💡 Invincible Tip - When a Potential Employer is on the Fence (Issue #568)
A proposal you can suggest after a job interview
What do you do when a potential employer isn’t 100% convinced they should hire you after your job interview?
It does happen.
Sometimes, you get a solid no after an interview. Other times, you get the nod and receive the job offer.
However, a few of my clients have been in that fuzzy zone between a yes and no. The employer is on the fence, which can show up in the negotiations (e.g., they try to level you down to reduce the cost and risk of hiring you).
When this happens, you can try to persuade them you are indeed the right hire for the role. This occasionally works. But you could also propose a more radical solution:
They can hire you as a consultant.
You can present this as a low-risk alternative. They bring you on as a consultant (perhaps even in a fractional role, as I discuss in the video below) with no worries about full compensation (e.g., stock options, bonus, benefits, etc.) or the other perks an employee receives.
If the consulting engagement goes as well as you think it will, they can convert you to a full-time employee to complete the hire later. But if things don’t go well, you can end the engagement and walk away.
No harm no foul!
You might discover the employer isn’t the right fit for you after all. It’s hard to know this from the outside, even after an extensive job interview process. It sure is easier to quit a consulting gig than to quit a job!
Or, the employer might confirm their suspicions that you aren’t the best fit for their role. So, they can end the contract with you without the usual mess of terminating a full-time employee.
This proposal tends to work better with smaller companies than with large corporations with rigid hiring practices and HR policies. But you never know, and it never hurts to try!
What’s the worst thing that can happen?
They might say, “No, we’d rather not hire you as a consultant.” Big deal. They weren’t going to hire you for the full-time position, anyway. You’ve lost nothing.
However, they might say, “Yes, let’s try that!” Now, you have a chance to prove yourself on the job. That’s all any of us can ask for.
I’m Larry Cornett, a Freedom Coach who works with you to optimize your career, business, and life. My mission is to help you become a more "Invincible You" so you can live your life on your terms instead of being controlled by someone else's rules. I live in Northern California near Lake Tahoe with my wife and our Great Dane.