Tough choices ahead?

The sun was shining as I drove to an interview in Brooklyn. The good news is that they liked my answers so much that these senior HR professionals couldn't keep from saying so right there in the interview. The bad news is that the job doesn't pay all that well, and it's a relatively difficult commute. So, assuming they offer me the job, I may have a hard decision to make.

I said I may have a hard choice because of another job possibility hanging out there. Of all the jobs for which I've interviewed, there is one that stands head and shoulders above the others--for a large hospital that is the flagship of one of the networks in NYC. I've been to three rounds of interviews for that one. If they still liked me after round three of the network-level interviews, they'd call me back to meet with some folks in the hospital itself.

This morning, the call came for round four. Of course, it's possible that there are other candidates coming in for round four, too. It's possible that someone won't like me in this next round and the whole thing will evaporate. Still, it's quite encouraging. If that job comes through, it makes my decision easy.

Now, if I'm still waiting on that job and I get an offer from today's interview, then what? If today's folks are willing to give me time, that's good, but they might not be. So then I put pressure on the people at the job I want and hope they can give me an answer.

An even worse problem would be this: what do I do if I don't have the good job offered at all (maybe they pick someone else--a distinct possibility, as the competition for the job is huge)--and then I'm offered the Brooklyn job. It pays less than my last job and entails a big commute.

I want my next job to be somewhere I might stay, happily, for a while. So do I pass on this and wait for something else? Do I hope something better comes along before I deplete lots of savings? This is all so tough, as is being unemployed in general.

I hope the better job is really going to be mine, but I don't want to get my hopes too high. If I do, and then I don't get the job, it's going to be a tough emotional plunge.