We all hear great employment advice for professionals about dealing with the economic situation. This includes planning, writing a great resume, preparing for interviews, networking, setting goals, networking some more, thinking out of the box, assessing your strengths and weaknesses, blogging, using social internet sites, etc.
While I am not dissing any of these, I believe as a group they may be setting unreal expectations. Specifically, the current job market is challenging the belief that hard work, committed job search and a great job fit will guarantee employment. Over 1 2 million jobs have been lost in the last year.
If you are in industries like autos, financial services, luxury products, furniture, retail, or home furnishings, the job prospects are slim and almost none. Moving from investment banking to health care, internet marketing, energy, etc. sounds much more credible than it is with the exception of technical professionals like accountants.
It may realistically take 6 months to 2 years to find a job in this economy, and the higher the salary, the longer the time. In addition, there are lots of great underemployed or unemployed people out there and companies can do just fine with lower salaried and younger (they don’t admit this) workers.
I believe the issue has changed much more to finding an available position than simply having the right resume or interview skills. Here are some suggestions that do require a total rethinking of traditional approaches:
- Strike a balance between your goals and skills and reality. You shouldn’t abandon your dreams, but may have to settle for temporary lower salaries and/or responsibilities.
- Manage your time in terms of commitment, chasing long shots, focusing and the potential returns. For example, it may be more effective spending time approaching people that seldom return calls than networking with an out of work buddy looking for the same job.
- Consider consulting or being an outsourcing agent.
- Consider starting your own business. This does require a commitment, perhaps some funding, planning and the time to develop and market to clients.
- Consider working on a small base with significant upside for results. I do not recommend working for nothing because clients don’t care as much. However, approaching cash starved companies with new ideas or services with an upside payout may satisfy both needs in the long run.
- Develop packaged services with colleagues that can be implemented in companies with lower cost, faster speed, and better experience. These can include efforts like new products, internet presence, customer service, inventory management, planning and accounting. These kinds of services can also be accomplished across industries.
- Develop ideas for former competitors. Sometimes the limitations of severance contracts are worse than the economic benefits. I am not advocating legal compromises, but am advocating using your skills in the most effective manner.
In general, these suggestions are designed as alternatives to simply looking for jobs that may not exist for 1-2 years. They do require commitment, time, planning and personal effort. Success is not guaranteed but it may be better than tired practices with poor results. They also may help networking and do not preclude taking that ideal job when it is available.
