Economic Uncertainty: How Do You Respond?
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Today’s economic news is mixed. July employment numbers were through the roof. Unemployment remains exceptionally low. But then we read:
• Layoffs are sweeping America as recession fears mount.
• Half of US companies are reducing headcount or planning for this year.
• Seventy-eight percent of employees said they were worried about their job security.
• Apple, Wayfair, and Google are the latest companies to report cuts in August. So how should you respond?
The smart play is to follow the advice of this unlikely group of economic sages — Benjamin Disraeli, Zig Ziglar, Maya Angelou, and my father:
Hope for the best, prepare for the worst.
If you have not had to look for a job in the last three years, or if you do not have a career emergency preparedness plan, do not delay preparing for the worst.
Funny Quotes to Begin Your Weekend
5 Questions for Career Change
What steps should I take to change careers?
Follow your dreams and the money will follow, is common if not accurate advice.
Here are five issues for you to consider:
- Is your dream monetizable? Can you earn enough money to support yourself?
- If your dream is to start a business, ask yourself: has the concept been proven? If not, how long will it take, how much will it cost?
- Will this new career – or job – require any licensure (professional or municipal), certifications, or special education?
- Will relocation be required?
- How long will it take to transition? Do you have sufficient cash on hand to support yourself during the transition?
Change can be exciting but be mindful of the critical questions.
Your Email Address IS Important
Is your email address important?
Yes.
Consider this: a friend, in his mid-50s, shared that a colleague laughed when he admitted to having an AOL email account. When the laughter subsided, my friend indignantly asked why that should matter.
For his generation, AOL was the new cool, but today, it symbolizes being out of date. AOL reflects an “old school” vibe.
In a time when age discrimination is rampant, when you are moving from your 40s into your 50s, being seen as out of date can be career limiting.
While the ATS resume scanner may be age-blind, the sad fact is that many employers are not.
Do not let something that seems so unimportant be the factor that pigeonholes you into the “too old” to interview category.
Don’t Be Misled Regarding Your Resume
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Optimizing your resume is a misleading phrase.
It means incorporating commonly used key industry words and phrases into your resume. The problem is that most ATS scanners are looking for more than general keywords and phrases. Increasingly, employers are customizing job summary algorithms to ensure the people who are selected for screening interviews are spot-on regarding years of experience, industry knowledge, and specific skills for the job. Generic resumes, even ones produced by resume experts, lack that level of keyword detail.
We recommend you hire a resume writer to help you define your value, clarify, and quantify your accomplishments and skills but know you will still have to customize each submission for the specific job.
Resume writers can provide important value, but don’t let them oversell you that customization is not important.