Image by Steve Rhodes via Flickr
By Jennifer Anthony
With an unemployment rate hovering around 10% nationwide, there is a good chance that you or someone close to you has faced, or will face, a lay-off. If your industry is simply not hiring in your field of expertise, you have three options: wait it out, relocate, or make a career change. If you are being faced with this decision, you have likely searched for and applied for positions in your field that are close to home. So how do you decide the next course of action?
Wait
If your job search has yielded no returns, you might consider waiting out the storm for as long as possible. During this time, you should be continuing your education or looking for other ways to become more attractive to potential employers.
Things to consider before settling on this option:
- Determine how much time you have left on unemployment compensation, if applicable, and how long you can live on the reduced income. Consider any savings that you have and any freelancing or consulting work that you can do.
- Decide whether you can or should take a temporary position that pays less than you were making. Remember that if you take a lower paying, non-ideal job and then end up needing to claim unemployment benefits again, the amount will be lower than what you are currently getting because they will consider the lower pay rate. A short stint may also negatively affect your work history.
- Think about your game plan. What will you be doing in the meantime? Going back to school, volunteering, and consulting are all good options that will benefit your resume later.
Relocate
The time may come when you decide to begin sending out your resume to companies that are not within commuting distance to your home. If you are not offered a telecommuting option, you would then need to relocate.
Some considerations include:
- Cost of living. Making $75,000 annually in New York City or Honolulu is not going to stretch as far as it could in Cheyenne or St. Louis. Use a cost of living calculator to give you an idea of how your new salary will fare.
- Change of lifestyle. Moving from a Northern city to a Midwestern or Southern small town, or vice versa, can be a drastic change in your work and personal environments. Look into crime statistics, demographics, and what types of businesses are common in the new city before making a commitment.
- Family matters. Will your spouse be able to find a job in his or her field? If you have children, how do the schools compare? If you have any special health needs, will you be able to find the appropriate specialist?
Change Careers
If there is very little to no growth projected for your current field, and you are unwilling or unable to relocate, you might consider looking into a new career.
If you are considering switching careers, here are a few tips:
- Find a new career with growth potential. According to the Occupational Outlook Handbook, health care workers should continue to be in demand through 2018. These include nurses’ aides, medical assistants, registered nurses, and physicians. Other careers that should see continued growth include receptionists, executive secretaries, accountants, and bookkeepers. Demand should also be high for software engineers, management analysts, and data communications analysts.
- Look for mentors in your field and network as much as possible. Knowing people in the field will help you to get your foot in the door when the time comes.
- Revamp your resume. If you are changing careers, your resume has to be more impressive than the resumes from your competitors that have actual experience in your newly chosen industry. Utilize your cover letter to explain why you are changing careers, emphasizing your transferable skills and your passion for your new field.
While a change may be disconcerting, it could also be the start of a wonderful new life in a different area or a successful career in a new field. Take the steps necessary to strive towards excellence, even if you have been downsized.
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© Jennifer Anthony, Nationally Published Resume Expert & Career Strategist
Disclaimer: Advice offered in this article is not comprehensive and is intended for a wide-range of readers. Individual results may vary based on geographic location, local economies, market saturation for a particular industry, academic background, adaptability to workforce changes, and/or continued motivation. Contact a professional resume writer to discuss your unique situation.
This work is licensed under the Creative Commons Attribution-No Derivative Works 3.0 United States License. To view a copy of this license, visit http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nd/3.0/us/ or send a letter to Creative Commons, 171 Second Street, Suite 300, San Francisco, CA 94105.
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