Meltdown Survival Handbook
Or: 20 ways to stop worrying and thrive in the recession
By Laura Cassidy, Matthew Halverson, and Jessica Voelker
8. Brand Yourself—and Embrace That Brand
It sounds overly image-conscious, but now that finding a job—not to mention keeping one—has devolved into an office-park blood sport, personal branding is a necessary evil of recession-era survival. “It’s not like 30 years ago, when you’d work for a company your whole life and they’d practically manage your career for you,” says personal branding strategist Maren Finzer. “Everybody has to manage their own career.”
Start by identifying the characteristics that separate you from your competition; if you get stuck ask friends or former coworkers. Maybe you constantly research new trends in your field or you’ve literally never missed a deadline; no matter how trivial they may seem, those traits may be the edge you need to get noticed.
Now be that brand. Plug a concise mission statement into your résumé, walk the talk around the office, and if you have online profiles at LinkedIn or ZoomInfo, update them so they’re consistent with the message you want to communicate. But whatever you do, don’t get sucked into upselling yourself. “A lot of people think it’s just about creating a false image,” Finzer says. “But personal branding is truly being yourself.”
9. Go on the Interview Offensive
So you landed an interview for one of the few jobs available—good on you. Now, don’t get passive. “Almost no one goes into an interview and asks serious questions about the job,” says career counselor Matt Youngquist. “They just sit back and never show much curiosity or enthusiasm about the work.” In other words, you don’t have to do much to stand out from the candidate crowd: Bring work samples, bring incisive questions that show you’ve researched your prospective employer’s company, bring a PowerPoint that explains how you’d raise their bottom line in the first 90 days—just bring something beyond a defensive posture.
10. Network the Smart Way
The problem: Jobs are scarce, and quality positions rarely ever show up on Monster.com. The solution: good old-fashioned networking. Make some calls, and make the rounds, but whatever you do, avoid these all-too-common mistakes.
DON’T ASK POINTLESS QUESTIONS. You’ve got nothing to gain by asking contacts if they know of anyone who’s hiring. “You have to be more specific,” says career counselor Robin Ryan. “‘I’m a human resources generalist—do you know anyone who’s looking for someone in HR?’”
DON’T HIDE BEHIND YOUR COMPUTER. Creating a profile on Linked-In is a good way to get started, but you have to cultivate those relationships in the real world. “You can do a lot online,” says Dan McComb, one of the founders of the local online networking service Biz-nik. “But the real power is in face-to-face connections.”
DON’T RELY ON YOUR FRIENDS. Unless you want to get stuck in a closed loop of dead-end job leads, diversify your circle of contacts. You’re more likely to find new opportunities, and you’re less likely to get typecast. “People who are close to you tend to put you in a box,” McComb says. If you want to branch out and try something different, they won’t be able to imagine you doing it, so they’re less likely to help.
11. Channel Business by Channeling Your Inner Human
“In a recession,” says Dan McComb, a founder of Seattle-based social networking site Biznik, “people have more time than money. They’re looking to convert that time into something valuable.” While they can’t replace personal interactions (see number 5, “Bartering”), social networking sites like Facebook, YouTube, and Twitter are an easy, free way to market your services or brand. But, warns McComb, you have to think more like a person and less like a corporate drone. For starters, FORGET THE BOTTOM LINE. Just because you can’t measure business generated from a Facebook fan page doesn’t mean you can afford not to have one. “Can you measure return on making your office building attractive?” McComb asks. “If you don’t mow your lawn, there’s a direct impact. It’s the same thing.” While you’re at it, CAN THE SALES PITCH. When you overpromote on a social-networking site—even if you’re there to represent your company—you become “that guy,” the one at the cocktail party who can’t stop talking about his marathon training, his kid’s lacrosse prowess, how he could totally win Jeopardy if he wanted to. Instead, says McComb, EMBRACE KARMA. Compliment content on your “friends’” Facebook profiles, tweet about an article you love or a great local garden service, and eventually people will start directing business your way, too. “You’re doing something without immediately getting something back, but knowing that it will come back to you, just not through that same person.”
12. Think Your Job Is Safe? Update Your Résumé Anyway
A killer track record and chummy rapport with management can’t protect you from occupational redundancy, so keep that résumé handy; you never know when you’ll be asked to reapply for your job. “Your boss may say, ‘We have six project managers, and we’re only going to keep three. We need your résumé by tomorrow,’ ” says career counselor Robin Ryan. “You won’t be able to write a résumé under those stressful conditions.”
13. Throw a Discount Dinner Party
Seattle, this is your intervention. It’s been a rough year, we get it. But now is not the time to hole up in your house and shut out the world. First, uncurl yourself from the fetal position and change out of your pajamas. Ooh, and you might want to open a window, it’s a little stuffy in here. Now—call up some friends, because you’re hosting a dinner party. Don’t start shaking. Food impresario Kathy Casey is here with tips to help you toss together a sweet little soiree without spending wildly. The only question is, will you accept the help she’s offering?
SIMPLIFY Forget the three-tiered hors d’oeuvre extravaganza. Casey says one special signature cocktail paired with a wee amuse bouche–style app* offers a fun, focused way to start off the evening.
FORAGE Casey digs a DIY approach to table decor: Fill little juice glasses with bouquets of wild herbs from the garden or clip some pretty branches from a tree and spread them on the table. “Just don’t pick other people’s flowers,” she says.
GRILL In summer, Casey likes to serve freshly grilled strips of steak. (She raves about the affordable cuts at Costco.) No need to offer big portions of protein; just pair with ample portions of skewered seasonal veggies and you’re good to go.
PLAY To cut cost on wine, ask each guest to bring an inexpensive red, then wrap a paper bag around the bottles and tie with a pretty ribbon. Place a little notepad next to each place setting so guests can jot down notes as they blind taste the value vinos. It’s a fun icebreaker, and everyone walks away with new affordable wine faves (not to mention a depression-defying wine buzz…but that’s a whole other Intervention).
- Casey suggests her own Tuscan rosemary lemon drop with roasted pear and gorgonzola crostini from her cookbook Sips and Apps. Click here for the recipes.
Published: August 2009
I thought this whole entry was great, but I must say I have to disagree somewhat with 5. Reduce, Refuse, Rejuvenate. I subscribe to Marcus Buckingham’s words in that what you’re good at isn’t necessarily what gives you strength. From his examples and case studies, people who are good at certain things don’t always get energy from these activities. A strength is any activity that makes a person feel stronger, which isn’t necessarily what they’re good at!
I liked reading all of these entries, especially 7. Bulletproof your job because I realized I was going about some things in what can be perceived as a facetious manner
Some new and pretty good ideas.. Thanks much.
Hmmm. Care to make this a regular column? It would make it easier for me to return to this site.