Friday, March 14, 2008
Your Blue Book Value in a Tight Job Market
And you thought only autos had blue book values! If you've ever wondered why some folks stay employed it could be their blue book values. They have skills that employers desperately need. Did you not quite finish that degree? This may be the time!
There has always been an argument for not remaining professionally stagnant. Economies have been in boom/bust almost every decade, complete with tough job markets caused by numerous factors.
While new jobs have been created, a disproportionate number have either being relocated offshore or are low wage, hourly opportunities in service industries. Thus while the observation that there are no jobs isn't quite accurate, the fact that there are far more good candidates competing for them is a reality. Here are more realities:
There has always been an argument for not remaining professionally stagnant. Economies have been in boom/bust almost every decade, complete with tough job markets caused by numerous factors.
While new jobs have been created, a disproportionate number have either being relocated offshore or are low wage, hourly opportunities in service industries. Thus while the observation that there are no jobs isn't quite accurate, the fact that there are far more good candidates competing for them is a reality. Here are more realities:
- If you have held the same position for years without updating your knowledge and education or enhancing your skills, should you become expendable to your employer, you could also appear antiquated to the outside market. In more mature employees, one's inability to be contemporary is a sentence to crash and burn.
- If you've changed jobs too often, you will lack credibility in the experience you've gained and will not fare as well as others because of your inability to leverage those weaker credentials.
- If you are unwilling to relocate or commute, especially in the higher-paying jobs, you could remain unemployed for years.
- If you remain unemployed for too long, you will raise the red flag of rejected goods and ultimately devalue the very credentials that you worked so hard to secure.
- If you don't plan to recareer well in-advance, you may not be able to take the time or make the investment required to become a sought - after candidate in The New Economy.
Get certified, volunteer to take on extra duties that will sell well and know what's going on around you. If you develop job search skills and regularly update your knowledge of the job market, you will maneuver far better should you have to eventually make a change.
Comments:
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Janice is so right! I never thought I'd ever have anything in common with Madonna, but over the past 20 years, I've had to "reinvent" myself continually to remain interesting and relevant to the marketplace.
What do you do, if you took a job that was represented to be more than it was and you find yourself underemployed? How long can you safely stay in a job that is underwhelming before you are considered to be stale?
# posted by 
: 11:44 AM
: 11:44 AM
Dear Anonymous:
You need to consider whether there are any redeeming aspects in the job that can be leveraged to future employers. The normal time so that your longevity will not be in question is 2 years. You might also want to consider not quitting this job, however so underwhelming it might be, until you have another to go to. Remember (how could we forget) that in some geographical areas we are in a tight job market so I'd say hold on to your job while you search. Hope this helps!
You need to consider whether there are any redeeming aspects in the job that can be leveraged to future employers. The normal time so that your longevity will not be in question is 2 years. You might also want to consider not quitting this job, however so underwhelming it might be, until you have another to go to. Remember (how could we forget) that in some geographical areas we are in a tight job market so I'd say hold on to your job while you search. Hope this helps!
The job situation you describe could actually be quite ideal--if you change your point of view. From this vantage point of a job that is beneath your capability, you are now free to study your bosses' jobs, learn a great deal more about your company and its industry category, or analyze your company's competition, etc. All of this prepares you for your next big opportunity - either within your organization, or at another player in the field.
# posted by : 8:10 AM
: 8:10 AM
Anonymous:
Thanks for the input! Despite the perception of being underemployed, the whole scenario is to gain what you can to take with you when you go... Another idea is to be willing to take on extra assignments. Many employees feel taken advantage of when asked to go above the call of duty. Wise ones make the best of opportunity even under less than the best circumstances. What you were willing to do may well be what enables you to out compete the next applicant when you do job hunt.
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Thanks for the input! Despite the perception of being underemployed, the whole scenario is to gain what you can to take with you when you go... Another idea is to be willing to take on extra assignments. Many employees feel taken advantage of when asked to go above the call of duty. Wise ones make the best of opportunity even under less than the best circumstances. What you were willing to do may well be what enables you to out compete the next applicant when you do job hunt.
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