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Former mayor: Don’t take 1st offer

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Also by Lauren Cohen:

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Committee decides on 3 finalists for vice provost (November 8, 2007)
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Former mayor: Don't take 1st offer (October 31, 2007)
UW students get Fulbright award (October 25, 2007)

by Lauren Cohen

Wednesday, October 31, 2007

Former Madison Mayor Paul Soglin said Tuesday college graduates too often make the mistake of taking the first job offered to them.

In a lecture hosted by the Career Development Association, Soglin explained the importance of being selective when looking for a job and suggested ways to become an invaluable job candidate.

"People need to be selective if they want to keep doors open. People need to interview companies just as much as they interview you," Soglin said. "By accepting the first job offer, you close doors since you did not give yourself a chance to find something better suited for you."

Soglin said it is essential to take risks, but students should avoid taking stupid risks in committing to a job they have no intention of staying at.

"You don’t want to be bouncing around your first five years out of college and have three different jobs on your résumé,” he said. “That looks bad and unstable.”

Kristina Kilsdonk, a career advisor at Letters and Science and Human Ecology Career Services, said students in CDA invited Soglin because he has been able to translate his passion into a career in public policy.

Kilsdonk said finding a passion and translating it to a profession is extremely beneficial.

First students must find out what their passion is, she said, adding passions don’t always translate into a career, but they may translate into a hobby.

"[The] need for making money for family circumstances may [put] emphasis on what career one chooses, while others try to find what’s meaningful to them and something they will look forward to every morning," Kilsdonk said.

Soglin has quit seven jobs in his life because he wanted to take a risk and do work he was passionate about. Among the jobs were general practice lawyer and financial planner. Soglin said he recently quit his job at a software company to return to public policy, a passion of his.

He added because he has hired people for entry-level positions and significant positions, he is able to give advice to those job applicants.

Assuming the person is job-ready, Soglin suggested three ideas to stand out among perspective employees: be a good writer, be willing to do anything and speak a second language.

"If a person could write … but had other deficiencies, I would hire them," he said. "It is so hard to go back and teach people to write; it’s a skill that is always needed."

It is important to have a willingness to do anything because you keep an open mind, he said.

"Of course there are limitations,” Soglin said. “If your job requires traveling and you have pets, that probably won’t work."

After securing a job, "you have to decide as your career evolves whether or not the organization you are currently working for is helping you toward the direction you want to be in or following your passion," Soglin said.

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