Congratulations, you’ve got yourself more than one job offer and finally, your hard work paid off!
You’ve got yourself noticed because there’s something right about you and your resume. Still, you have to decline one of those offers because you have to choose the best job for yourself.
Be nice to people in the world of work.
The best method to decline the offer is to be nice and polite. Please don’t send a WhatsApp message or an email to the employer whose offer you’re going to decline. Here’s why it’s unprofessional and shows that you:
a) Don’t really care about the job offer and the understanding that has been achieved between yourselves.
b) Not willing to converse directly and answer questions.
c) Most importantly, you don’t care or don’t understand about having relationships and networks.
Keep the relationship open.
The employer took interest in you and interviewed you a few times, and perhaps it was at a final stage where you were going to be hired.
So here is what you should do instead:
a) Call them and talk to them personally.
b) Keep the relationship open as having contacts and networks with people in industry is extremely beneficial.
The employer got to know you and believed you were the best fit for the job, but now you’re going to turn them down. Say it politely like this.
“I really want to be in this company but at this moment, I feel I need to go over here. I do hope you understand. Thank you for the time and opportunity you gave me. But one thing, if we do meet each other in the future and our paths happen to cross again, I do hope you will consider me again. I do like your company and what you do so I would like to keep this relationship open.”
If you do it this way, it will tell the employer what a good professional you are. Keeping and building beneficial relationships are the very essence of “business continuity”. What do we mean by this?
Let’s look at a smaller example. A coffee shop owner has his own stream of loyal, regular customers. They have known each other for years. It’s the loyal relationship that has kept the business going for decades. It’s the same in any size of business. The relationship with suppliers, customers, and employees are what keep the employer’s business human onward. When an employer finds a best fitting employee for a role, he will keep an eye open.
Perhaps many months down the road, your employment with the company that you chose to work with does not work out or some circumstances cause you to get retrenched. Now you can pick up the phone and call your previous connection. Chances are, they might consider you again and what’s better, you have many months of experience!
In a few days, you’re employed again because of what you initiated months before when you said,
“I would like to keep this relationship open”.
So, there you go. Things like this happen all the time in the world of work. People come and go, but good and smart people keep relationships and connections going. Having and maintaining industry connections is your Plan B for all seasons. There’s always someone you can get in touch with for a job without going through the regular application process. That’s the advantage.
Good luck to those who are looking for a job. Don’t forget to connect with our Recruitment Advisors for more career tips and advice!
