With more bad news from BBDO, The Richards Group and the entire media industry, the pink slip craze is alive and kicking. Layoffs still lurk on every corner. Hiring agencies are still hard to come by.
So if you’re fortunate enough to get a job offer, by all means, pop some champagne. Hundreds of thousands of us want what you’ve got. You are the few. The proud. The employed.
But let’s say, hypothetically, you lost your job in that last March wave of quarterly cuts. Over the course of the last few months, you may have picked up a contract gig or two, organically expanding your network while searching for a full time job. Maybe you connected with a project manager, and instead of solo freelance assignments, your team started getting gigs. Then, just as you were gaining momentum and feeling confident in your ability to earn a living (and dare I say, be happy), BLAM! … an agency fucks it all up with an offer.
What do you do? On one hand, you’ve proven to yourself that you are in control of your own livelihood. You’ve been able to thrive in one of the recession’s hardest-hit industries. Calling your own shots. Making your own hours. You are the few. The proud. The self employed.
On the other hand, a job offer gets you back in the game. Health insurance and paid holidays. Projects with creative opportunity and real budgets. Semi-predictable hours and frequent flier miles.
It’s a tough decision, but don’t allow either scenario to lull you into a false sense of security. Self employment is a hump. You have to hustle for every dollar, attend every networking event and glad hand every potential source of revenue. You’re only as secure as the amount of work you’re willing to put in.
Whereas full time employment is only as secure as your relationships and accounts. If nothing else, this recession has proved that quality of work is only one factor when deciding who gets got. Even if you take another full time job, odds are fairly certain that your new agency will have to make cuts during your tenure.
So pick your pois…er, opportunity. Personally, I’d rather rely on my own ability to generate revenue than on the whims of agency wins and losses. Sure, it’s a constant, frightening race against my dwindling bank account. And at the moment, self employment seems anything but secure.
But then again, neither is looking over your shoulder as one account after another pulls its business in house.
22 Comments
In most cases, I would not turn down the opportunity. It’s been an interesting 7.5 months for me on so many levels, since I’ve been laid 0ff. I think there are a few “justifiable” cases where one shouldn’t accept, but they are few and far between. I think if you’re capable and able to stay afloat with being self employed, than you should do it. Nothing’s better when you can control your own path. I hope to get there one day!
These days, you’re damned if you do and damned if you don’t. But, I can understand why you’d rather depend on your own ability to rain make rather than some faceless parent company. Hope plenty of work continues to come your way.
I happened to turn down a job offer a couple months ago. It wasn’t fun. But I think it was the right decision. Even with this crazy recession, I believe you should still think about your career and not short-term cash.
I think a job offer would have to pretty insulting for me to turn it down. Entry-level pay for senior responsibility, for example, would raise a flag straight away. Hiring managers should be careful not to make insulting offers, because it will mean that your new employees only view the job as temporary — they’ll continue to look for something better, especially when things turn around again.
But as someone who does a lot of my own production work, I would not accept a role that worked on a Windows-based shop. I’m sorry, but you have to have the right tools to hire the right people.
I’m on the the verge of turning down a job offer right now, for the very reason of senior responsibility for midlevel pay. It’s disgusting the things agency’s will do in these times. Like fake layoffs to bring in other people and lowballing salaries because, well, they can.
the team mentality truly is the way to go, when you stop being a payroll expense and start being a line item it’s easier to make do. freelancers are looked at as bodies, contractors are looked at as partners.
I was in this predicament recently and it is a tough call. Depends on your situation. If you’re broke, you may have to take it (been there and it sucks).
Here’s the worst advice I got, “Everyone who has a job is miserable, just take it.”
Didn’t agree with that logic, turned it down. And it was good money too.
Erik – this is exactly where I sit today. By reading some of the comments, I should just take the job and not look back.
But like you, I have the benefit of the last 4 months (complete with networking opps, enjoyable freelance projects and decent income) to put the job opp in perspective.
And – unlike some – I have the benefit of money saved away for a rainy day. Sure – severance & unemployment helped buffer the lack of steady paycheck, but I only recently realized just how critical it was to have savings. The minute I was laid off, I knew what my financial situation was— and that allowed me the ability to:
- give myself time to regroup
- think about what I really wanted to pursue
- spend time pursuing jobs that were right for ME
- remember what I was passionate about
- give myself the ability to negotiate salary and truly be able to walk away (I did once already)
- give my mind room to not freak out and become desperate
It doesn’t make this agency decision any easier, but gives me a little more time (and mindshare) to think evenly.
