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多年来，我遇到过很多求职者，他们觉得自己一定要接受第一个到来的工作邀约，即使这个职位与自己的职业目标并不相符。要是福利待遇十分诱人，拒绝这样的邀约就变得更难了。但总体而言，你需要尽可能地为自己的职业规划添砖加瓦，即使这意味着你要拒绝一个似乎很诱人的机会。当你在考虑是否接受某个机会、承担某个角色时，你的决定与职业目标越是相关，你的决定额也就越正确。

 跳出眼前邀约，通盘考量大局

一位女士曾经告诉我们现在的她比以前还要不开心。她是一位化学工程师，很久以来，她一直对自己的职业很不满意。但是，当另一家公司邀请她去担任几乎一模一样的职位时，她却同意了，原因仅仅是薪水比现在高。不久之后，她意识到自己真正想要的是一份崭新的职业，这份领悟来得稍微有些迟。如果她当时能做一个更好的决定，那她接受一份并不喜欢的新工作时承担的压力本可避免。

还有一个懂得适时说“不”的例子，一位候选人告诉我，有一次他几乎就同意接手一家公司的信息技术部门主管一职了。他虽然担任过几年的信息技术经理，有些经验，但他在面试中意识到自己并不适合这份工作。然而，他却出人意料地获得了这个职位，而这个职位所要承担的职责也让他十分心动，跃跃欲试。

拒绝这份工作并不容易。但后来，在他了解了这家公司面临的重要问题后，他很欣慰自己没有接受这份工作。他之后发现，其他三位部门主管在过去12个月内接受这份工作又离职。因此，信息技术部门已经陷入瘫痪有些时日了。当初要是他接受了这份工作，那他很可能陷入困境，成功的希望不大。

 没人会强迫你同意终会惨淡收场的工作

我总是告诉候选人，在面对新的工作机会，做出重大职业选择时，又没有人举着枪对着你的脑袋，强迫你签下这份工作。这个决定完全要你自己做出。然而，要想做出正确的决定，你需要足够成熟，对自我有清楚认知，了解什么对你最重要。

要想做出正确的职业决定，你还要充分了解你要加入的环境，客观权衡各种因素。在你还没有全面了解清楚前，不要轻易受人鼓动，也不要太急切地接受一个机会。如果你不想接受一份工作之后又后悔，解围之道就是这么简单。

Know When To Say “No” To A Job Offer

I’ve met many job seekers over the years who feel pressure to accept the first offer that comes along, even if the position isn’t that aligned with their career objectives.  Turning an offer down becomes even more difficult when the compensation package is attractive.  Overall though, it’s important to build on your career plan as much as possible, even if this means turning down a seemingly attractive opportunity.  The more in touch you are with your career objectives the better decisions you’ll make when being offered an opportunity or position you’re not sure you should take.

Look At The Whole Situation, Not Just The Offer

One woman told us she’s less happy now than she was before.  As a chemical engineer, she felt unsatisfied with her profession for a long time.  Yet, she accepted an almost identical position with another company just because she was offered a higher salary.  Shortly afterwards, she realized what she really wanted was a new career, a realization that came to her a little late.  The pressure she faced starting a new job she wasn’t excited about could have been avoided had she made a better decision.

An example of knowing when to say no happened to one candidate who told me that he came close to accepting a position as head of a company’s IT department.  Although he had several years of experience as an IT manager, he realized during the interview he wasn’t qualified for the job.  To his surprise though, he was offered the position, which represented a level of responsibility that was very attractive to him..

Turning the job down wasn’t easy.  But after learning about some of the company’s fundamental problems later on, he was glad he didn’t accept the offer.  He later found out three other department heads had accepted and left the position over the previous twelve months.  Because of this, the IT department had been paralyzed for some time.  Had he accepted the offer he’d have likely found himself in a situation where he had little chance of succeeding.

Nobody Forces You To Say “Yes” To Situations That End Up Bad

I always tell candidates that when it comes to making key career decisions involving new job opportunities, nobody holds a gun to your head and forces you to accept an offer.  It’s a decision that is entirely in your hands.  Making the right ones for yourself, however, requires some maturity, self-awareness, and sense on your part about what’s most important to you. 

Making good career decisions also requires you to be thorough in understanding a potential situation you’ll be joining and objective when it comes to weighing the reasons why you want to take an opportunity.  Try not to be so easily flattered or eager to accept situations without fully knowing what you’re getting into.  It’s that straightforward if you want to avoid getting into a job situation that you’ll end up regretting later on.

（责任编辑：职场达人）