Times are tough! Not exactly a news flash, huh? Massive layoffs, stock market losses, slashed retirement funds, companies sprialing downward - where does all that leave you, the worker?
Hopefully, if you have been laid off, you were fortunate to have received outplacement services paid for by your employer. However, if your company is going through bankruptcy, it probably doesn't have any resources to support the job transitions of its laid off employees.
If you are still lucky to have your job, despite the skyrocketing unemployment rate, you may be hanging on to it for dear life, stressed out and fearful of IF or WHEN the pink slip will hit your office door.
What can you do today to make work more worthwhile? More secure? More within your control?
LOSE THE FEAR! Become proactive. Take charge of your own career! Here are ten tips to help you do that:
- Get your resume and cover letter in order. Don't wait until you need them "yesterday."
- Start researching your options to learn what's available "out there" that you could really enjoy doing.
- Get involved! Join professional groups where you can meet people with the connections for you to get that "perfect" job.
- If unemployed, it's not too late to start networking. Join local free job clubs. Get your profile on LinkedIn. Let everyone you know among your friends and acquaintances that you are looking for a job.
- Take a class. It's amazing what you can do when your mind gets stimulated.
- Consider starting your own business. Future trends predict more people working for themselves from homebased offices within the next five years.
- Think positive. The Law of Attraction brings us what we focus on the most. Really! (Have you read "The Secret?")
- Identify a mentor. Find someone who will support you in your career. It helps to have a role model who takes an interest in your welfare.
- Stay informed. Read business publications, attend seminars and talk to those "in the know." The best time to find a job is before it is ever advertised.
- Hire a career coach! Your return on investment could result in more than six times your cost. This has been proven true by many who have done just that!
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