All this hubbub and hand-wringing over Microsoft's bid for Yahoo! I feel like I'm missing the boat without a post. So here goes... But rather than malign Yahoo! over their past decisions and mistakes, I thought I'd take a different slant and offer some unsolicited advice to those masses that are about to either get laid-off or feel the need to jump ship voluntarily:
Don't move from one rut to another.
Hobson's choice: Join MSFT or walk the plank. Either way you've got a job search surfacing in the magic 8 ball. You know the pink-slips are coming, so you've already unearthed that moth-balled resume (Word '97 version) and started updating. You’ve tapped into your network to see what’s going on out there, and you’ve been cruising the job sites. You may have even contacted a recruiter or two to let them know you’re on the market. But have you thought about what you’re leaving and what you're looking for next? (I mean beyond the fact that you're about to get the axe?)
Maybe the culture ain't what it used to be... Maybe the idea of a company all-hands with Marquis d'Ballmer ranks with attending a satanic ritual... Maybe you just hate your boss... Not enough challenge? No room for advancement? Red-tape? Shitty pay? Perhaps all of these are true.
But now who are you interviewing with?
I’m going to bet that that (a) the companies that have a need for your skill-set are probably not that different from the company they’re trying to leave, and (b) your comfort zone doesn't stretch very far beyond what you've grown used to over the last N years.
So it’s probably natural that the allure of a fresh-break masks all the similarities of the former and future companies. But once you’ve joined, accepted, settled into the same 8 x 6 Herman-Miller cube, the honeymoon will wear off much faster than in your last gig. You’ll be cursing yourself when you find that you’re in the same place you were just a few weeks ago.
So do yourself a favor: Imagine the perfect job. Maybe it’s at another company or maybe it’s even working for yourself. What are the attributes that make this job great? Is it the camaraderie of your co-workers? The intensely challenging projects? The ridiculously lax schedule? The torrential rain of filthy lucre? An X-box for every employee? Free Red Bull and hot chicks? Locusts!? Write all of these down, and internalize them. At your next interview, make sure that your questions are crafted to reveal your future employer's true nature.
Is the company an ant-colony? Are folks fired up about what they are working on? Do they even use words like "folks"? Is the company technology-driven and are they still creating cool things? Or is it just a marquis name that had the life-force sucked out of it eons ago? Do you sense passion, or are the interviewers a bunch of stiffs? Can you drink beers with them? How many? Can you drop the F-bomb in casual conversation without having the walls bleed?
Bottom line: If you do not like the train you are on, don’t just switch seats. Get on a different train.