Job Security in Your Hands
04/Jun/08 14:50 Filed in: Careers
Many people have been asking me lately about the
economy and how it affects their job stability. My
answer is that it depends -- on your industry, your
company, and various other factors. But there are
always things you can do to make your job
"Recession-Resistant." The long and short of it is to
become indispensable, but how do you do that?
Here are a few tips to secure your job during a downturn or recession:
1) Show Your Value: Find out what your manager and the company needs and then provide it. Solve problems instead of finding them. Look for ways to save the company money or increase sales. Be a positive and low-maintenance employee. Multi-task.
2) Increase Your Visibility: Keep your manager informed on what you're doing, your progress and accomplishments. Get closer to him or her and understand the stresses and needs you can help with. If you are working from home or telecommuting, think about spending more time in the office to get "face time" with management and your peers.
3) Find Your Voice: Don't be afraid to "toot your own horn." Tout your accomplishments. Share ideas on how to make the company more profitable. Manage up the chain.
4) Volunteer: Take on additional work, especially those projects that benefit other departments or business units. Take some of the load off your manager.
5) Be a Vehicle of Change: If the company is challenged to deal with the economy, find out what the company is doing to survive and thrive, embrace the changes and support those efforts.
6) Image: Dress the part for the next level and act it whenever appropriate. Show that you should be moving up, not out.
7) Initiative: Keep your options open. Network. Dust off your resume. Think about industries or companies where your skill set is needed which might be in a stronger financial position.
Here are a few tips to secure your job during a downturn or recession:
1) Show Your Value: Find out what your manager and the company needs and then provide it. Solve problems instead of finding them. Look for ways to save the company money or increase sales. Be a positive and low-maintenance employee. Multi-task.
2) Increase Your Visibility: Keep your manager informed on what you're doing, your progress and accomplishments. Get closer to him or her and understand the stresses and needs you can help with. If you are working from home or telecommuting, think about spending more time in the office to get "face time" with management and your peers.
3) Find Your Voice: Don't be afraid to "toot your own horn." Tout your accomplishments. Share ideas on how to make the company more profitable. Manage up the chain.
4) Volunteer: Take on additional work, especially those projects that benefit other departments or business units. Take some of the load off your manager.
5) Be a Vehicle of Change: If the company is challenged to deal with the economy, find out what the company is doing to survive and thrive, embrace the changes and support those efforts.
6) Image: Dress the part for the next level and act it whenever appropriate. Show that you should be moving up, not out.
7) Initiative: Keep your options open. Network. Dust off your resume. Think about industries or companies where your skill set is needed which might be in a stronger financial position.