The Up Side of Down:
Positive Career Strategies in an Economic
Slowdown
Nan Knight
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The events of September 11 and their continuing
aftermath have heightened the sense of uncertainty
about the future. The nation's economy, which
was already stalling, seems definitely headed
into recession. The economy began to stall in
the spring, and, after the September events, economists
marked down forecasts for the third and fourth
quarters even further. A recent survey by the
Blue Chip Economic Indicators found that most
economists believe the nation has entered a recession
(defined as two consecutive quarters of negative
total economic output). The effect on job seekers
is significant and may extend well beyond the
near term.
When the economy changes, your approach to the
increasingly tight job market has to change as
well. You can give yourself a competitive edge
by taking decisive steps to assess your own career
goals and potential, know more about the job markets
in your field, and find a well-rounded approach
to getting on with your life.
Take a Tip from Ad Agencies:
Brand Yourself
When you're trying to get a foot in the door
of a tight labor market, you may want to develop
your own brand, much as marketers construct a
carefully thought-out image and campaign for products.
Robin Fisher Roffer, a career counselor and author
of Make
a Name for Yourself, recommends that you
begin the process just as an advertising agency
plans strategy. "Your challenge is to capture
the essence of what you have to offer, create
interest and enthusiasm for it, and enhance your
image in the business world," she says.
You may not consider yourself a hot commodity,
but you can be sure that most employers view productive,
reliable, congenial workers as worth pursuing,
regardless of the economic outlook. Roffer advises
that honesty is as important in planning for your
own "marketability" as it is in advertising
a car or a line of laundry soap. List your best
qualities as both an employee and as an individual.
These are the qualities you'll want to highlight
in a resume or interview. Then list the qualities
you might like to change.
Next, construct a "mission statement"
for your plan to market yourself. "Companies
with powerful mission statements and employees
that embrace these statements walk the walk and
talk the talk," says Roffer. If you write
down your mission statement and use it to define
your goals, she says, then you'll be able to move
your dreams closer to reality.
Constructing a personal "brand" can
be as simple as listing your assets and coining
a "slogan" for your own goals. This
kind of introspection is often the last kind of
activity you're in the mood for if you're concerned
about the economic effects of unemployment, but
it can help direct your goals and project the
kind of image you want to prospective employers.
"Brand success asks you to think about your
brand in this very intense, obsessive way: writing
it down, talking it up, and putting it out in
the universe to fulfill its destiny," says
Roffer. But once armed with a strong set of skills
and a distinct employment identity, the biggest
question for many job seekers is how, exactly,
to find the best possible market for their skills
and goals.
Know Your Market (and Get
a Crystal Ball)
A number of easily accessible tools can point
you to both current and predicted trends in the
market for specific types of jobs and the likelihood
that these will remain in demand in the future.
The U.S. Labor Department
(DoL) and its
Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS) are excellent
sources of frequently updated information on where
the jobs-and the money-are in industries large
and small. BLS publishes the Occupational
Outlook Handbook and the Career
Guide to Industries, each of which gives
detailed breakdowns of salaries, demand, and immediate
prospects for virtually every major job category
in the country. You can find out what areas of
specialization are hot, what areas are likely
to cool, and the reasons why.
A quick glance at the government statistics reveals
that, because of increased foreign competition,
mergers and acquisitions, and streamlined agricultural
and manufacturing methods, the overall employment
market for chemists is likely to shrink by 3.9%
during the period from 1998 to 2008. Worse, that
figure goes to 10.6% when "general"
chemists are considered. But for chemical engineers,
a 7.1% increase in demand is expected, a figure
that jumps to a whopping 31.0% for computer scientists,
and others who have both information technology
skills and a background in chemistry. Dig a little
deeper and you'll find that even with figures
revised to reflect recent economic setbacks, prospects
for employment as a chemist in the drug industry
are excellent. BLS predicts that, in the 1998
to 2008 period, demand for general chemists will
rise by 12.9%, for chemical engineers by 17.6%,
for biochemists by 35.5%, and for computer systems
specialists and information technology engineers
by 58.4%. Another DoL publication, Hot
Jobs for the 21st Century
pinpoints growth areas in industry and highlights
the ways you can get training and experience for
in-demand jobs.
Statistics are not the only source of useful
information on promising employment opportunities.
You can call the HR departments of most large
corporations and find someone more than willing
to talk to you about what types of positions they
most want to fill now and in the future. National
organizations that represent your professions,
such as the American
Chemical Society, have information to help
you identify new and unexpected opportunities,
such as in the rapidly expanding numbers of small
specialty chemical firms.
Take this information into account when you're
"branding" yourself. Talk up those areas
of your experience that you know are in demand,
even if these are not obvious elements of the
jobs you're applying for. Look for those industries
that you know are slated to experience growth
and expansion. Consider getting supplementary
training that will put you in the forefront for
the best jobs in your field.
