So you’ve been offered a new job but you’re unsure whether to take the plunge…here are 3 factors to take into consideration when making your final decision.

Have you been offered a new external role but are unsure whether to accept the position?

Are you procrastinating over the decision, weighing up all the possible pros and cons?

If you’re like me, you’ll always entertain the calls of recruiters to discover the external opportunities and determine your market worth.  For me, this has led to several moves across different companies throughout my career.  Whilst some of these moves were positive for my career, it is would not be an understatement to say that others were disastrous.

When I look back regarding the poor career choices I made, there was a niggling feeling in the back of my mind each time I put pen to paper to sign the contract.

In this article I will outline 3 factors that you should consider when deciding whether to accept a new external role.

1. What are your core values and how do they align (or misalign) with the new role and company culture?

How often do we pause to think about our most important core values? It is a key existential question but one which we often overlook. 

In truth, I only thought about this when I worked with a Career Coach in late-2021.  After a period of reflection and introspection I determined that my core values are Family, Health and Fitness, and Freedom.  And having clarity as to these core values has helped to direct my career going forward. 

In truth, I wish I had taken the time to figure out my core values earlier in my career.  How might they have shaped some of my choices?

My best personal example was the decision to accept an International Sales role in 2018.  The thought of Business Class flights and 5-star hotels in exotic destinations was alluring.  However, after logging 60 international flights in 6-months, I was exhausted and disillusioned.  I realise now that this was because each of my core values was severely compromised.

In that year I spent less time with my wife and friends, and the weekends in Southeast Asian hotels and airport lounges impacted my freedom.  This in turn meant I had less time to pursue one of my main life passions, Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu, which made me unhappy. 

Therefore, figuring out your core values is the first step.  The second step is to gain in depth knowledge of new role and company culture, and assessing how your values align.  How can you do this without actually doing the role first hand?

Whilst there is no substitute for physically experiencing the new role, you can get a good idea of what is expected of you and the company culture by asking the right questions in your final stage interview.  In Chris Voss’ fascinating book “Never Split The Difference: Negotiating As If Your Life Depended On It” he proposes that the best question to ask is: “What does it take to be successful here?”

If the answer to that question is individual tenacity, long hours and being able to influence the right senior stakeholders, then you might struggle if your values are similar to mine.  However, if your core values include Power, Money and Status then this could be a role and business in which you could thrive.  And it is important to note that there are no right or wrong answers regarding your values.  They will just help guide you to the right role for you. 

Another valuable resource to find out the unfiltered truth about a company’s culture is Glassdoor.  Just go to the Reviews section to see what the staff really think about working in that business and use that data to help fully inform your decision.

2. How much can you grow in this new role versus staying at your current company?

Perhaps you feel vexed about having to wait another 6-12 months in your current role before being promoted? I would say that this reason was the prevailing motivator behind most of my external career moves.

Once you have found out more about the role and the culture of the new business, ask yourself how much you can truly grow in the new role versus staying at your current company?

When you make any external move, there is a risk versus reward analysis that you must conduct before making your decision.  In the case of the new role, whilst you may get a bumper salary increase and shiny new title, there might be a lower ceiling for your overall growth in the longer term.  Perhaps the company is smaller, or the structure doesn’t allow frequent promotions?

Whilst you might be held back for another 12-months in your current role, there could be a clear succession plan to progress you much higher up company ladder.  If you have a strong reputation in your current business, you will have supportive senior stakeholders and mentors who will help you succeed.  It represents lower risk versus going somewhere new where you have to start from scratch to prove yourself. 

Playing the long game here is more likely to help you make the best possible decision.

3. Most important of all TRUST YOUR GUT.

Perhaps the most important factor in making your final decision to accept an external role is the least tangible of all: trusting your gut.

In this information age where we have so much data at our fingertips, intuition in the decision-making process is becoming undervalued.  Indeed, super-intelligent leaders with Hyper-Rational Saboteur traits (as defined by Positive Intelligence’s™ research and Saboteur Assessment) are celebrated by society.

However, in reality the most effective leaders in business trust their gut first when making decisions before using data to validate that choice.

You can access your intuition by playing the “Flash Forward” game and asking yourself: “If I flash forward to the end of my life, what would be the decision I wish I had made in this moment?” Having access to the wisdom of your Wiser Elder Self is so insightful because at the end of our lives we naturally distil all our choices down to what truly matter.

If there is anything about the new role or company which really doesn’t sit right with you, then it is probably not the right move.  I can point to two circumstances where I had such reservations: firstly, about my would-be manager’s aggressive and unprofessional leadership style, and on the second occasion the unfavourable company car scheme, which was only revealed upon receiving the contract.

In both of those cases, I went against my gut instinct and paid the price.  Make sure you trust those “Spidey Senses” and don’t make the same mistakes as me!

How building Mental Fitness can help you more closely align with your values and help your decision-making process.

The “Flash Forward” game that I described can be more easily accessed by building your Mental Fitness.  If you can make the shift to a more positive mindset, this will help you make better career choices.

As is true of any lasting habit change, this takes at least 6-weeks of intense work.  If you are interested in this game-changing program then take the Positive Intelligence Saboteur Assessment https://www.positiveintelligence.com/saboteurs/ and then book a free 30-minute coaching call with me at https://www.expcoaching.co.uk/ to find out more!