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Re: Job offers and rates - what do you feel is acceptable?
Subject:Re: Job offers and rates - what do you feel is acceptable? From:"William Sherman" <bsherman77 -at- embarqmail -dot- com> To:<techwr-l -at- lists -dot- techwr-l -dot- com> Date:Wed, 14 Dec 2011 13:36:15 -0500
Sometimes employers have completely unrealistic expectations. And they
never seem to understand that they are unrealistic.
About 15 years ago, I was working about 90 miles from home on a "permanent"
job. The boss wanted to know when I was moving to town. I told him we had
planned to look and maybe move in the summer (about 6 months from
conversation), which is more than he needed to know, but I was being
"friendly".
Every few weeks, he would pop something up about moving, places to live, and
so on. It really was none of his business where I lived unless he wanted to
pay for it. I was at work every day, on time, and often worked late when
needed. Distance had nothing to do with my performance.
I told him we would move when we felt like it and no way were we moving in
the middle of a school year.
He was the same way about several others not in his department that lived 50
or so miles away.
I finally left that summer rather than deal with him.
----- Original Message -----
From: "Al Geist" <al -dot- geist -at- geistassociates -dot- com>
To: "'William Sherman'" <bsherman77 -at- embarqmail -dot- com>;
<techwr-l -at- lists -dot- techwr-l -dot- com>
Sent: Wednesday, December 14, 2011 12:13 PM
Subject: RE: Job offers and rates - what do you feel is acceptable?
William Sherman wrote:
"Unfortunately, in many years of doing this, I have found almost no one who
was willing to up the rates if they liked me.
I always looked at these types as 'better than unemployment" and used them
for the same amount of time. I usually found they were open because the
previous person had done the same thing."
Totally agree. There was a company where I last lived that was forever
searching for technical writers. The problem it turns out was they were in a
somewhat remote community (to larger cities) and the paid dirt....AND they
required you to move to their community within a three month period. Every
three months a new ad for a technical writer was posted on Dice, Monster,
and the local newspaper. As far as I know, they're still looking for that
"perfect fit."
Al Geist-Geist Associates
Technical Communication, Help, Documentation Management
Mobile: 231-301-5770
E-mail: al -dot- geist -at- geistassociates -dot- com
Website: www.geistassociates.com
Blog: www.gooterscheltz.com
Facebook: Geist Arts
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"...I walked to work, quit my job, and kept walking. Better to be a pilgrim
without a destination, I figured, than to cross the wrong threshold each
day." (Sy Safransky)
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