Week 2: How to find mutual ‘fit’ during a pressed timeline.

How to find mutual ‘fit’ during a pressed timeline.  

This week has delivered another lesson in this process of job search around the necessity to judge the company for which you are applying as much as they are assessing your application. In the beginning of this week, I made it to a final interview for an opportunity which would have generated freelance work to help provide some security and cushion during this transition time. However, during research about the company, I found that due to some of the services they provide I was not able to take the position for ethical reasons. While it was encouraging to reach the final stage of a hiring process, the fact I could not accept the position for moral reasons did color that achievement a bit. Googling the company you are applying to is probably a step to take before you submit your application, but I think my delayed background check is a reflection on the pressure of timing. While I am glad to have learned about the conflict before I accepted the position rather than after, it does plant seeds of doubt into my mind at my ability to judge an opportunity. I am grateful for this lesson but still am unsure of how well it can be applied given the remaining pressure of the need to find a position.

During this journey there have been many points of pressure both internal and external. One of the most pressing has been the matter of timing. As my master’s program is concluding at the end of this month, and there is the need to have the next opportunity lined up once the current one ends. Beyond the stress of the time constraints, I have found it has caused a bit of difficulty in fully assessing the appropriateness of opportunities. While I am not under the false assumption that your first job must be the ‘perfect fit,’ I do believe there needs to be some level of fit and interest. I wonder if like most things it is a balancing act between managing the practical aspect of timing and the proponents of fit. And after this week, and almost joining an opportunity which would have been a mistake in the long run, I feel I have leaned too far to one side. However how are such ‘fit’ checks supposed to happen over virtual postings and emails? Again, the question of connections arises and if that is what is needed to fully understand the employment process. It is difficult to accurately assess an opportunity or culture through a one-page job description and a couple Google searches. While the process is about convincing an organization that you are a fit for their company, how are applicants to assess their fit? Is such consideration important for such entry level positions or is it about trial and error? There is a lot of discussion about the projections that the younger generations will transition between jobs more than any time before, so do we just accept this and worry less about this concept of ‘fit’ or is there still any worth in taking time to find a company you could see yourself working for long-term. This is where the balance enters again. It sounds like a new way to approach the process to find that ‘fit’, but in a way that is a privileged position of someone who has time and money to take the time to find that position when in reality, the first viable position may be the most responsible action to take. While the experience I had this week is not an example of this because of the ethical component, the concept of ‘fit’ is one which may need to be sacrificed for the sake of practicality and realistic constraints.

It is continuously a balancing act where I doubt there is a true equilibrium possible. Decisions must be made as to what priority or focus must be sacrificed in favor of another. Though on this journey, and this week especially, I am learning that if you allow yourself to be pulled too far in one direction, you will soon be pulled back. I was also reminded this week that while applying in large numbers is important, it is just as important to ensure the applications are relevant and contribute to my larger goals. So, I push forward to another week a little bit wiser but with even more questions.