When it comes to pursuing your green career, you may be tempted to crawl into bed, pull the covers up, and stay there until the economy picks up.
It's easy to sink into a spiral of doom and gloom when faced with the scenario we are facing as a nation. This is even truer if you've been laid off or you fear you are about to. New graduates are also feeling the pressure.
Think Green
Rather than solely studying the traditional economic news, turn your attention to information about the green economy. Although it's not all good news, there is more cause for hope and optimism on the green side of the fence.
Many people, including President Obama and his Administration, believe that the green economy will be the driver that brings the US economy back. The stimulus package demonstrates that they are putting their money where their mouth is. Over the next few weeks and months we'll be able to follow the money to see which industries are beginning to grow as a result of the stimulus money.
The US economy will come back. It may take awhile. It may be rough going for many. The question is...
Do you want to be on the front edge of the recovery OR do you want to wait until you are sure it's happening to put yourself into position to jump when opportunities strike?
As the green economy gains traction again, you have a golden opportunity to prepare yourself for your next position. The ideas below are appropriate for professionals who are out of work at the moment, new grads, and employed professionals. Your actions will depend on the time you have available. Do what you can, given your situation.
If you are currently out of work, your path is tough. There is no doubt about that. You may need to relax your vision of the kind of job you want. Consider contract work, temp work, a side business, and work outside your profession as ways to bring some income in the door. Your goal is to stretch the funds you do have until the economy picks up again. Working will have other benefits as well. You will be active in your community, developing items for your resume of the future.
Steps You Can Take
One of your best tactics is to become the employee you'd want to hire if you were the manager. This goal ripples through all of your job search activities.
Manage Your Mindset
Would you hire someone who is depressed, negative, and fed up with life? NO!
So...work actively to manage the emotions you feel about your situation.
- Remember, you need only one job. Companies of all shapes and sizes are hiring.
- Keep the faith that there is an answer out there for you. I realize it's hard sometimes, but keeping the faith may be the thing that allows you to shine above other depressed job seekers.
- Be creative. If you need a second job to make ends meet or a job that allows you to go to school and work, be clear about your needs and then look for a solution to meet those needs.
- Surround yourself with people who see the opportunity before us. Hanging out with people who harp on the negative will only lower your spirits. Identify at least one friend who will support your efforts to enter the green economy. Perhaps they are trying to achieve the same goal!
Stay Active
Would you hire someone who was stuck on the couch watching reruns or playing video games? NO!
You'd want to find someone who was active and striving to make a difference in their community.
- Attend events. Search out green networking events or green community groups.
- Reach out to meet with others. When you attend the events listen to what other people are doing. When someone catches your attention, follow up. Invite them to lunch or ask for a ten minute informational phone call.
- Help others with leads. Keep your new contacts in mind and pass leads to them as you run across articles, opportunities, or contacts they should know. Hopefully they'll remember you when they see something that would be of interest to you. Even if they don't send you leads...they will most likely remember you as someone who helped them out.
- Start your own job search team. If you connect with a few other people who are striving to get into the green economy, take the initiative to create a job search group. Meet on a regular basis and support each other in the job search journey
Stay Alert
Would you hire someone who was out of touch with the green economy or your industry? NO!
You'd want to hire someone who was plugged into what was happening in the green movement, the green economy, and the industry.
- Understand your target industry. Invest the time in reading about and studying your chosen industry. This information will be priceless in an interview setting because it will be clear you know the stuff.
- Scan for industries/companies that are hiring. As you study your target industry, pay particular - attention to companies who are hiring — even if they aren't in your neighborhood or region. Look for trends in terms of the kinds of companies that are growing right now. What does that tell you about the industry? What does that tell you about who might be hiring in your area?
- Explore how your skills are a fit. As you learn more about your chosen industry, take a look at where your skills and experience give you an edge. Capitalize on how your skills create a win for the company and for you.
Use Your Time Wisely While You Wait
Would you hire someone who had made no investment in their own future? NO!
You'd hire someone who made a concerted effort to learn, explore, and practiced their skills during the downturn.
- Put your skills to work in whatever way you can
o Volunteer at a green Non Profit
o Help a friend who has a green business
o Start a green business of your own
o Land a consulting gig
o Find or create an internship for yourself
o Create a green project at home or within your community - Increase your knowledge
o Take a course
o Get a certificate
o Go back to school
Although your job search may not produce your desired result as quickly as you'd like, you can make progress toward your goal. As long as you are enriching your mind, learning new skills, gaining relevant experience, and building a network, you are making great progress!
When the economy starts rebounding, you'll be right there to jump at the opportunities that come your way.
One of the things that frustrate people about job hunting most is that it takes so long to find the perfect opportunity. This job search lead time can vary widely, lasting for as little as a week to as long as two years or more. Because of this, it is very difficult to predict just how long it will take job seekers to find the jobs they want.
Some of the variables in lead time include: the type of jobs, the location, the economy of the area and the macro-economy, the individual, their experience level, and the skills they possess. Literally hundreds of other factors make lead time one of the biggest unknown quantities of a career change.
With the economy in its current state, there are job seekers of high quality that are trapped in a situation where the job search lead time can be long. It is so easy for employers to choose less experienced people when they can pay them much lower salaries than they would more qualified candidates. This is especially true when they do not have personal knowledge of any of the job candidates.
With the power of career networking, job seekers can cut down job search lead time. It is easy to form a relationship with a recruiter, an administrator, or simply another professional through the online community. When these people feel that they know someone who is just right for a job, they will often be able to disregard higher salary and benefits requirements. They will go for the most qualified person after all.
Currently, there are thousands of websites devoted to job search. Job seekers can go online and post resumes and profiles with ease. The one thing these websites have failed to do is work with social networking to significantly reduce job search lead time. This social networking, based on career interests, is a powerful tool.
There are several premier career-oriented social networking sites on the Internet today. The main purpose of these sites is to help you find a career as quickly as possible. Another objective of theses sites is to allow members to make friends and network with professionals in their own area of expertise.
Third, the premier career-oriented social networking sites are available if you just want to build up a lifetime support network. If and when you need to make a career change, the network will already be in place. This gives you more control over future job search lead time. It is also possible to promote the profile of a friend or family member on the website, as well as contact them when looking for jobs.
If you wish to access the power of professional networking through the online community, you can look to a premier career-oriented social networking site for help and inspiration. You can make job related connections with anyone from old friends to new contacts to recruiters around the world. The shortest possible lead times are waiting for you through career networking.
Both Carol Mcclelland & Ron Subs are contributors for EditorialToday. The above articles have been edited for relevancy and timeliness. All write-ups, reviews, tips and guides published by EditorialToday.com and its partners or affiliates are for informational purposes only. They should not be used for any legal or any other type of advice. We do not endorse any author, contributor, writer or article posted by our team.
Carol Mcclelland has sinced written about articles on various topics from self improvement and motivation, Career Change and The Internet. Green Career Expert Carol McClelland, PhD, is the author of Your Dream Career For Dummies and founder of Green Career Central, a one-stop membership website with useful programs and more than 400 pages of effective, targeted information to help you identi. Carol Mcclelland's top article generates over 22200 views. to your Favourites.