A little assertiveness with a search firm executive

Via e-mail, I told the journalism search firm guy that he could, in sales terms, make job hunting for me more a "win-win" if he would take into account my geographic, political and demographic considerations.

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XXX, I wanted to touch base with you on a couple of things, in hopes that we can see this from a win-win perspective for both today and tomorrow.

First, I should have done more inner due diligence on whether I really could pull the trigger on Buffalo, Wyo., based on my priorities, earlier in the process. I’m sorry I didn’t.

Second, and starting to get at the “win-win” idea, and I know you’re a good enough salesperson to be familiar with that concept, and to even believe in it, I think, if I were going up there, and got mad, or sad, or depressed, or some combination of the above, within six months, you have a publisher not just mad at me, but mad at you as well. Ditto if, before I got that frustrated or otherwise emotionally knotted up, I left in six months at the first available opportunity.

Third, and related to that, none of the three dailies the company owns would jump off the list at me either.

Fourth, and along that line, I would prefer jobs south of XXX. Throwing out the more conservative, more “insular” and more remote parts of those territories, and looking at a minimum for a place within 90 miles or so of a town of 200,000, at a bare minimum, that still leaves half the country as possibilities of reasonable interest. And, I’m sure I’m not the only candidate in the world who has said he or she has “preferences,” and that this influences their job hunting.

Fifth, I know jobs are tight, and you probably don’t have a lot in your hopper right now. Still, though, even if it doesn’t offer as much of a salary bump as Buffalo would have done, if it’s a job that better meets my other priorities, then you have a happier camper, and a happier person that hired him, too.

I know my parent company is in Chapter 11; that’s another reason I’d like out. But, I came here in the first place because I “had” to more than wanted to. I don’t want to leave here primarily because I’m running away from something.

I appreciate you listening to this.

Steve