FINDING A JOB IN TOUGH TIMES
Whether your financial situation is pretty good or pretty dismal, you need to approach a job search with the same enthusiasm and dedication that you would apply to any new and challenging task. The fact that everything you read about the plight of the unemployed in this job market is downright depressing doesn’t mean that your prospects are bleak.
Sure, you’ll be discouraged by the rejections, but you will succeed sooner rather than later as long as you sustain your effort. Rather than focusing on the bad news, think about the tales of multimillionaires who started out unemployed. Economic contractions routinely breed opportunities. Old companies that failed to work are replaced with new ideas and new energy. You’ll feel better if you look at those possibilities rather than at the negative factors that may have led to your need for work.
YOUR JOB SEARCH
Your first job search task should be to determine where the job opportunities lie. In the United States, for example, jobs are growing in the fields of health care and energy, to name just two. Get organized and mobilized. Examine your income, expenses, savings, and investments.
Determine whether you qualify for placement assistance or job retraining. Apply immediately if you qualify for government benefits like unemployment insurance. If your spouse or partner is working, that should help. Set up a daily action plan and stick to it. Consider taking these steps:
• Target companies that you feel could use your services and might hire you. Do Internet searches for job banks. Many government unemployment offices have links to state, private-sector, federal, veterans, and military transition job banks, as well as résumé and interview services.
• Be alert for jobs in industries that may soon be growing, such as infrastructure and alternative energy, homeland security, the defense industry, and research industries that are experiencing job shortages. www.CareerBuilder.com has quarterly job forecasts. Check the Bureau of Labor
• If you’ve tried all these tactics to no avail, there are a couple of other options that may bear fruit. First, consider doing volunteer work. This should prop up your spirits and keep you busy between job interviews. Also, a volunteer job can account on your résumé for the period of your unemployment, and employers may be impressed by your resourcefulness during a time when far too many unemployed people sit at home feeling sorry for themselves.
Another option to consider is whether additional education and/or training might improve your opportunities. Analyze what low-cost training options might beef up your skills or prepare you for a promising new career.
HELPING YOUR CHILD FIND PART-TIMEWORK
Another unfortunate by-product of a weak employment market is that it’s likely to be tough for high school and college-age children to find summer jobs and part-time school year jobs. Local, state, and federal grants to nonprofits that provide summer jobs to students are being slashed. Plus, many adults who are out of work are taking jobs at fast-food restaurants and retail stores, leaving fewer opportunities for teenagers.
• The key is to get your children psyched up. Today’s economic environment can teach them helpful lessons about courage and perseverance. They will become particularly strong and resistant to life’s hard knocks if they can learn at a young age how to bounce back from rejection.
• Like out-of-work adults, teenagers and young adults need a game plan. They should have a well-written résumé and cover letter ready to show employers.
• Kids can go to www.Myfirstpaycheck.com for a free résumé.
• To get a summer job in this competitive marketplace, young adults must be persistent and polite. They need to dress well and make eye contact with interviewers to make a good first impression. Plus, they should follow up with a thank-you after each interview.
• They should check for jobs around administrative offices at school. Parents and kids should also network with friends, relatives, and neighbors.
• Even if they are unsuccessful, a little creativity can help. Cutting lawns, delivering newspapers, babysitting, and running errands for senior citizens are always great ways to make some money. Consider that billionaire investor Warren Buffett started his career by selling chewing gum. Then, he saved up his profits.
Sure, you’ll be discouraged by the rejections, but you will succeed sooner rather than later as long as you sustain your effort. Rather than focusing on the bad news, think about the tales of multimillionaires who started out unemployed. Economic contractions routinely breed opportunities. Old companies that failed to work are replaced with new ideas and new energy. You’ll feel better if you look at those possibilities rather than at the negative factors that may have led to your need for work.
YOUR JOB SEARCH
Your first job search task should be to determine where the job opportunities lie. In the United States, for example, jobs are growing in the fields of health care and energy, to name just two. Get organized and mobilized. Examine your income, expenses, savings, and investments.
Determine whether you qualify for placement assistance or job retraining. Apply immediately if you qualify for government benefits like unemployment insurance. If your spouse or partner is working, that should help. Set up a daily action plan and stick to it. Consider taking these steps:
• Target companies that you feel could use your services and might hire you. Do Internet searches for job banks. Many government unemployment offices have links to state, private-sector, federal, veterans, and military transition job banks, as well as résumé and interview services.
• Be alert for jobs in industries that may soon be growing, such as infrastructure and alternative energy, homeland security, the defense industry, and research industries that are experiencing job shortages. www.CareerBuilder.com has quarterly job forecasts. Check the Bureau of Labor
• If you’ve tried all these tactics to no avail, there are a couple of other options that may bear fruit. First, consider doing volunteer work. This should prop up your spirits and keep you busy between job interviews. Also, a volunteer job can account on your résumé for the period of your unemployment, and employers may be impressed by your resourcefulness during a time when far too many unemployed people sit at home feeling sorry for themselves.
Another option to consider is whether additional education and/or training might improve your opportunities. Analyze what low-cost training options might beef up your skills or prepare you for a promising new career.
HELPING YOUR CHILD FIND PART-TIMEWORK
Another unfortunate by-product of a weak employment market is that it’s likely to be tough for high school and college-age children to find summer jobs and part-time school year jobs. Local, state, and federal grants to nonprofits that provide summer jobs to students are being slashed. Plus, many adults who are out of work are taking jobs at fast-food restaurants and retail stores, leaving fewer opportunities for teenagers.
• The key is to get your children psyched up. Today’s economic environment can teach them helpful lessons about courage and perseverance. They will become particularly strong and resistant to life’s hard knocks if they can learn at a young age how to bounce back from rejection.
• Like out-of-work adults, teenagers and young adults need a game plan. They should have a well-written résumé and cover letter ready to show employers.
• Kids can go to www.Myfirstpaycheck.com for a free résumé.
• To get a summer job in this competitive marketplace, young adults must be persistent and polite. They need to dress well and make eye contact with interviewers to make a good first impression. Plus, they should follow up with a thank-you after each interview.
• They should check for jobs around administrative offices at school. Parents and kids should also network with friends, relatives, and neighbors.
• Even if they are unsuccessful, a little creativity can help. Cutting lawns, delivering newspapers, babysitting, and running errands for senior citizens are always great ways to make some money. Consider that billionaire investor Warren Buffett started his career by selling chewing gum. Then, he saved up his profits.