For the record – I’m likely gonna go back to the agency world for a little while. I still feel like I can influence positive change in the agency environment— and I really enjoy working with a team (not just doin my own thing).
Thanks for the posting.
PS – I’m the Anonymous poster who just wrote a novel. Doh – forgot to include details!
Take the job.
TAKE THE JOB!
Always. Quit in a week if need be. Leave it off the resume. Take their money, enjoy the weekends, look for something better, or build something better. Treat the check like an agency would treat you… a commodity.
Take the job… any job.
I totally disagree.
You never take a job just to take a job. Even in this economy. Because if you take a job at a crappy place, you could get stuck.
You’ll enjoy the regular paychecks. You’ll think things will get better. You’ll try to give it a shot. And then suddenly you’ll realize you’ve been there a year-and-a-half and you’ll have to try and explain in your next interview why you’ve been somewhere for 18 months and have nothing good to show.
And when good agencies start hiring, they’re not going to come looking for people at bad agencies. They’re going to get the word out into the freelance world.
I agree with MattM.
If there’s one thing I’ve learned with my forced-reflection-time, is that it is simply not worth the paycheck to be somewhere that isn’t a great fit. I have promised myself to look for things that allow me to stay the same me I have rediscovered over the past 6 months. I like that me a lot better (even with the money woes.) Life is too bloody short was my biggest lesson.
You didn’t really say if it was a good co. or not, just that you’re not sure reentering the agency game was the smartest move. I guess I’d say, if it doesn’t feel right enough for you to want to jump at the chance, then it probably isn’t.
Either way you can be flattered that someone wants to snatch you up in a time when no one is doing any snatching. Means you’re doing something right.
aaargh, the very question that’s been kiboshing a good night’s sleep lately. to take or not to take? how low do you go? is a sane, well-paying, perfectly nice client-side job acceptable while you wait out the storm, or is it the start of a career death spiral?
or is my ego just trumping common fucking sense? crap. it’s a hard one.
ADFOLK: Would you turn down a job offer now? :: http://tinyurl.com/ox8wrh :: [via @eproulx ~ PFTA!]
This comment was originally posted on Twitter
Wow, I’m surprised by the quantity and variation of comments here today. First of all, it’s encouraging to see so many people with the option. Even if the opportunities aren’t ideal, it speaks to your resourcefulness. And that’s the point…We are all resourceful, and we can give ourselves options. Even in this pigfuck of an economy. I would say that anyone who can get a job offer in times like these shouldn’t worry about making ends meet. You’ve already proved you can.
Great post. Excellent dilemma. Been there. Said no. Felt sick. Phone rang. More freelance. 15 years. Ups downs. Freedom flexiblity. “Security” Illusion. Listen gut. Always right. Trust/courage. Great assets. Be true. To you.
One other thing to share. Great 2 min. story on creativity in hard times.
http://www.37signals.com/svn/posts/1693-finding-creativity
Even if the job offered to you isn’t your dream job but still something acceptable to a degree (money, benefits, etc), I say you take it. If you end up hating it, you can always resort back to freelancing.
One thing we forget we possess is the power of freedom. We are free to leave any job, anytime, 1 day after we got hired or 1 year after we got hired, just like agencies are free to layoff anyone at anytime regardless of the employee’s talent and dedication.
Giddy Up,
You’re right, we do forget that power to leave. That’s because it’s ALWAYS harder to leave a job voluntarily for the seeming uncertainty of freelance. I’m only asking those who are experiencing some success as a freelancer to consider that they might just have what it takes to succeed on their own without the “sure” thing of a weekly paycheck. Because in reality, even a full time job is anything but certain.
A job is a job is a job. None of us would work a job if we didn’t have to. Just take the job and it’s (potential) security.
Writing is the only marketable skill I possess. I would write obituaries if it paid enough. I don’t care what I write. I write for money ‘cos I need money to live.
Fortunately, advertising pays for written words. And pays well. That’s the only reason I’m in this shit business. That’s why I’d take pretty much any job offered if laid off (and have in the past).