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Patricia A. Crew
Master Career Counselor MA, LCPC, NBCC
Patricia has almost 30 years of experience helping individuals pursue, change, manage and advance their careers. As well as a Masters degree in counseling from Catholic University, Patricia has completed numerous post-graduate classes in counseling and career development at Johns Hopkins University.
Patricia previously worked as the Career Development Manager for the Montgomery County Government and as a career counselor for the Montgomery County Commission for Women.
She continues to be a featured speaker with recent presentations topics that include: Secrets to Predicting Career Success That Only You Know, Get Out of Your Own Way To Get What You Want in Your Career and Winning Strategies to Enhance Your Worth at Work.
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COMPREHENSIVE CAREER COUNSELING CAN HELP YOU TO: |
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~ Gain a clear understanding of your core strengths. ~ Do a thorough career exploration. ~ Manage a career change. ~ Improve your work performance. ~ Remove artificial, organizational barriers to success. ~ Navigate thorny management issues. ~ Prevent derailment by building strategic alliances.
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Volume 12: Summer 2010 Greetings!
Welcome to the twelfth
edition of the Comprehensive Career Counseling Newsletter. As summer
winds to a close, we have a sense of anticipation, but sometimes also a sense of
ambivalence. Where's the economy going these days (we all wonder)? How will if affect my organization and my job, my career plans and my job
search? Is there a point at which I'll feel secure that my job will always be
there when I return from vacation or when taking some occasional time off?
Unfortunately, no one
has a crystal ball that can provide a reliable economic forecast. Even in prosperous times, job security seems to be going the way of handwritten
correspondence - not exactly extinct, but more rare these days. So what
are your choices? How do you adapt?
I address these questions is this month's article about job security. There's more about what you can do to stay safely employed, no
matter what's happening around you.
Also, I'd like to invite you to please join me at the Commission for Women, Rockville Maryland for my
workshop entitled Secrets to Predicting
Career Success that Only You Know on Tuesday, October 19 from
6:30 pm to 8:30 pm. For more information visit www.montgomerycountymd.gov/cfw.
As always, if you
have a specific, pressing question that you'd like me to address in an upcoming
newsletter, please send me an e-mail to trishacrew@aol.com. I'm very
interested in knowing what's on your mind.
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Job Security:
Does It Exist?
Does job security really exist or is it a figment of our hopeful
imagination? Are there really safe
careers out there in the employment world today? Is there a way to safeguard your job from the
recession?
These are questions constantly presented to me by my clients over
the years especially in times of economic stress. There is no denying that job
restructuring, lay-offs, downsizing, furloughs, hiring freezes and reduced
compensation and benefits can occur in certain sectors even when there is not a
recession - a daunting reality. So searching for job security is a valid
exercise. I still receive repeated requests from clients for assistance in
obtaining "job security".
Recent studies completed by KPMG (a global network of firms
providing audit, tax and advisory services) indicate that, as a result of the
economic downturn, recent graduates rate job security as a top priority for a
potential employer ahead of pay and benefits.
However, what drives organizations today is the bottom line and
not the needs of the employees. The days
of the gold watch after 30 years of employment, guaranteed pensions and
unquestioned loyalty to the employee are a thing of the past. Job security must
be viewed with a completely different mind set.
So how do we create our own internal job security that will
weather even the toughest economic downturn? We need to stop looking to employers and
organizations as the source of job security. Instead, we need to look at ourselves, our actions and our choices. There is no employer who actually cares about
keeping you employed to the same degree that you do, so why would you leave it
up to them to give you security?
Treat your job as "Self
Employment" for a secure career by implementing the following tips:
1. Change Your Expectations. Expect that economic
reversals will occur; accept that changing jobs is a given; believe that a
variety of experiences does create a more marketable you. Trust in the value of trying different career
roles. This may take a major mind shift.
But, know that beliefs are the underlying catalyst for behavior. Begin to think differently.
2. Create an Updated Resume. Most people rush to create or update a resume
when a job hunt becomes necessary, easily forgetting many important skill
building experiences. Keep a journal of
all your accomplishments, make note of any changes to your current job
description. Don't forget to include all
professional volunteer experiences and renew your references.
3. Constantly Engage in Professional Development. This may be the singular
most important activity you can do. Stay
current in your field by learning new technologies as they are always changing
- take any seminars or workshops offered at the workplace or exchange tutoring
with friends. Build new skill sets every
day. Seek out rotational assignments to enhance your skills. In most cases, individuals
with the exceptional skills win out!
4. Network, Network,
Network. Network as if you were
currently job hunting. Carefully choose and
participate in formal associations and networks. Keep contact with former bosses and
colleagues, present co-workers and classmates. Regularly communicate and have coffee or lunch with old and new
acquaintances to keep information flowing in your direction. Reciprocate with
articles of interests, introductions to new contacts and an attitude of
willingness to help others.
5. Consider a Non-Traditional Source of Employment
to Enhance Your Resume. Taking into account the fact of
globalization, consider an employment stint abroad - it adds real credibility
and breadth to your skill set and makes you more marketable. Think about
volunteering in a capacity that expands or highlights your talents and
interests.
6. Reflect on the Long Haul. Continuously
explore your many options that constitute your career path in life - and there
are many options. Spontaneously participate in activities to
determine if you enjoy and do well in new arenas. Engage senior and
executive employees in conversations about career paths and all the necessary
steps to get you where you want to be.
7. Think Like a Freelancer. Think
like an entrepreneur, someone who is self-employed, because in the end, you
really are the one who is most concerned about your own employment and career
path.
Resources:
"The Recession-Proof Job. Is There Such a
Thing?" Stephen Friedman. The Financial Post 3/27/09, http://network.nationalpost.com/NP/blogs/fpposted/archive/2009/03/27/the-recession-proof-job-is-there-such-a-thing.aspx.
"Job Security, Too, May Have a Happy Medium" Louis
Uchitelle, New York Times, 2/25/07, http://www.nytimes.com/2007/02/25/business/yourmoney/25view.html.
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RECOMMENDATIONS
Jean Stafford, executive coach of Executive Coaching for Women Inc., specializes in the unique demands made on executive women. If you're in need of help in overcoming traditional barriers, identifying new business opportunities, and achieving new levels of both personal and professional satisfaction, I highly recommend that you contact Jean at 703-759-4862 or go to www.jeanstafford.com. - Ready to Work
First Tuesday of the month, 6:00 pm
- Transition Roundtable - TelecomHUB
Second Tuesday of
the month, 4:00 pm - CFO Support Group Second Thursday of the month, 4:00 pm For more information, contact ardell.fleeson@cbre.com. |
PARTNERS CORNER
Marva Goldsmith
Most people
have a vision of what they want to achieve but don't understand that their
words, actions and image may be holding them back. Marva Goldsmith, a Certified
Image Professional, delivers image and branding services through workshops,
workbooks, consulting and branded collateral development that helps her clients
market their best self. Check out her Web site at http://marvagoldsmith.com. |
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Missed one of my
newsletters? Click here to go to the archives.
As always, I look forward to your feedback.
Sincerely,
Patricia Crew
Comprehensive Career Counseling
trishacrew@aol.com
301-838-9456
www.crewcounseling.com
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