It’s been a while since I last penned down some personal updates about myself so I think this is a good time to do so.
For those who didn’t know about my situation, I’ve been in sabbatical mode for slightly over a month now.
The intention is to rest up over the course of rest of the year as I have a 5 weeks holiday planned up across the month of Nov and Dec, and then try to resume work at the start of the New Year ahead.
Since then, I’ve been using up my time to do some regular exercising (literally I’m forcing myself to hit the gym everyday now) to build up my stamina, and also do some sports like swimming and tennis once a week.
I feel great and a month into doing that regularly now I can totally sense the difference that it brings to my mind and body.
I have also spent most of my time being the primary home tutor for the kids to brush up in preparation for their final examination later this month. The elder had just completed his oral examination and paper 1 composition for his English and Chinese subject and it was a lot of preparations and efforts that had to be put into it.
I have also been practicing piano with my younger kid as he has an upcoming recital performance in Nov to look forward to.
Process: The Hunting for a New Job
With my spare time however, most of my efforts and preparations have gone into the hunting for a new job that I will be expecting to commence at the start of the New Year.
Over the course of past 5 weeks, I have been selectively applying to roles which I think would fit well with my values and aligned with my goals. These job descriptions are not 100% full proof until we can get to the interviews where both parties can better assess one another.
I’ve gone for interviews with a listed company, early start-up, established MNCs – and all their requirements differ one after another. I have gone to one which have asked me logic quiz question, and another that have asked me to lead the restructuring of the organization as part of their cost optimization.
The interviews at my positions usually consists of several rounds, and by the time I did my X number of rounds, I have almost mastered the art of being able to answer the interviewer’s questions fluently but genuinely.
After going through countless number of interviews, I had successfully managed to receive these offers (through God’s grace of blessing and luck) from 5 companies based on these criterion and consideration that now I have to pick with by the end of this week.
These considerations are segregated into: i.) Salary Compensation; ii.) Job Title; iii.) Working Arrangement; iv.) Chemistry; v.) Role/Tasks.
Company A:
I had the biggest impression for company A, and this was compounded positively further after talking to the founders whom I had such a close chemistry with when I interviewed with him.
The only downside is the working arrangement is on-site, and salary comp + title aren’t their strongest suit that they can offer to candidates.
Company B:
I interviewed at this company at quite a later stage and I had no real expectations until I met the interviewers and was very impressed with their people-centric and humble background.
One of the discussion that strikes me the most during the interview was the founder mentioned that he did not see people as merely numbers like what we’ve seen in so many companies that have laid-off people recently due to business needs.
I inquired further and asked if he was in that situation what would he have done, and his reply is to look at other operational needs and opex including taking a pay cut himself and rest of management first before thinking of laying off his employees.
Even though it’s just a scenario based question, his reply was sincere and would easily touch the cockles of many hearts, including mine.
Still, from a compensation and job title point of view, it could not offer as competitively to its candidates.
Company C:
This company is in a really cool industry.
I’ve gone to the office and the interior is hype towards modern generations and chic.
As it is a spin-off from the larger group, it is currently operating as a standalone early start-up and the company is in the midst of building up the various functions.
Unlike the first two companies, I didn’t get as much chemistry vibe with this one and the interview gets the usual typical transactional staff of what experience you have, what you can bring to the table etc, which I thought was fine but lacks an X-factor punch to it.
Having said that, it offers a good amount of salary comp + job title which is a very important factor to consider.
Company D:
Another company that is in an upcoming AI and many potential applications for growth and use-cases.
Because of this, the company provides leverage for the highest compensation amongst the others including ESOP.
Working arrangement is on-site and it is a little far from my location which I had to switch to another bus before getting there.
The chemistry was also purely transactional and task-oriented based so no real punch to the “I really want you in this role” feeling. They also took weeks to make decision I am guessing because of the number of applicants that have applied to the role.
Company E:
Local home-grown brand company that has recently obtained a good amount of funding to expand overseas.
It offers the highest job title amongst the few, which I think could play an important part in the longer part of future career. The team management at least within my own function is also the biggest among the rest.
This role is somewhat task-oriented, there’s plenty of gap and challenges to fill so there’s a real need for urgency. From the interview, I also sensed that the team that will be under me requires quite a bit of training and mentality mindset and this thing usually requires time to level up.
P.S: For now, this is just a rant. Over the course of next few days, my job is to figure out which factors aligned closer to my values and I will have to make a decision soon. This post will not be updated further.
