Recession Ready Advice

Posted by careersearch

January 24, 2008 |

The news headlines are full of doom and gloom- to listen to the forecast, any day now we could be in the midst of full-blown recession. While the national economic advisers make plans about how to politically address the problem, Penelope Trunk on her blog, “Brazen Careerist,” discusses how to get your career ready for the recession. In addition to her valuable tips (specialize, achieve something quickly that you can quantify on your resume, consider graduate school, do quality work now and develop quality mentoring relationships), I have a few tips of my own on how to get your career recession ready.

Update your resume’. While people often prepare to ride out recessions in their current job, if they can hold onto it, recessions change entire industries. But while that may seem like scary news, recessions also create new industries. Showing potential employers that you are up-to-date, have current skills and experience in your field, and are ready to jump in when the opportunity presents itself is always a good idea.
Keep your eyes on the business news. The announcements of jobs eliminated are not always bad news for the job seeker. Often companies move positions from expensive geographic areas to more affordable regions in tight times and not every employee will relocate with their job. Those openings could be coming to a town near you.
Be frugal. Especially if you are worried that a downswing could lead to down-sizing at your company, now is the time to pay off expensive debt, put money in savings, and get your economic house in order.

Finally, even if the worst predictions don’t come true, there is never a bad time to develop your skills and interests. Take the time to really think about what your strengths and weaknesses would be in the job market and how you can develop yourself. A recession need not happen for you to get valuable use out of up-to-date training and a little self-reflection on your long-term direction.

Posted by- Amy Loveridge.