I talked to a couple last week who described the stress and turmoil in their lives, from a round of layoffs occurring recently at his job and now talk of a second round. He has worked for one of the largest defense contractors for eight years during an era of growth – but now uncertainty reins under a new President and reductions in defense spending. The couple both echo what’s Industrial Engineering Book causing the almost debilitating stress – the fear of the unknown. “It’s a good job and I don’t want to walk away from it. Besides, in this job market, what else is out there?” says the stressed out husband. “Not knowing is almost worse than losing your job, at least then you know where you sit.” When I asked what (they) were doing about it, I got the response “worrying a lot.”
There isn’t a “silver-bullet” to maintaining employment in a tough job market. But one thing is for certain: doing nothing isn’t going to help. Frequently we are in a status quo mindset and accept most anything an organization puts forward. But just waiting for the ax to fall is one of the dumbest things you can do!
The overused buzzword, in business and self-help books of the last decade, proactivity, is the only answer experts seem to agree on. But what is being proactive really? It’s a state of mind that says I’m not going to accept the existing state of affairs just because that’s what I’ve been given – I’m going to take control, step-by-step, of my own destiny. I’m not going to let someone else’s decision, or indecision, add stress and disorder to my life. The first step is becoming more aware of what’s going on in my supervisor’s office. What’s her perception of me? Did I learn anything from my last performance review or just go through the motions? What have I accomplished vis-à-vis the other employees? Do others think of me as a go to person – someone they can count on to get the job done? What’s going on in other departments in the company, in the Becoming An Electrician At 40, or the economy in general? We have to study industry trends. In three years, will our products still be relevant or will we be outgunned by competition? If you work for a company or industry that is losing its pertinent position, begin immediately thinking about making a change to a new job – or even a completely different industry. Be rational though. If you quit your job you won’t have much staying power to search for a new one. Use your existing employer (and their paycheck) while you seek your new position. But don’t give your current employer a reason to put you on the next layoff list. Make sure you give maximum effort to your current company during this process. Make the change on your time frame not theirs.
Let’s look at the example of the …
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