We are at the doorsteps of a very bad economic slowdown with fears of its associated implications narrowing down to our wallet. Recession, economic downturn, slowdown, depression, slump, stock market crash, crisis, collapse, job loss, downsize, pink slips, bankruptcy, bad debt – all these have become the talk of the crowd. A negative atmosphere hangs on everywhere.
No jobs may get spared, even medical transcription. Already messages of medical transcriptionists are raising concerns of less work for the past three months. Worried thoughts that outsourcing is aggravating the situation can be seen at forums. Even some nurses are sharing their experiences that nursing too is not always recession proof. Though healthcare jobs are considered to be safe, recession-proof jobs, futurists like Jeff Goldsmith say health care is not recession proof this slump. Jeff Goldsmith is an associate professor of public health sciences at University of Virginia.
Hence it becomes absolute necessity of the time being to tighten the belts on to the current job itself. Ways to avoid being whirled away by the strong undercurrents of this great recession have to looked up on. So let’s discuss those recession proofing tips, ideas, and techniques to avoid pink slip. How to glue to the current seat itself until the doom days are over?
Recession Proofing Tips and Techniques for Current Stint at Job
Be Alert
Be alert to receive insider information about your employer. Avoid getting caught up in the rumors that often swirl around the cafeteria. Furthermore, do not be identified as the person originating and spreading gossips. Remain an ardent listener of gossips. Absorb the positive information if any in the gossips. Never give out your view or version of the rumor. Even better, try avoiding office gossips. However, stay alert to real information that could have a direct impact on your job.
Be Unavoidable
Be an indispensable tooth of the gearwheel that runs your organization. At least it should feel the grunt missing you. Stay ambitious. Get yourself involved in tasks beyond your usual work. Lend helping hand to whoever in need completing their duties. Express your willingness to take on a key responsibility. Preferably a responsibility that usually comes under your superior’s job description. Stretch yourself beyond the working hours. This is the worse time for you to check in late and check out early. These deeds will help you build your brand inside your office. Moreover, it will draw your name out of the list if your company is forced to chart a list of employees that they can’t do without.
Be Loyal
Never be heard or be seen bad-mouthing the organization. Brand yourself to be known as a staunch supporter of top management. Applaud their decisions, achievements and overall progression of the organization. Being stamped as a company loyal man (or traitor as your peers put it) sometimes has negative implications among your colleagues. However, employees who have a questionable loyalty to the organization will be the first to get pink slips even before incompetent but loyal workers. Loyalty matters that much.
Showcase Your Career Capital
Find a way to stand out of the crowd to get yourself noticed. Follow up with your boss regularly. He must be aware of your ongoing accomplishments. You should be able to prove him that you can add value to the company. Suggest your boss creative ways to increase revenue streams, reduce costs, improve productivity, and save time. All these can be achieved easily by moving close to automation. Suppose your company is into selling anything. Think and suggest ideas to increase your market share. Enlighten your boss on why you should market during a slow economy. If opportunity arises to get involved in a long-term project, embrace it with both hands. Your job is safe at least until the project is over.
Build Your Brand Online
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You add value to your current employer as well as to yourself by working to become better known in your industry. Keep building your online persona. Share who you are and what you’re about online. Publish your resume online. Participate actively in social media sites like LinkedIn, Twitter, Facebook etc. Portrait your expertise and affinity to your profession by submitting excellent related articles. Position yourself as an industry expert by writing articles for leading publications.
To make it still better, buy a domain name, start a blog or contribute to an existing one on a topic for which you have passion about. [Though an independent medical transcription contractor, this is one of my motives behind starting this blog. It creates a brand for me along with networking with fellow transcriptionists. If I’m guessing right, you’re now moving over to reach my “About” page!] With all these activities, you’re creating a sort of demand for yourself. Especially, you are making aware your current employer that you’re a gem. In other words, a product in demand that your employer couldn’t afford losing. Whereas, somebody else will accommodate you with plenty of fringe benefits once you’re out of the current ship.
Socialize
Having mentioned about networking above, let’s look at this aspect now. Whatever niche you’re in, the prime secret of career development is networking. Never stop expanding your network of contacts. Networking helps you stay informed of the recent happenings in the industry. Give out information to your network. This is only where you gain more than you give out. There is no harm in getting in touch with your friends in the same profession and former colleagues to find out other job opportunities. Don’t wait to make contact until your job has already disappeared. Start networking now. Attend networking functions regularly. Get your face known. Be helpful to your contacts whenever you can. Because one day they may be able to return the favor when you need it most.
The Power of Positive Thinking and Attitude
Be positive and have a great attitude. For as you dream, so shall you become. That is the power of positive thinking and positive attitude. Think yourself of being in your boss’ shoes. Would you keep someone who continually grumbles about his position? Or will you keep someone who is good at pep talk and boosting morale? I don’t think it’s a difficult decision to be made. Hence stay positive. Work hard. Make it known how much you enjoy your job. Everyone loves an optimist!
Update Skills
A winning trait of successful people is that they never stop learning. Particularly about their industry or profession at any point in their career. Dispensable employees are those who still insist on doing the job as it’s always been done traditionally. On the other hand, indispensable employees are on the cutting-edge of their profession. In the arena of moving closer to automation, if you fail to welcome technological advances, you’re prone to lose the advantage.
If some of your skills are obsolete and others around you are better trained, you could be vulnerable to be shown the doors. Hence get your skills up to date. Consider getting additional training, certifications, and degrees to add value to you. Go by the great saying “Nothing is permanent. The only permanent thing is change.” “If you’re not riding the wave of change, you’ll find yourself beneath it.” Therefore, the sooner you update and adapt to change, the more successful you are.
Be Prepared
Except around your retirement time, at no time in your career should your curriculum vitae gather dust. Your resume is your powerful marketing tool. It should always be a “work in progress.” It should constantly need updates and refinements according to the changing circumstances. If you keep on adding your skills, add that it in your resume too. It can be a time-consuming task to have everything written on it on a single shot when in need. You may forget to add some of your updated skills. Hence if it has been a while since you updated your resume, dust it off well in advance.
Think relaxedly how you can polish your CV to sparkle to make your new employer’s eyes twinkle. Try rewriting your resume to showcase your potential to next employer. It should depict how you’ve been an asset to your current employer. Give examples of how you helped either to make money or save money for your previous employers. Focus on the benefits you can offer your next employer. Your resume showcases your career capital.
Think Twice Before Changing Jobs
Analyze carefully whether your current job really is at risk. If your new company runs into trouble once you are there, they may cut jobs using the “last in, first out” formula. However, if you stay put at your current job, there might be an opportunity for you to move to a higher echelon internally. You don’t necessarily have to go elsewhere at all.
Prepare to Overcome the Worst
Still after applying all these strategies, suppose you’re given a pink slip one fine morning. What are you going to do to pay those bills if you do not have enough cash reserve? Anticipating such a situation in advance, start creating multiple income streams right from now on or at least the earliest possible. Subsequently, find a part-time job as freelancer, sell products online. Offer consulting services in your field of expertise. May be none of these things will initially make enough money to replace a full-time job. Still they can be of a helping hand at times of income loss/reduced income. Likewise they can help you grow your network along with learning new skills.
These were my observations and acts while I was working as an in-house employee in 2001 recession after 09/11. I was seen as a traitor in the eyes of my fellow employees being close to my top management.
Hope all these recession-proofing tips alleviate your fears too of a pink slip due to recession. Let me hope you come out of the economic slowdown untouched and move to top echelon of the company at your stint with the current job. Good luck.