What do I do??
Posted
Wednesday, November 28, 2007 5:56 PM
So, I went for that third "interview" this morning, and the guy offered me the job. Description-wise, it fits where I should be at this point in time. It's not a pay increase, in fact, it's a little bit of a cut from where I was when I left my old job to move to Wisconsin. And, the owner (who I'd be reporting directly to) seems to be a bit of a jerk, and kind of full of himself. Direct quote from today's meeting: "I'm a know-it-all, and I like to tell people what to do." (This is probably why he started his own company, rather than working for someone else.) On the plus side, he said his goal for me was to sharpen my skills and knowledge, eventually making me able to meet with any client at any time, which would be cool.
The biggest catch? I'd have to sign a 'not-to-compete" form, which would prohibit me from working at any other PR/Ad agency within 60 miles for an entire year. That's a long time. And, I know other people in the PR field have jumped from agency to agency, so I have doubts about this being an industry standard. (Granted, I could take a job in a corporate or non-profit setting, but those jobs seem to be few and far between in this area, at least from what I've seen so far.)
I asked him if I could take a couple days to think about it, and he replied, "Well, I think you make a decision tonight, but I'd give you until Friday. But, if you let me know on Friday, I'd expect you to start Monday."
WHOA. Monday?! One of my best friends is coming into town from NY on Saturday and staying until Tuesday. I'm not about to give up time with her for a new job. I explained the situation and asked if that was something we could work around. He said, "Well, now you're asking me for something else. If you let me know by Thursday and start Friday, then you could take Monday off."
I told Andy about all of this, and he thinks the guy is too demanding, and will make me work late all the time, and just isn't a good fit, personality-wise. He really doesn't want me to take the job. I'm hesitant to turn down a job, just because I haven't gotten any other offers. And who knows, the guy could just be bad at first impressions/interviews.
Further throwing a wrench into things - the contact from the temp agency I met with a month or so ago left me a message today. She has a temporary job in customer service open. It fits into our travel/holiday vacation needs (it'd be from the 3rd to the 18th). In her message, she said it'd be enough to "earn some cash for Christmas."
So... what do I do? Do I turn down the "real" job, especially since Andy doesn't have a good feeling about it? Is the temp job God's way of saying "don't worry about the money, take your time, find the right job, TRUST ME?" Argh! I hate grown-up decisions. What do you think? What would you do?