Knowledge really is power in job searching. Getting
the strategic "lay of the land" is important
whether you're considering a career change, looking
for work after a layoff, or are starting off with
a new diploma. You will be able to plan for future
security and go directly to the jobs with the
most possibilities for expansion and growth.
You're Not Alone
In an economic slump, one of the few really buzzing
growth industries is job placement and career
counseling. Business is booming for "headhunters,"
motivational speakers, college career advisors,
and local and state job placement agencies. If
you're out of work, the down side to all this
activity is that you have increasing competition
for a shrinking job pool. The up side is that
you're not alone in this search. Some of the brightest
minds in the country have found themselves out
of work in recent dot.com and industry shakeouts,
and many are forming "search communities"
on the Internet to provide support and leads for
other job seekers.
Jeremy Gocke, whose early online ventures were
failing in 2001, founded The
Layoff Lounge as a job networking service.
Today the service has expanded to an active network
of city chapters, local speakers at chapter meetings,
and ties to new jobs across the nation. Gocke,
who plans to expand the Lounge concept to China,
has found that out-of-work "techies"
are resourceful and eager to look at new strategies
and approaches to business and career planning.
Consider checking into the online sites to see
what people in your same situation are doing.
You'll learn more about successful strategies-and
the ones that have failed. In the process of learning
more about other people who are job hunting, you
may also be able to overcome that "it's-something-wrong-with-me"
feeling you get after a few job rejections.
Don't Put Your Life on
Hold
You may be temporarily out of a job, the constricting
market may have forced you to lower your expectations
and take a position that you don't like, or you
may feel stuck in a job you wanted to leave long
ago. You've constructed your own personal brand,
you've identified the types of jobs and employers
that are right for you, you're ready with resumes,
but so far nothing has turned up. What next?
Get up and do something, advise the experts.
In California, where the legions of dot.com unemployed
grow each day, many people are throwing themselves
into activities that serve a dual purpose: helping
others and networking. In San Francisco, volunteers
at the local food bank trade stories about job
prospects as they fill bags of groceries for needy
inner-city families. Many of the volunteers were
six-figure employees of tech companies and now
find themselves unable to connect with new jobs
that use their skills and match their expectations.
Activities as diverse as group exercise classes,
psychological support sessions, and brown-bag
meet-and-greets are available to job seekers across
the nation. "In some cities, so many activities
have been geared to the out-of-work that a laid-off
techie can go from Manic Monday to Casual Friday
and never be more than a few hours from the next
shoulder to cry on," says Shawn Hubler, a
writer for the Los Angeles Times.
It's more than mutual pathos that participants
in these activities seek, of course. They trade
tales of where jobs are, where they're likely
to be in the future, which companies are looking
for new hires, and who to contact for an inside
line. And, while exercising, volunteering, and
socializing, these job seekers are also continuing
to build the lines of community support and interaction
that make life rich. When they finally connect
with jobs that are right for them, they'll be
better equipped to be well-adjusted and productive
employees.
The current economic downturn may reverse direction
sooner than expected or continue for the foreseeable
future. Job hunting in a slow economy requires
increased diligence in identifying job leads and
following up on those opportunities. There are
more people competing for jobs and in an uncertain
economy, employers will slow or even freeze their
hiring plans so be prepared for an extended job
hunt.
JobSpectrum.org wishes you the best of luck in
your search, and offers the following other articles
that may be of use in your search:
The percentage of chemists working full time
is at its highest level since 1990, and salary
increases exceed the rate of inflation. But
as the economy declines, what lies ahead? Get
the full story on the results of the American
Chemical Society's 2001
Salary Survey.
Job searching is a job in itself. JobSpectrum
brings you information on the essential components
of how
to find a job. It's no wonder that Americans
are changing jobs more frequently than ever
and for a whole variety of reasons. Some feel
that their careers are stalled or want to be
able to spend more time with their families.
But no matter when you decide to make a career
move, there
are some important considerations to take
into account before changing direction.
According to the Bureau of Labor Statistics,
people entering the job market today can, during
their professional lifetime, hold seven to 10
jobs working for three to five employers. That's
a lot of moving around. Luckily, professionals
with a background or degree in chemistry now
have a whole world of employment opportunities.
Here are some tips on giving
your resume a makeover to match the career
you want to have.
Networking has long been an effective way for
job seekers and sales professionals to expand
their base of contacts. But today, workers at
every stage of their career recognize the value
of increasing their visibility in the business
community. A well-established network can be
a determining factor in your ability to adjust
to changes in the job market and your profession.
Here's
more information on how to work a room.
Whether you've been in the work world for a
couple of years or a couple of decades, you
probably know how to tackle most job interviews
by now. Or do you? As you move up the ladder
and put experience behind you, interviewing
can change and in some cases, become more challenging.
For many job seekers, this can be one of the
stickiest parts of the interview process. Here
are JobSpectrum's top
10 tips for getting the salary and benefits
package you deserve.
Nan Knight is a freelance science writer and
editor whose credits include Smithsonian exhibits,
Discovery Channel Web sites, and a wide range
of publications on radiation in medicine.
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