Offers

This is the moment you have been waiting for. If it is a job you want, the pressure to say yes right away is incredible. Nonetheless I am convinced that you should never accept an offer right away, even if it is for a match made in heaven. Give yourself at least a few days to think about it. Make them sweat. (They made you sweat.) Doing so will be very helpful to your reputation and respect as you arrive in your new position. Of course, you ask for time to think about the offer by telling them how delighted you are to receive it, how exciting it would be to be in their district, and so on...

If you have serious reservations about the job, I still advise waiting before you say "no." At the least it shows respect for the effort and interest they have taken in you. Talk to several people you trust to be sure you are making the right move before turning an offer down. After thinking about the offer for a few days, share your reservations honestly with the person who made the offer and ask if there are other people you could talk to address your concerns. If the job is really not right for you, don't take it. A better job will come along. After receiving the offer (and before accepting it) it is a good idea to get the name of the districts' benefits officer and met with or talk with this person to go over the benefits package and salary carefully. It is less stressful to talk to a such a person than to the people who have been interviewing you.

If you are lucky you may be in the position of multiple offers or offers with other interviews still ongoing. As much as someone who has made an offer wants to rush, the key for you is //take your time//. As I have said, making an offer wait is OK. With an offer in hand you are in a strong position to contact any other job that you have been looking into and let those people know where you stand. Might their interest in you be serious? How much time will they need to make their decision? Don't hesitate to use the offer as a bargaining chip to get an interview or speed up a process elsewhere. Hold off the offer as long as you can-though eventually you need to be clear what is happening, "I have an interview with another attractive position in a couple of days, and I will get back to you immediately afterward." Play both possibilities along as long as you can.

While, of course, you want to have a signed contract, a verbal offer is an offer. Open the champagne.