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We established last month that leaving one job to get away from the idiots won't work: you'll just be in the middle of a new group of idiots. New
faces, same idiots, no improvement.
Let's assume you're being drawn to your new job, rather than running away from your old one. Life is more
pleasant when you run toward something rather than run away from something, but that's another column. What are you running towards?
More
money? Nah. Standard answer, but not the truth. Job satisfaction surveys never rate money as the primary reason for job happiness. If you say
"more money" automatically, you're covering up something.
Better working conditions? Nah. Too vague and wimpy. No better than getting
away from the idiots in your old job, only to find their evil twins in your new place. You're still covering.
Sales managers will tell you the
client's third objection is the real problem. The third objection counts. Your third reason for choosing your next employer will be the real one,
because you will get tired of covering and break down and tell the truth.
So, what is the big hook at your next job? Quick, answer before you
can make something up that's politically correct. Tell the truth, at least to yourself. No one will overhear.
Your answer will differ from mine
and the person's in the next cubicle. It doesn't matter if your cubicle neighbor thinks the reason is good, it only matters that you honestly feel the
hook pulling you to your next job is important--to you, not to anyone else. But it must really be important to you. Deep down, you must agree that this
is the reason you're going to the new company.
TechRepublic, the self-labeled "IT Community Hub" (www.techrepublic.com) asked their
readership for their preferred perks last fall. The results may surprise you, but remember this is a heavy technical crowd.
Their number one
favorite perk they wish they had? Six weeks vacation, without a pager. Personally, I believe the "without a pager" wish is more important
than the number of weeks. There is no joy in being beeped on vacation because some idiot vice president installed a game over some critical system
files and trashed Windows yet again.
If you live with a ball and chain pager, off time that is really off may pull you to a new job. That's
fine, and I understand. You're in good company, since many people want to be completely out of touch when out of the office.
Number two for
TechRepublic readers? Telecommuting, with a company provided high-speed Internet link. Seems odd, but the best reason for going to a new job may be not
going to work. As I look out my window this morning, I see sleet adding to the half-inch of ice already on the ground. Avoiding a commute, even now and
then, can be a valuable perk.
Number three was a "relaxed corporate culture." Not wearing a tie frees the blood flow to your brain
(that's true), and technical workers especially hate ties. Notice that only managers continue to wear ties after casual day expands to cover the entire
week. No wonder they can't think – their brains are starved (assuming they have brains, but even idiot managers can dress themselves, so they must have
some brains).
If my idea that the third reason or objection is the true one, then uptight corporate cultures with suits scare technical people
to death. Based on many of the technical people I know, I'd say that was true. Oft times techies in suits look like an organ grinder's monkey, with
hairy arms sticking out of an ill-fitting and ugly coat. Bad for viewer and viewee, so trash the coat and tie when possible.
Reason number four
strikes me as the best: continued education and certification training, paid for by the company. Providing continued technical growth for employees
makes good sense for companies, and technical workers are particularly scared of falling behind the technological curve.
Companies that
encourage education obviously want intelligent employees, and those companies tolerate employees with ideas. This trait rates high on my list of
desirables. I don't remember who said it, but one manager told me that "Every employee comes equipped with a brain at no extra charge."
What's the big hook at your next job? Sure, more money is nice, and leaving the current cast of idiots for a new cast is always fun, but there must
be more than that. A welcoming intellectual environment where ideas are appreciated is a rare but big hook (it would be for me), but that may also be
your hook.
Just make sure the hook for your next job deserves to hook you and will keep you hooked.
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