When you have multiple job offers on the table...

[blackcat777]

I dropped off three resumes at three different spas yesterday. I specialize in one specific, obscure service.

 

Spa A called me back a few hours after I dropped off the resume. I had an interview this morning that went swimmingly. The biggest perk is I'd get more training from a lady who is a master at her craft. (Training normally is *extremely* difficult to come by in my specialty and costs about $2000/day.)

 

Spa A tentatively set my audition date to two weeks from now, but they want to change the date to something sooner if they can coordinate it with the woman who would train me.

 

Right after I got home from my interview and wrote a thank you note, spa B called.

 

I have an interview with spa B Monday morning. Spa B doesn't offer the service at all yet. I could likely negotiate a higher commission, but there would be no chance to learn from a master.

 

Nothing is set in stone with spa A yet. It sounds promising, but... (I've jumped off that cliff before). Nothing matters until they say YOU'RE HIRED.

 

If spa B makes an offer to me right away, but I'm still holding out to see how the audition goes with spa A... what is the most graceful way to buy time, from your experiences?

 

Google says it's not unreasonable to ask for an additional 2-3 days to weigh your decisions. I'm potentially looking at a window of 10 days, however, if my audition isn't bumped forward.

 

I was really hoping one spa would call me back in a week or two... now I'm hoping the third one doesn't call me sometime soon.

 

I've been so used to being rejected hundreds of times in a row from when I tried to get some fiction traditionally published... I never did get an agent, but I apparently got better at writing resumes.

[WhatYouWantToHear]

Be honest with A. Tell them you are considering an offer, but prefer theres, but need to have the audition ASAP.

 

Now, is training with this master a real perk? I mean will you have something tangible to show future employers? A recognized certficate or something that is credible? I mean, I write computer code and taught myself. A college degree in computer science will mean something, but just getting a job and working with Steve the Master programmer at IBM wouldn't really be a perk, no matter how good Steve is. Will this training actually help you in the future?

[blackcat777]

Any training is amazing because what I do is an unregulated craft... instruction is tough to come by (it's like the wild wild west), so the more techniques I can showcase through photography, and the better techniques I learn (which translates to client retention) are really what employers are interested in. There are independent corporate certifications, which I do have, but they are $$$ and don't go beyond basic safety and sanitation.

 

I went to the interview with Spa B yesterday. I'm glad I went, because they offered me way less than Spa A... so there is no doubt in my mind now about which decision to make.

 

Spa A also called today and bumped my demo forward to two days from now, so that is a HUGE relief.

 

If for some reason Spa A doesn't work out, the timing now will allow me to still be free to take the other offer... or at least request a day or two to think about it, rather than two weeks.