Are You Prepared For Your Next Job?

This newsletter goes out to about 500 people each month. Many of you may question why this topic would be of interest since you have a good job and appear to be pretty safe and stable in it. However, according to recent studies 400 of the 500 people reading this will have a new job in the next five years. So this is a very relevant topic for most people.

I am currently working with several people as they go through a career transition (translation – out of work and looking for a job). As we explore options and help them focus on the future, there are some interesting facts about the job market that everyone should be aware of. In my generation, a job was defined as working for a large company, like IBM, Dupont, or Ford. Our vision was that we could get a nice salary, great benefits, a comfortable retirement and all we had to do was work hard and progress steadily up the corporate ladder.

Here are some realities of the current job market:

- The average person entering the work force today will have between 10 and 14 jobs by the time they are age 39. This is driven by a rapidly changing business environment that sees companies come and go much more frequently than ever in the past.

- Only 2.6 percent of jobs in the U.S. are with companies that employ more than 99 people. A person who equates a job with working for a large organization is severely limiting options in the future.

- The top ten jobs that will be in demand in 2010 did not exist in 2004. Technology, world markets, and population demographics are creating new jobs every day. The problem is finding people with the right skills and personal characteristics to handle the new jobs.

So to prepare for your next career transition, here are some things you can do now to be prepared:

1.Build a network. Only 12 percent of positions that are available are advertised. Most are filled through word-of-mouth and networking. Get to know people, particularly those who own their own businesses. Show genuine interest in their business.

I never thought I would say this, but take advantage of social networking web sites like Facebook or Twitter to meet additional people. If you don’t believe in the power of this, it took 30 years for radio to reach 50 million people, 20 years for TV to reach 50 million people, and 2 years for Facebook to reach 50 million people.

2.Upgrade your skills constantly. You have to be technologically savvy in today’s world. If you are in a profession that has declining demand, then it may be time to consider getting additional education through local technical colleges or even through online training programs.

3.Get healthy. The number of jobs that provide full health care benefits is declining and will continue to do so. There is a good chance that your next job will not have as good of benefits as the one you left. The best way to lower you medical costs is to live a healthy life style.

4.Explore self employment opportunities. A recent estimate said that around 60 percent of households in the U.S. have some form of business operating out of the home. While on the surface self employment may seem to be the least secure form of employment, it may actually be the best way to achieve long term stability and security. Having been self employed for ten years, there is no way that I could see myself back in a corporate job.

Being self employed doesn’t necessarily mean that you will make more money and spend less time at work. In reality you will probably make less money and spend more time, but the rewards of being in control of your own destiny can outweigh these.

5.Get your finances house in order. The reason that many people get stressed during times of career transition is that they have failed to plan for an interruption in income and benefits. They are one missed paycheck away from financial ruin. Make a plan that assumes that you will miss three months pay in the next three years. What would you do? It is amazing how much money we routinely spend on stuff that we could do without during a true crunch.

As you read this, I hope that you are one of the hundred that won’t have to face a career transition, but is it worth taking the chance? Time spent preparing now will lessen the impact if it actually happens.