Tempting Offer
By Bob Kaku
During Silicon Valley’s “red hot” job market, I inter¬viewed with a few companies and landed a couple of job offers. The first offer came from a high-flying software company, a quintessential Silicon Valley success story, which offered me a good salary and attractive benefits with stock options. The hiring manager eased back in his chair and flashed a roguish grin. “You’ll become very rich in a few years.” The company’s stock soared to record highs, turning regular employees into multimillionaires overnight. Fortune Magazine ranked this company as one of the best to work for. The financial incen¬tives enchanted me.
After a few years, I may never have to work again.
The second offer came from an established company with a good reputation. They also offered a good salary with stock options, but it didn’t seem as exciting or lucrative.
A few days later, Gail was reading the Bible, and the following verse struck a chord:
Do not wear yourself out to get rich; have the wisdom to show restraint (Proverbs 23:4 NIV).
She didn’t feel comfortable about the software com¬pany and wanted me to work for the established company. We prayed for the Lord’s guidance. Gail called a former colleague who had worked at the software company for a year. She told Gail, “If you want to become very rich, this is the company to work for. But the environment is extremely brutal. It’s a place to work for a while, make a lot of money off the options, and then move on.” I wanted to know more so I called Gail’s colleague. “I worked all the time,” she said. “My typical work day started at six in the morning and finished around nine or ten at night. At five PM I drove thirty miles one-way to pick up my kids at day care. Then I dropped them off at home and drove all the way back to the office to work several more hours. Everyone worked on weekends. If you didn’t put in these extra hours, the company laid you off.” I became more and more disheartened as I heard her story. I heeded the warning and took the other job. The established company turned out to be a good place to work with interesting projects and generous bonuses.
Six months later, high-technology companies were greatly distressed in the economic downturn that followed the boom. The software company had a sizeable layoff, and the market price of the stock plummeted far below the exercise price for the options I would have received.
God protected me from making the wrong choice.
“For what does it profit a man to gain the whole world, and forfeit his soul?” (Mark 8:36)
An excerpt from the book Popcorn Miracles® by Bob and Gail Kaku. Used by permission.
