Could There Be Even a Slight Improvement in the Job Market?

I tend to believe that we haven't seen the worst of the economic debacle, but I will say that I am seeing more activity in my ongoing job search, as I have been contacted by 3 companies in the past few weeks.  I will also tell you that all 3 came through networking contacts, including one of a person I have only met once or twice while interviewing at a company she worked for!

Whether or not there is good news regarding the economy, I do not know.   I do know that in once instance, the advent of the new year (read new BUDGET year) has created the opportunity.   For those of you who may be getting discouraged in your job hunt as the holidays draw closer, please do not "quit" for the holidays!   Many companies are finalizing budgets for 2010 and are making plans to bring new people on to start in January.  As some companies have had a decent 3rd quarter, they may be optimistic and making plans to try to expand in January.

Press on even harder in your job search now, making contact with your connections, letting them know that you are still in search mode, providing them with a fresh resume and description of your key "selling points."   This may sound like a dumb suggestion, but rename your resume....from "SStein Sept09.doc" to "SStein Nov2009.doc."   You may have some updates you've made, and second, your document will look current to someone who hasn't heard from you lately.  Either way, it might just keep your contacts from overlooking you.

I Know I've Said This Before...

God is in control. Period. You will destroy yourself if you put the burden of return on your invested job-searching time on yourself. We have to be smart and work hard at job searching, but in the end, we do not control the process. My encouragement is to not let the process control YOU.

...and believe me, I know all too well how hard that is.

U.S. Job Seekers Exceed Openings by Record Ratio

http://www.nytimes.com/2009/09/27/business/economy/27jobs.html?_r=1&em

"Job seekers now outnumber openings six to one, the worst ratio since the government began tracking open positions in 2000. "

The last lines of the article: “I’ve learned that I can’t look to tomorrow,” she said. “Every day, I try to do the best I can. I say to myself, ‘I don’t control this process.’ That’s the only way you can look at it. Otherwise, you’d have to go up on the roof and crack your head open.”

So, I'm NOT Imagining Things...

Rebecca is spot on, again .... I just thought it was my imagination, seriously.

Job Search Seem Like It’s Getting Tougher? You’re Not Imagining Things

from The Interview Edge by Rebecca Metschke http://blog.theinterviewedge.com/the_interview_edge/2009/09/job-search-seem-like-its-getting-tougher-youre-not-imagining-things.html

It’s challenging trying to land a job right now – and getting more difficult. If you’ve been feeling the pinch and wondering if “it’s just you” rest assured…the phenomenon is real.

Two things are happening concurrently to create a perfect storm of sorts on the employment front.

First, the Labor Department reported last week that the number of available jobs has fallen by a staggering 50 percent-plus over the past two years; in July there were six unemployed people for every job opening. To put that into context, consider that at the beginning of the recession (December 2007) the ratio was 1.72 to 1.

For further comparison, during the height of the last recession’s lengthy jobless recovery the ratio was roughly 3 to 1. Because that was a much narrower downturn, you may not have felt the impact; ask the folks in the telecom industry, though – which was ravaged – and they will tell you the ratio seemed much worse than that.)

Then we have the fact that we’re in the midst of a buyer’s market, which only exacerbates the competition. Many employers with jobs to fill opt to bypass the unemployed and instead choose to set their sights on those who are still working.

This concept isn’t something new. There's almost always a preference on the part of hiring managers for passive candidates – people who are employed and not currently searching. Those folks are considered more desirable.

Various reports, however, indicate that the penchant for hiring companies to target only those who are employed elsewhere is on the rise. The belief is that if a person has made it through this extended downturn unscathed, there’s a good chance he or she could be a top-notch candidate. When you can afford to be choosey, candidates who've been laid off may not even get a first look. (This preference is extending across the board, from line workers to senior managers.)

This means unemployed job seekers are in waters that are only getting choppier.

I point this out not to discourage you – actually, just the opposite. Sometimes when the obstacles appear overwhelming, you can begin to doubt yourself. You might wonder what you’re doing wrong, or figure that surely you are contributing to the situation…when that may not be true at all.

Of course you should step back and objectively review your search strategy periodically to see what you can do differently or how you can be more effective. But the fact that you’re not making headway at the moment may not have anything to do with you. Sometimes circumstances simply are what they are, and the competition is extremely challenging.

Keep at it. Search smart, be creative, roll up your sleeves, understand it’s probably going to some time – but don’t give up.

The Interview Edge - required reading for people who are serious about their careers.

