Don't Believe the Hype!

Is our economy challenged?  Yes.   Are we entering a second Great Depression?  Hardly.   If you listen to the local news media though, you'd think all hope is lost.

I just heard one of our local stations advertise tonight's installment of a series of stories they are running called "Survive in '09" (I have to wonder why they aren't encouraging to job seekers by calling their series "Thrive in '09").   Tonight's attention grabber was, "Let us show you who is actually hiring in North Texas."  The newswoman emphasized the "actually" as though there are few or no jobs to be had in a metropolitan area of 4 million people.

I have a friend from my previous job who was laid off a couple of weeks before I was, who recently told me that she was looking for work, but that there "just aren't any jobs out there."   Horse feathers.  I can't say for sure, but I think she may be listening to the local news hype. 

Several truths nullify the news stations' spin:  1) There are a lot of jobs being advertised (given that only 20-30% of jobs are actually ever advertised, there are many more than we even see), 2) our area is a major metropolitan area with several Fortune 500 companies headquartered here.  Are they challenged?  Sure.  Are they all shutting down?  Hardly.   But the #3 truth about job hunting is the most damaging to the news stations' dire soundings:  YOU ONLY NEED ONE JOB!   

My encouragement goes out to those who are out of work and haven't had much success in landing a new job.  I like to say that patience and persistence is what will pay off (along with a deep-seated faith in God in Christ).   A solid job-hunting strategy and marketing plan must be executed along with being patient and persistent.   My friend who said that there were no jobs also said that she was not spending at least 8 hours a day looking for a job.   This revelation makes me think that there are still plenty of people out there who aren't well-versed in modern job-hunting techniques.   (See Feb 23, 2009 post for more discussion on this.)

If all you do is hit the Internet looking for job openings, you may feel that there aren't many jobs (even though there really are quite a few).   If you deny that you are a product to be marketed, you will spend a long time unemployed.   If you continue to believe the hype of the news media, you will be allowing someone else to dictate the direction of your life and career.