5 Little Lies Candidates Tells Themselves

If it’s important to you, you will find a way. If not, you’ll find an excuse. Unfortunately, sometimes a new candidate’s job search journey is detoured and derailed before it even begins. Why? Because of the candidate’s own worst enemy — themselves. Even though an employee has hit their tipping point in their job and are starting to think about “putting feelers out there”, some candidates will choose to listen to these little lies and validate the reasons to stay. Before they even give the search a try. Don’t be that guy.

There is no such thing as a list of reasons. There is either one sufficient reason or a list of excuses. There is always a perfectly good excuse, always a reason not to. — Robert Brault

Here are the 5 Little Lies a potential candidate will tell themselves on why they should stay in their current role…..

1. I’m bound to be promoted soon if I wait it out….

This might be true, a promotion might be on the horizon — but this also leaves a lot of false hope for candidates and is unfortunately more often unrealistic. The further up the totem pole, the less opportunity there lies. As an employee if you have started having thoughts about making a move, or at least exploring the possibility that there is something else out there for you — then the seeking new ventures cloud storm has already begun. I’ve seen candidates halt their job search with hopes that they would possibly get promoted, sometime in the future. I had one candidate years ago who was one of twenty mid-level managers (Big Pharma) who had aspirations to be a Director — a role held by just two people in their department. In reality there were no hopes of these roles opening, unless one of the two directors left or got promoted themselves. So with no talks of promotions and no opportunity to go up, he held onto the thought that “someday” he would be promoted into one of those roles. This was 8 years ago, and he is still there. In the same role. Still no Director opportunities in sight. Or not at his company anyways.

The phrase “ Nothing ventured, Nothing gained” comes up often in the hiring discussions on both sides of the fence — that of the hiring manager, and that of the candidate. But if you stop yourself from exploring opportunities before you even have the chance to actually do the exploring — you will never know what’s out there. And you may be stuck regrettably in the same role a decade later.

Another suggestion I’ve shared with candidates is instead of playing the guessing game — go have that conversation with your manager, HR or whoever will listen. “What is the path to take to get promoted here in X time frame….?” You will gain some insight pretty quickly on whether or not there is even a prospective plan in place, or a path, for you to get that promotion, or to not. And if the thought of that conversation scares you, then maybe you don’t really want to hear the answer.

2. Things will change around here, I’m going to “ride out the storm.”

Hoping for change is a lost cause if you’ve decided you are miserable where you work. Maybe you are not even THAT miserable, but you aren’t that happy either. Has there been a recent layoff or reorg? Has there been a recent acquisition where there is a lot of departmental overlap? Salary decreases? Or just maybe new directions or initiatives that aren’t inline with your goals? Once your mind starts to question whether or not this is still a good fit for you — remember that you are talented, and deserve a great job at a great company.

A recent layoff or reorg is a frightful situation to be in — on both sides. If you are in the group that has been “saved” usually this group is the more miserable one than that who has been laid off. A reduction in workforce means you’ve lost some of your team, your bosses, and/or your employees. Although the laid off group is now unemployed, there are plenty of jobs out there for them, and they know they have to go find one. The remaining retained employees often go through “survivors guilt”, and have a hard time adjusting with the new lay of the land. They are also left with a lot uncertainty….what is going to happen next?

The uncertain time is often when us recruiters start reaching out to the remaining employees. I wouldn’t be a sitting duck and wait for a call — my recommendation is to do the opposite and be proactive. This is the time to start putting feelers out there. We’ve all heard “this is the only lay off”, and then the entire company folds months later. The good news is there are dozens of companies that have plenty of money in the bank and want to recruit top talent like you to help them during their growth. Sure, things might turn around at your company, but what if they don’t? The timing of these major changes might be your sign that it’s time to start looking.

3. I should wait until the New Year, and wait for my “Bonus.”

I’ve heard this excuse for decades. And financially it seems like this would make the most sense. But the reality is that Q4 is probably the time of year that companies will become the most creative to go about recruiting the top talent. I’ve seen offers come in that exceeded the salary + bonus of the candidate at the previous company. Some companies will match the bonus as a sign-on. Others will put it in as equity or vacation. We are all aware that bonuses are based on performance of both the employee, and that of the company. But we often forget -there are no guarantees. It’s just that, a bonus.

End of the year (Q4) is one of the busiest hiring times of the year. The idea that “the holiday” interferes with the hiring potential and process is an old wives tale. This is the time that departments want to close the gap on hiring needs and budgets. AKA if a spot isn’t filled on a specific team — that team runs the risk of losing that job requisition and budget to another department. It’s not that employers are “less picky” this time of year, there is just a greater sense of urgency. I discuss the Q4 gametime decision hiring process in my previous article Hiring in the Fourth Quarter.

As a candidate you are in the driver seat throughout the entire hiring process. You decide when the road trip begins, and when and where it ends. Having conversations within your network now, instead of waiting until next year, could lead to your dream job. And to something that is more fulfilling, financially and personally, then the alleged bonus.

4. I know what I’m doing here. I don’t want to start all over again.

Fear of the unknown is a common concern for candidates ( and frankly for everyone!) — but allowing this to be a reason as to why NOT to start your search is a disappointing one. Especially in technology. Although there is some security in knowing how to do everything in your current role, as humans our brains are always looking to grow and learn. You never are really 100% starting over again, you are taking your wealth of knowledge, experience and skillset and learning to add to it.

The interview process is created to allow the candidates to see if skillset and the company’s opportunity are a good match. The interview process is also set up to provide you some insight on the projects, the tools, the people, and the company path. You will never really know if there is something more fulfilling for you out there unless you try to reach out for it. I always remind candidates that teams love to hear about new ways and approaches to problem solving that new hires bring to the table.

Also don’t disregard an opportunity because your resume and skillset don’t 100% line up the job posting. I tell candidates if they fit at least 50% of the qualifications on a job requisition then they are usually in the sweet spot of what a company is looking for. If you meet 100% of the qualifications, then there is nowhere for you to grow or learn within the role — and this is the same boat you were already in.

Loyalty also doesn’t guarantee financial growth either within an organization. If you compare the salary of an employee who has been with the same company for 10 years, and that of one who has been at 2–3 different companies — the candidate with experience at the multiple companies often has a significantly higher salary.

5. If I left, the company would fall apart. What would they do if I left?

This is probably the hardest of the little lies candidates tell themselves to overcome, and probably the biggest reason people do stay in roles longer than they should. We have a heart. We care about the people, the product and the company we work for. But that doesn’t necessarily mean you aren’t miserable in your job.

In technology it’s a candidates market right now — which is awesome. And also at the end of the day we are all replaceable. I left a job over a decade ago and was convinced they would fold without my book of business — but they are still going strong, and I’m even still in their fantasy football league. If the departure is amicable, and done right, no bridges will be burnt.

The other piece of this is that there is no reason to panic or worry about this concept of the “company folding” prior to you even walking into a job interview. This fear, or little lie, should not be the reason to stand still and not consider leaving. You have to do what’s best for you, your career and honestly your life.

To sum it up….

We have all had a little voice in our heads telling us to not do something. Usually it’s for our own benefit : we see a hot stove and are told by a little voice not to touch it, spam call comes in and are told not to answer it. But there are exceptions when voices are telling us little lies for which become excuses for us not to do something.

Nothing ventured, nothing gained.