You can’t exactly find out whether a company is right for you unless you’ve experienced it firsthand. But it’s still useful to have some metric or guide to help you out. Here are a few questions you need to ask yourself to understand better what kind of company you should be looking for.
How Many Hours a Day Are You Willing to Dedicate?
Now that many companies are starting to adopt the work-from-home format, there are anecdotes of people working longer hours due to the elimination of commute and other time-consuming factors. Before deciding to sign your employment contract, discuss your working hours with your potential employer first. Remember the importance of your work-life balance and how you can maintain it.
What Benefits Are You Looking For?
Prominent companies promote themselves to applicants through their name and prestige and by advertising the benefits and compensation they offer. If you’re looking for a specific set of benefits, look at the employment websites of businesses you’re interested in. Many are willing to show what they can offer to entice competitive applicants, so make a list of what you want and compare different companies to find the best one for you.
Is Company Culture Important to You?
The answer should be yes. Even if you are an independent and introverted worker, it pays to be aware of a company’s culture, not because you’d want to “fit in”, but because you’d want to know whether it breeds toxicity or encourages growth. A company that espouses a “competitive environment” might not be for introverts who want to take the slow and steady approach, or an establishment that promotes “healthy and green living” might not be for those looking to grow their career aggressively. Company culture is important because that’s the environment you’ll stay in for a long while, so make sure it fits your personality.
The Company’s Staying Power and Stability
Of course, many of us aim to get into one of the Fortune 500 companies for stability, status, and monetary gain. However, some people who have experienced working for these giants opt to work for a slightly smaller, less prestigious company. This is because larger firms tend to be more competitive and stressful. On the other hand, while seemingly less stable, smaller businesses have a different target market that can put less pressure on the employees than competitors. 
Growing Your Career
You have an idea of what company you’d like to join; maybe you already have one. The next step is to set yourself to grow your career. Here are a few practical tips to help you grow your budding career.
Create a Projection
When talking about growth, promotion and progress is always part of that. Create a loss projection for yourself. It’s not exactly a plan where you must be promoted at this specific time frame. Instead, it’s a self-reminder of what you should be doing at certain points in your career. There will be moments where you have to be a bit aggressive, and there will be moments where it’s fine to focus on skill improvement. Having a plan or strategy for your career will help you in making critical decisions along the way.
Familiarize Yourself With the Roles and Legalities of the Job
Every position has its ins and outs, and it’s in your best interest to know what they are. Learn about the different aspects of the role and what trends and innovations are happening within the industry. Knowing all the facets of the role isn’t just an overstatement: you want to be employed properly and not be taken advantage of. There are lawyers for specific employment situations, depending on your industry. For industries requiring particular licenses and following specific laws, it’s also critical to have legal input. Truck driver lawyers, manufacturing attorneys, and other forms of employment legal professionals are always there to help you out.
Always Think of Increasing Your Skills
To be a competitive employee, you need to have competitive skills. Even amid employment, it’s critical always to look to improve your skill set. Stay competitive by always keeping yourself updated with the latest industry trends, learn the newest technology, and include it as part of your skill set. By being never left out and always being in the loop of bleeding-edge innovations, you will always be relevant as your skill set will be able to contribute to any company you’re joining.A career is something that we start from scratch. But there’s a lot of practical steps we can take along the way to boost it. Hopefully, you get to jump-start your career.