Perspective

Lately, I struggle, as all job seekers do from time-to-time, with a "heightened sense of self"---that is, a preoccupation with my own, perceived miserable state.  Now mind you, I'm working a contract for a well-known company, so cash flow is still green, but it is a contract position.   There is some tentativeness in being a contract worker, but as I've told many people, we are all, in a sense, in contract positions.

Maslow's hierarchy of needs is fairly well-known (though his explanation of the human condition is incomplete), so I will state my struggle in these terms:  a job is a job, and that puts food on the table, but it does not guarantee that you feel a sense of esteem and self-actualization.   All this said (and I know many who are job-hunting, jobless, and under-employed would agree with the above), I wish I could maintain a proper perspective on life during a job hunting period.

I have a fellow church member in his 50s who is has had a surprising recovery from PANCREATIC cancer, but who is now facing an uncertain prognosis after recently learning he has liver cancer.   And here is the part that really cuts me really deep:  when I call him to see how he is doing, his first question is, "How is the job search going?  Have you heard back from company x?"  I try to update him quickly so that I can ask him how HE'S doing, as his issues are much more significant than mine, and because I'm embarrassed by the whining that he does not know I've done about job hunting.

Despite this awareness of my lack of perspective, and like the Israelites in the desert having seen great miracles of God in their lives, I complain to God--and feel guilty.   Perhaps my prayer ought to be, "Lord, give me the right perspective to give you thanks every day."  

When I was growing up, the only kind of rejection that seemed to really hurt was being turned down rudely for a date by the prettiest girl you'd ever seen.  But, eventually you got over it, because you knew there were "plenty of fish in the sea," and after all, you weren't worried about losing your house, car, 401K, etc. in the process.   When you experience job hunting rejection, the stakes are much higher than a bruised ego, and you sometimes feel as though you'll never land a new job.  The emotions can then take you into a death spiral of ever self-condemning emotions.

_____________________________________

Overcoming Job-Hunting Rejection

With each rejection, we lose a little more dignity. Here's how to turn things around.

This article from BusinessWeek discusses 21 actions you can take to bolster yourself and your job hunt.

http://www.businessweek.com/managing/content/may2009/ca20090522_290737.htm?chan=careers_managing+index+page_top+stories

....and then there's this....

The Smart Way to Tap Social Media

Twitter, Facebook, and LinkedIn activity means nothing if it doesn't move the needle on your strategic business goals

http://www.businessweek.com/managing/content/may2009/ca20090526_882141.htm?campaign_id=managing_related

12 ways to stave off job-hunting desperation

Not that I have any personal experience with this.....

12 ways to stave off job-hunting desperation

http://blogs. techrepublic. com.com/career/ ?p=669   April 1st, 2009   Author: Toni Bowers 

It´s not unrealistic to feel panicked and fearful when you´re unemployed in the present market, but panic and fear may be keeping you from landing another job. Here are tips on how to overcome those feelings and put your best foot forward.

In the Doldrums...

All in a hot and copper sky,
The bloody Sun, at noon,
Right up above the mast did stand,
No bigger than the Moon.

Day after day, day after day,
We stuck, nor breath nor motion;
As idle as a painted ship
Upon a painted ocean.

from "The Rime of the Ancient Mariner," Samuel Taylor Coleridge (1772–1834)

Growing up in New Orleans, I have some understanding of the expression "the doldrums."   While spending many summer days on Lake Pontchartrain in a friend's boat (a small Lafitte Skiff, see http://www.louisianafolklife.org/LT/Articles_Essays/creole_art_boatbuild_unfat.html), swiming, crabbing, etc., there was an occasional dead calm in parts of the lake, usually in the morning, the mirrored surface of the lake glistening, and the smell of the brackish water less inspiring.  No wind moved the gangs of hungry mosquitoes away.   We were at the mercy of the lake---until we fired up the boat's V6 inboard motor---which never left us stranded in the middle of the 630 square miles of water that is Lake Pontchartrain.   Had it failed, we would have floated aimlessly in the hot New Orleans summer.

      

Lafitte Skiff, south Louisiana, and Lake Pontchartrain, my boyhood playground was southeast of the Causeway Bridge (the line going 24 miles across the lake). New Orleans is on the south shore of the lake.

THE WORLD is charged with the grandeur of God.
It will flame out, like shining from shook foil;
It gathers to a greatness, like the ooze of oil
Crushed. Why do men then now not reck his rod?
Generations have trod, have trod, have trod;	5
And all is seared with trade; bleared, smeared with toil;
And wears man’s smudge and shares man’s smell: the soil
Is bare now, nor can foot feel, being shod.
And for all this, nature is never spent;
There lives the dearest freshness deep down things;	10
And though the last lights off the black West went
Oh, morning, at the brown brink eastward, springs—
Because the Holy Ghost over the bent
World broods with warm breast and with ah! bright wings.

