conducive to productivity and equipped with necessary tools. Weighing these factors helps make an informed decision about accepting the offer.
Table of Content
You got yourself an interview. You prepared and appeared for the interview. You landed the job. You have the offer. Congratulations! You are in a position that is enviable for many people out there. Now comes the tricky question of whether you should accept the offer or not. Naturally, there are factors that you need to consider. Pay scale, perks, and promotions are just some of the questions that arise. There are more critical aspects that go a long way in building a satisfying career. Let’s look at these critical questions.
What kind of work expectations does your new role involve?
This is an immediate and imperative question that you need to answer for yourself. If you don’t have all the answers, then get to know the answers from your probable hiring manager. The expectations from your role are the ones that will shape your new job. It is important for you to understand your abilities with respect to these expectations. It is also important for you to know what the key outcomes are expected from you for the first quarter. This will set the path for the times to come in the role.
What kind of a career path opens up for you with this role?
Once you are clear about the expectations from your role, the next important question to ask yourself is the kind of career path that will be open for you if you continue in this role. Career advancement options are a big push when it comes to consistent performance. It is important to understand whether such options exist and, if they do, the accessibility of such options.
Does the office culture of my future employer help me grow as a professional?
All kinds of studies confirm that 80% of our active adult life is spent in the office. We spend more hours with our colleagues than with our family. Most career-changing and career-shaping decisions take form in your workspace. A conducive work environment with amiable colleagues is a big bonus. Get to understand the following regarding your new employer:-
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Does the work culture of the new employer allow space for you to grow professionally?
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Is the work culture supportive of your inherent strengths?
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Does the work culture promote a spirit of ownership along with teamwork?
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Is the work culture supportive of employee engagement beyond work deliverables?
What kind of value system drives your future employer?
For some of us, values are an anchor in everything we do. For instance, if you are a vegan, working in a meat processing unit is simply out of the question, even if the best career development options exist. It is important to understand what core values drive a company. Do those values match your values, or do they contradict? This is mighty important to answer for yourself because there is no way you will perform at your best if you are internally divided on value systems.
What kinds of personalities thrive in your new company?
Each company has a certain environment that will allow certain people to grow. Not everyone is made for all kinds of environments. Get to understand from your interviewing managers the kind of personalities that will thrive in a place like that of your new employer. The answer to this question will help you understand the kind of discussions that will dominate your workplace. An important factor to consider when signing up for a new role.
Does the commute to and from the workplace work out for you?
This might not be the most upfront question that will come to you when weighing your job offer. But, the amount of time taken to travel to and fro from your place of work is an important factor. Travel time can be a huge drain on productivity. It is an important question you need to ask yourself. If the travel works in your favor, then you not have much to worry about. In case the travel is too much, then the next best option is to move closer to where you work. Such a scenario demands extra expenses. You need to do an assessment of the opportunity you have in the form of the offer vis a vis all these extra factors.
Where is your place of work exactly?
Last but really not least, where is your work desk going to be exactly? Imagine working in two by two cubicles with hardly any ventilation for the whole week. That is not an aspirational place to work from. Your employer might not be able to provide you with a seaside view but should be able to give you a work desk with all the things needed for you to start working. There are instances of people who join a company only to use the first week to consolidate their work tools from various departments. This is not an encouraging start.
Do ask yourself these pertinent questions. They will help you decide beyond the dollars and help you build a career.
