Is any job really better than no job?

Posted on May 30, 2011
Filed Under Employment, Finding a Job, Hiring Forecast, Recession | 1 Comment

Two years ago, at the height of the financial downturn, the father of a good friend of mine lost his job after 18 years of dedicated service. While at first he was quite literally shell-shocked, my friend’s father eventually revised his professional vision—such that it reflected this divorce—and began job hunting aggressively. Unfortunately, because his employment sector had been dealt a perilous blow by the downturn, my friend’s father found it immensely difficult to not only find a job, but an executive-level position in a sector that was unequivocally shrinking. Of course he, like many out-of-work job seekers at the time, applied for jobs for which he was unarguably over-qualified and which would have entailed a significant pay cut. Despite offers for such positions, my friend’s father persisted; knowing his day-to-day happiness would be greatly affected by accepting a sub-par job. His gambit eventually paid off as his sector is, once again, growing.  and he secured a fantastic position at a well-known firm. However, many job seekers during the downturn period ostensibly adopted the mantra, “Any job is better than no job,” and in doing so, made difficult sacrifices when faced with the rather unpalatable prospect of accepting a low-paying, uninspiring job. Read more

The mid-life career change

Posted on May 26, 2011
Filed Under Career Change, Employment, Finding a Job | 2 Comments

Mid-life career changes are not uncommon—it is possible, after all, for an individual to develop new career interests after a lifetime of growth and evolution. Yet, as Vault blogger Caroline Ceniza-Levine recently put it, achieving a full 180 degree career change can seem like a Catch 22. That is, you are unable to launch into a new career because you may not have the requisite backlog of professional experience, yet you are unable to gain such experience because, well, you lack the experience. Although this may seem like a deep hole from which there is no escaping, Ceniza-Levine offers some sensible advice, from one mid-life career changer to another. Read more

Is slacking off good for your health?

Posted on May 23, 2011
Filed Under Employment, Health, Keeping your Job, The Workplace | Leave a Comment

I once used the term “George Castanza” as a means of describing an employee who embodies all of the characteristics least desirable in an employee. A George Castanza is inattentive, careless, sluggish, but most of all, a George Castanza is a slacker. A George Castanza is an employee who, in every instance, prefers the calming waters of a lazy stream to the trying rapids of a river. In fact, a George Castanza would prefer to avoid water altogether, preferring to spend his or her time sleeping, or perhaps watching others attempt to navigate a river’s rough rapids. While being a George Castanza will certainly land you in some hot water, is a George Castanza, and the characteristics such a character embodies completely bad? While we may all agree that employees everywhere should refrain from modeling themselves after this archetype, everything bad has some good. Is being a George Castanza all bad? Read more

The trick to forecasting federal hiring trends

Posted on May 19, 2011
Filed Under Employment, Federal Employment, Finding a Job | Leave a Comment

While USAJobs and individual agency job sites may be a boon for job seekers seeking employment in public service, something job seekers cannot find on USAJobs is information about future government- or agency-wide hiring initiatives. Unlike private sector hiring, which can be driven by the strength of domestic and world markets and can fluctuate wildly, federal hiring is scheduled and strictly regimented—each year agencies must submit budget requests which, sometimes, provide information about hiring initiatives in stunning detail. Although having this information may not, in itself, get you a job in public service, it could provide you with an unbelievably reliable lead and a huge leg up over the competition. Read more

What happened to the Pony Express?

Posted on May 16, 2011
Filed Under Employment, Finding a Job, Hiring Forecast | Leave a Comment

Do you remember the Pony Express? The Pony Express relied on a core of gifted equestrians whose job was to traverse the difficult territory, which separated the eastern and western United States. What happened to these paragons of equestrianism? The telegraph, that’s what happened. Telegraphic communication made it possible for Americans to send transcontinental messages without the aid of a fleet of horseback riders. In short, the Pony Express rider was replaced by technology. This trend of technology—now automated processes—replacing hardworking employees has continued, and recently, the Bureau of Labor Statistics released data on which industries and professions that seem to be going the way of the Pony Express. Read more

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