---"God's Grandeur," Gerard Manley Hopkins  (1844–89)

This one just speaks to me right now....

Now, I'm not in a panic yet, but I'm starting to feel a little like a teenager without a date to the prom that is next week or the last kid to be picked for a team....I may not agree with every word below, but they are pretty dead on in this article.  I'd one a #12...Take it all to God in serious prayer.

12 ways to stave off job-hunting desperation

http://blogs.techrepublic.com.com/career/?p=669   April 1st, 2009   Author: Toni Bowers 

It´s not unrealistic to feel panicked and fearful when you´re unemployed in the present market, but panic and fear may be keeping you from landing another job. Here are tips on how to overcome those feelings and put your best foot forward.
------------ --------- --------- ---------
Mark Jaffe is an executive search firm president who was identified in 2008 as one of the "World´s 100 Most Influential Headhunters" by BusinessWeek.

According to Jaffe, "Nothing is more attractive to a potential employer than the heady aroma of desperation. Hardly a day goes by without employers asking me for candidates who are radiating pure terror." Of course, he´s being facetious, but he makes the point that if you want to land that next job, you have to lose the air of desperation.
Here are 12 tips from Jaffe on how to keep your calm in a tough job market:

1. Try to stay calm. Take a deep breath and relax. Hyperventilating is never pretty, particularly during an interview. Prospective employers want Jason Bourne - not Jason Alexander. Show them you´re capable, confident, and cool. No sobbing. 

2. It´s not you, it´s the economy.. Please, please remember that what´s happening is a reflection of the overall economy; it´s not a commentary on your specific qualifications. Sometimes stuff just happens, and we all get stuffed in the process. Don´t take it personally. 

3. Revitalize, don´t reinvent. Why is "reinvent" even a word? Companies need the experience and accomplishments you've earned over time. Leave the instant makeovers for people who have something to hide. Leverage what you already have instead of focusing on what you fear you may lack. 

4. Your money´s no good here. When times get tough, the tough get pitched a bunch of crap. If someone offers to craft you a "killer resume," put you in touch with the "hidden job market," or coach you to become a newer, more marketable you, keep your wallet in its holster. Whether they´re asking for $3,000 or $300, it´s overpriced. Don´t take candy from strangers, either. 

5. Seduction trumps selling. Your next boss wants to be enamored, not assaulted. In business as in love, infatuation rarely results from a hard sell or a soft shoe routine. By all means, explain but resist the urge to exclaim. Let people reach their own conclusions about just how "world class" an employee you are. 

6. Be realistic. Naked ambition is a great thing, especially on reality TV, but baby steps may be more effective in this business climate. Besides, starting at the top is overrated. Set your goals at achievable levels. 

7. Give yourself some time. Tick-tock. Tick-tock. Listening too closely to your inner "job clock" can get you wound way too tightly. Yes, time is of the essence - there´s not a moment to waste - but most people underestimate how long it will take to find the right gig. Pace yourself and spare the whip. 

8. Work your network, but gently. Chances are you already know the person who will put you on the path to your next salary. Your network is a precious resource and should be treated as such. Now is the time to use it...but gently. Ask for a reference, not a job. When you don´t put your friends on the spot, they´re more inclined to think about ways to help you. 

9. Choose wisely. If Smokey Robinson was recording "Shop Around" today, he´d probably say: "Try to get yourself a bargain, son. Don´t be sold on the very first one. Pretty jobs come a dime a dozen. Try to find one that´s gonna give you true lovin´." Or something like that. Smokey knows about love and work. Whenever possible, be reluctant to jump into a temporary fix. As things improve, you´ll be defined - at least in part - by the compromises you made. 

10. This too shall pass. Despite what you see on the cable networks, we are not living in the End of Days. Yes, it´s miserable out there - worse than most of us have ever seen - but at some point it will just be a bad memory. Sooner than you or anyone at CNBC thinks. 

11. Don´t put your faith in recruiters. Seriously. We are not the answer to your prayers. Most of us never even answer our phones. 

12. Take another deep breath. Admit it, you´re all tensed up again. Deep breath, cleansing breath. And...exhale. Once more, and exhale. 

Toni Bowers is the Head Blogs Editor of TechRepublic (www.techrepublic.com). She has been in the publishing industry for 20 years, with concentration in IT-related topics. She has edited newsletters, books, and web sites pertaining to software, IT career, and IT management issues.