Economic Shock Waves Change Everything

Cici Mattiuzzi
Career Programs Corridinator
College of Engineering & Computer Science
California State University, Sacramento


The economic news is bad. The fundamentals of the economy are not strong. Capital is drying up. Financial markets are in crisis. The State of California does not have a budget and the budget war is continuing. Jobless claims are on the rise and HP just announced that it is laying off 24,000 people.

Trouble is everywhere: the dollar is weak on foreign markets, the Federal Government was forced to take over Freddie Mac and Fannie Mae, Lehman Brothers, one of the largest global financial services firms, was forced into bankruptcy. Two days ago the Federal Government stepped in and bought out AIG, a major insurance corporation with a world-wide reach. Washington Mutual and Citi Bank, are teetering on the verge of bankruptcy. Consumer and investor confidence have both been weakened.

All of this upheaval is shaking the global economy to the core. Business depends on the availability of credit to fuel the economy. Much of that comes from foreign investors. The economy cannot seem to turn itself around after repeated punches. Investors abroad are afraid that America is failing and dragging the rest of the world down with it.

All of us will be touched by the declining economy. No one is going to be immune to rising fuel and food prices. We will be touched by the economic slow down, whether it is in our inability to borrow money for school or a house, the declining value of our stock portfolio, or the slow down in hiring.

A lot has just changed and everyone of us needs to figure out what that means. Some people will lose their jobs. Many people will find it difficult to obtain jobs at graduation.

What if you lose your job? What if you have difficulty finding a job when you graduate this December? People who face unemployment react to it in different ways. Anyone who has been unemployed knows that it represents challenge and terror, like riding a roller coaster. It can be scary and wild even in the best of times.

If you are in that position, stay calm. Right now, a lot has to do with your attitude. If you can view the current situation as an opportunity and an adventure, you will find it a lot easier to cope. Take time to think. If you get organized and develop a plan while remaining active and positive, things will go much better.

In the three decades that I have been helping looking for work, I have watched the impact of recessions and the resulting tight labor markets. Everyone eventually finds a job, but it can be challenging. It requires a much greater effort to get a job during tough times.

So where should you start?

Be positive - even if you don't feel positive. Do not panic. Think of it as an opportunity that lets you use your talents to develop a new plan or to start a new life. It's OK to get depressed, but it's not OK to let it get the best of you.

Take stock — assess your financial situation immediately! Don't continue to spend and live like you did before you lost your job. As a student you probably have lots of pent up demand for stuff... Well keep it pent up for awhile longer... Get conservative in a big way. In a normal period it takes an average of 3 to 6 months to conduct a job search. This may not be a normal period. The recession has already expanded that job search time frame to 6 plus months for many job seekers. The recession is not that deep in the Sacramento area yet. Employers are still hiring. Maybe just not the ones you had hoped would hire you. Look around. Ask questions. Figure out who is hiring and get on it! NOW!

Have a backup plan. Register for graduate school immediately. The deadlines are on top of us. If you are unable to obtain a job immediately, graduate school is a great place to weather the storm. Shelter in place that is what many Texans were told as they faced down Hurricane Ike. A graduate degree looks great on a resume and it's a lot better than ending up with a huge time gap in your credentials.

Mobilize your resources. If you are laid off, file for unemployment insurance immediately. Seek support from family, friends, or a church or synagogue or mosque, and from university career and alumni offices. People love to be helpful, and they will help if you give them clear enough information. Don't keep it a secret. Tell everyone that you are looking for a job. Describe what you are interested in and put a positive spin on it. Use phrases like "exploring options" and "seeking opportunities." Make it sound like this is an adventure. If you are married with kids, tell the kids and let them identify ways they can help conserve the family resources. They will feel powerless if they think they can't help. Make it a mission for the family and have regular meetings on what is happening. Inform your parents so they can help. These days, it is very common for parents or other family members to help financially, or with a place to live, or to be watching the want ads and articles on the web and in local papers for leads on what companies might have opportunities.

Focus on your knowledge and interests. Assess your skills and expertise. Think globally. If, for example, you were laid off from the electronics industry, focus on industries that are expanding (like defense systems or security systems). A good book to help you in assessing your skills is my book- The Ultimate Career Planning Manual for Engineers and Computer Scientists. Make a list of all the possible companies you might contact that would be interested in people with your talents.

Research your options. Spend time on the web looking at information on companies you are interested in and post your resume on the sites. You should spend a minimum of five to seven hours a week researching if you are conducting an effective job search campaign. Find out what areas are growing.

Be aware of technical, economic and political changes that impact your marketability. Read!!! Read everything you can get your hands on — Google News, the Business Journal, a local newspaper, technical journals, news magazines, and business magazines. The information that you will gain from being well informed from sources such as these include what industries are suffering most right now, what new technologies are emerging, who is key in the emerging areas and what areas are growing. Hint: security, infrastructure, energy, healthcare, green everything, water, environment, alternative anything, defense, government ... these are areas that are growing.

Get involved professionally. Some of the best job contacts can be made at professional association meetings and activities. People tend to get smothered by what they do, never peeking out to see what the rest of the world is doing. If you are professionally involved and know your colleagues in other organizations, you can automatically get tuned in to where else you might fit.

Network. The time to develop a network is as soon as you chose a profession. Chances are the professional friends and colleagues you know in various organizations will be your life-line to a new job. Don't lose touch with college friends and professors. If you have, get back in touch. What should you say when you get back in touch? Explain that you are looking for new opportunities and that you would like to come in and pick their brains about what is going on in their industry and elsewhere. Tell them you are seeking advice and ideas. The more people you talk with, the better your information will be on what to do next. People may be reluctant to meet with you at first, thinking that you only want leads on jobs, and they may not be aware of any job openings. Tell them not to worry. You only want to brainstorm to help come up with ideas, leads and a plan for what to do next.

Develop a plan. Synthesize the information that you have gathered from written and web sources and by talking with people. Identify all of your options. Brainstorm on the possibilities: target companies to work for, return to school, start a small business, join the Peace Corps, travel, write.... In other words, all of the things that you have always wanted to do but for which you never had the time. Only after these deliberations will you be ready to develop your plan.

Get creative. Remember you are an engineer, a problem solver. Here is a problem that you can really sink your teeth into. Approach it in the same way you would tackle any problem... as a challenge you can conquer.