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A Carol Kallendorf, Ph.D./Jack Speer Publication
Why
Corporations Should Help Make National Policy
Planning Your Escape Route
from Being Chronically Unemployed
How do I know if I'm chronically
unemployed? It means more than that I have I been without a job
two or three times.
Chronic unemployment means I have the pattern of life and a
mental state that I will probably be unemployed or underemployed
for long periods of time. My periods of employment may be
increasingly frustrating both to me and my employers.
It means my employment will probably move away from my career
and diminish in the importance I gave to my first jobs. It
will probably mean an early and unwilling retirement on minimum
income.
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The Great Depression (1929 to early 1940s) Created a Generation of the Chronically Unemployed
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The Great Depression created a whole generation of the chronically unemployed which led to the Golden Age of employment when companies employed and took care of workers with healthcare, pensions, and a job they could retire in. We're not in a "great depression" yet, although some analyses say that our economic difficulties are greater than at any time since World War II. What is certain is that our economic situation and employment in general are different from the way they were and are much more volatile.
Employment Today--It's About Being Agile and Entrepreneurial
Being agile and entrepreneurial is
the key to remaining employed today. In today's world
there are a whole host of employment opportunities, but the
environment is tough and is not likely to get easier. The
over-riding questions always must be: "What do I do each day that
contributes directly to the process of making money? What
do I do that is part of the service my customer willingly
pays for? What product do I build, sell, deliver that will
show up on the company's profit sheet every month?"
Today I'm not only delivering that service, but I'm
competing with others who want to do what I do better, faster,
and cheaper. I am an individual service provider competing
with other providers in this country and across the world. If
someone can do what I do from somewhere else on the
globe at a cheaper price, they will end up doing my job.
If my job can be done in less than fulltime, no organization is
going to be willing to pay me as a fulltime employee. In
delivering my service or product, I may be able to do that in
less than 40 hours a week, less than 52 weeks a year.
I then become a contract employee, if I do the job at all.
If I do it in less than 40 hours a week and want to earn a
fulltime wage, I'll have to find more than one organization to
work for. In this case, I become a consultant. A
consultant is no more than a part time employee paid to do a job
that will not be done permanently on a fulltime basis.
An inability to understand that the employee of yesteryear is an entrepreneurial service provider today sets the stage for becoming chronically unemployed as the years go by.
How to Become Chronically Unemployed
Here is the profile of the
person you don't want to become--a chronically unemployed person
whose career and finances continue on a downward spiral.
There is no doubt that the reasons for a person's downward
career trajectory can be a matter of huge circumstances beyond
the person's control. The following are factors that can
be controlled or influenced by any of us.
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The Chronically Unemployed Often Believe Their Circumstances Are Totally Coincidental. |
People who become chronically unemployed "settle in" to
their
jobs. These people have a different style
and substance to the way they do work that's out of sync with
this century. They get hired and consider getting
hired as the endgame, not the beginning. They have the
feeling that the point of their job is showing up and doing
what's expected of them. They like structure and a feeling
that someone else has the ultimate responsibility for whatever
organizational outcomes are achieved, and they often have a
fuzzy idea about what those outcomes are. If they are in
management and they don't achieve their numbers or their goals,
they are sure that the organization will accept that
circumstances beyond their control were to blame, not them.
If they lose their job, they often believe that they were
betrayed by an organization that should have rewarded their
loyalty and efforts.
People who don't settle in have a realistic view of their
surroundings. Being employed could be compared to living
in a forest. If you have the right tools, you can hunt for
food or gather it from the plants. You have a spectacular
view of the trees and the birds, and you meet friendly people
along the way. If you ever lose sight, however, that not
everything or everyone behind those trees is friendly and that
life-threatening situations can emerge at any moment, the
friendly environment you live in can turn ugly in seconds.
You can't settle in tothe forest, nor into your job.
People who become chronically unemployed are those who a looking
for employee positions as opposed to opportunities to produce.
When they're looking for work, they talk about employment in
terms of what will I do, how long will the job last, what is the
pay and what are the benefits. The person who becomes
stable in employment today always begins by describing what he
or she will help the organization accomplish, how that will
benefit the organization and the culture, and why they believe
they can do it.
A chronically unemployed person sees becoming employed as a
port of call, not the beginning of a journey. Employment
begins the journey. The present organizational goal is the
present destination. What does the organization depend on
my doing to be a part of getting there? Is my part going
to be significant? Do I have the technical skills to make
my contribution or do I need additional training or education?
Am I focused on the goal or do I become distracted by side
issues? Do I have the interpersonal skills to gain the
cooperation of others who share the goal? How will I
measure my progress?
If my present journey--let's say a project--is of two years
duration, will there be another project? Will the next
project I work on take a significantly different skill set?
Do I have the energy to be preparing for my next job by creating
new skills, although this job isn't over and I don't know what
comes next?
Becoming chronically unemployed will happen to many workers, usually over a period of several years. The chronically unemployed are all too often the chronically unaware. They see life and employment as something that happens to them, a matter of circumstance and luck. These factors play a part in all of our lives, but personal growth and a life strategy will help many avoid getting to the point in life where few options remain. If we take action now, we'll have the chance of a better future.
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