Whether you are just graduating with a Bachelor's, MBA, or some other graduate degree, you have probably heard how hard it is to find a job. But before you to take any opportunity that comes your way, stop and think: Far worse than continuing to look for a while longer is having a job with a bad boss, who won't just make you miserable in the short term. In fact, a poor manager can have a seriously negative impact on your career. This is particularly true for your first job after graduation. Without a sense of what your abilities are, a bad boss can make you feel trapped in self-doubt and erode your self-confidence.
So when job-hunting, don't just look at title and salary; pay a lot of attention to the person you will report to. One newly minted MBA I know left ten thousand dollars in salary on the table in order to work with a CEO he (and his industry) respected. The CEO told him in the interview, "I can't meet your salary requirements yet, but if you work for me, I'll teach you all I know." That decision was such a good one, the MBA is now an executive himself.
