Tweet

Unemployed? Plan Your Career Now

Written by: Roger Ingbretsen

Article Overview: Our economy is a mess, and we are in uncharted territory. Most everyone is feeling the pinch, especially if they now find themselves unemployed or wonder if they are the next one to lose their job. Unfortunately, most people put more planning into their next vacation than they do their career or more realistically their “careers.”

Unemployed? Plan Your Career Now

Our economy is a mess, and we are in uncharted territory. Most everyone is feeling the pinch, especially if they now find themselves unemployed or wonder if they are the next one to lose their job. Unfortunately, most people put more planning into their next vacation than they do their career or more realistically their “careers.” When the pink slip arrives they have no idea of what their next move will be. If you are wondering what to do next, now is the time to seriously take the necessary steps to plan your career.

This is a very important point. Today is important! Today really matters with regard to your next career. You must begin immediately, “today!” to develop and implement an action plan which will create your future. No one will do this for you. Creating your future is strictly up to you!

The first step is to take some reflective time and assume more personal responsibility to think through your next action so you can take control of your career. Begin to think and act like an independent contractor representing a company called, “You LLC.” LLC stands for… “Limit your Liabilities Constantly.” A liability is working in a job which has a limited future or anything that is holding you back from being more successful in the future workplace.

The “You LLC” concept speaks to a change in personal mindset in which you think of yourself as a company. You LLC is a business that sells you… your ideas… and your value to others. You LLC should be a company with a mission and vision statement, goals, values and a strategic plan to meet your desires and the expectations of the market place. Your personal company needs to be agile and quick to respond to change, a company, which gets the best results possible in everything it does. You LLC should be a company, which is flexible, responsible and has a passion to protect and ensure its future survival.

When working for “You LLC,” the following five questions can help you focus and take responsibility for your own personal career change process.

1. What liabilities do I presently have (lack of hard or soft skills, lack of training or education, lack of a solid work ethic or a good attitude, etc.) that I must correct quickly?

2. What four or five important trends (outsourcing, job going overseas, a slowing demand for my services, etc.) are affecting my job or career plans today?

3. What are the two most important actions I need to take immediately to ensure I stay ahead of these trends and prepare for a new career?

4. What are my strengths, talents, competencies and skills, and what am I truly passionate about doing for many years to come?

5. What sunrise jobs or new career field truly interests me, rather than sticking with a soon to be a sunset and obsolete job.

6. Based on the above, what will I most likely be doing in six months, one year, three years, and five years from now if I do, or do not, invest in my career options?

When you begin to formalize answers and develop an action plan to address the above questions, you will begin to uniquely equip yourself to meet the changes the future will certainly bring. You will be better prepared to deal with a wider variety of challenges and reduce your level of fear and anxiety. Most importantly the answers will help you design a “survival road map” to effectively guide you through the constant journey of change from the present to the future – from unemployment to employment.

Related Articles
  A New Way of Working
  Just My Opinion: Should Companies Not Hire The Unemployed?
  Career Management
  Does Economic Recession mean Career Vision Recession?
  Finely Unemployed, The True Mark Of Success for an Entrpreneur

Article Tags: creating your future, desires, economy, feeling the pinch, important point, independent contractor, liabilities, mindset, necessary steps, passion, personal career, personal company, personal responsibility, pink slip, reflective time, regard, strategic plan, survival, uncharted territory, vision statement



Related Forum Posts
Business Innovation - Hi Simon If you can finish off the Business Plan and think about your strategic direction or how you are going to use your product to convince people it's a great idea, it will set the foundation for your programming project. You see, when you are looking for funding you will need a Business Plan and Strategic Plan that will convince companies to invest into your new idea. Has anyone achieved this idea before using another industry besides health and fitness that you know of? You should also design some mockups as a "preview" for your programming project. This will also help reduce your programming costs as everyone will know exactly what you want if you have detailed mockups already completed including any functionality you require. Starting mockups for websites and software applications on paper is the best way if you're not a guru in graphic editing software.
Re: Require Info on CAD Fed/Prov Grants for Restaurant Start-up - I know the Ontario government is starting a "Second Career" campaign, full of internship opportunities for new chefs and catering staff. It may be worth your while to research the possibilities with that. It may work itself out to be cheap labor in the form of a grant. Good luck regardless!
Book: Comeback Moms - Comeback Moms: How to Leave Work, Raise Children, and Restart your Career even If you Haven't Had a Job in Years Monica Samuels and J. C. Conklin 2006 Jacket: Millions of educated, professional women are quitting their jobs to stay home and raise their children. That would never be you, right? You worked hard for your degree and even harder to get to this point in your career. Quitting now, even for a few years, would kill your career, right? That's what Monica Samuels thought when she found out she was pregnant... Over 60 percent of professional women who leave work to raise children want to get back into the workforce someday. If you even think you might want to go back to work, be it in one year or twenty, you need to lay the groundwork now for a successful reentry or your options will be limited. 1. Quitting: When is the best time to cut the cord 2. Feathering the nest: How to financially prepare before you quit 3. Departure strategies: leaving the office 4. Money and Power: Constructing a new life on the home front 5. Backlash: handling family, friends and angry strangers 6. One foot in, one foot out: How can they miss you if you don't really go away? 7. Part time: It ain't perfect, but it's doable 8. Going back: the when and how of returning to work full time 9. Career counseling: When you need a change 10. Entrepreneurs: True Stories Resources Index
2007 Goals - 1. Web site complete, fully operational 2. Revenue stream from both individual and corporate 3. Business Plan complete 4. Full marketing strategy complete and implemented
I could use some help with my Marketing Plan Objective - Hi guys, Well I'm off to the UK be back to work on April 10th. In the meantime, I could use some help. My Marketing Plan Objective is definitely not SMART. It doesn't have anything specific, or measurable, it is achievable, it is realistic and it is timed. You're help will be appreciated. Hope to tallk to you in April and see you in May. Judi


Share this article with your friends. Fund someone's dream.

Leave a comment below or share on the left and you'll help support entrepreneurs in Africa through our partnership with Kiva. Over $50,000 raised and counting - Please keep sharing! Learn more.

Tweet

Newsletter

Get advice & tips from famous business
owners, new articles by entrepreneur
experts, my latest website updates, &
special sneak peaks at what's to come!

Name:
Email:

Popular Articles

Creating a Better Place to Work

How To Be A Management Legend

Halloween Howl Seven by Author Paige Agnew

Suggestions

Email us your ideas on how to make our
website more valuable! Thank you Sharon
from Toronto Salsa Lessons / Classes for
your suggestions to make the newsletter
look like the website and profile younger
entrepreneurs like Jennifer Lopez.