No job is secure, so look for position that satisfies you
Dear J.T. & Dale: Do you think that in such a bad economic crisis like right now it is smarter to (A) go to work for a large, stable company where the job is boring and there is not much upward mobility, or (B) take
your chances on a startup where you could potentially catapult your career, but it also could end up out of business? — Ella
DALE: Here in the New Economy, “stable” isn’t what it used to be. In fact, aggressive executives don’t want to be stable, they want to be “disruptors,” figuring out ways to attack stable businesses. This means that no job is secure, not in the way it used to be, where you could count on the company to be there for the length of a career and beyond.
J.T.: In previous economic crises, it was thought that you should stay with the job that you had. Or, if you needed to look for a job, look for one with a Big Stable Company. But, in the past 10 years, things have changed dramatically. First, nowadays every job is temporary. Second, we are all learning that it’s more important to choose a job where we fit in with the culture and how the work is done. So, my advice is to focus more on companies where you admire what they do and try to identify places where you will feel satisfied working. The more satisfied you are working, the better your performance and the more likely you’ll keep your job, not to mention, grow your career!
DALE: Then there’s one more step. You can’t just choose a job where you fit in and then hope everything works out — you might fit very comfortably inside a stagnant company in a dying industry. And that brings us back to the question of taking a chance on a start-up. If you go with a young, growing organization and things don’t work out for the company, that’s not a terrible reflection on you. Indeed, companies want employees who have experience with innovative ideas/firms. So, it’s ABL — Always Be Looking — and what you’re looking for is to work your way into a thriving company in a growing segment/ industry.
Dear J.T. & Dale: I started a little side hustle in the pandemic. It’s starting to go pretty well, and I’d like to build it into a full-time career. I was going to put it on my LinkedIn profile, but I was advised not to. I was told that if my employer sees it, they might think that I am not 100% committed to my job with them and it could cost me my job. What do you think? — Demi
J.T.: Actually, it is a valid concern. Especially, if your side hustle is something that is uniquely different from the work you do on a day-to-day basis. On the other hand, if it is similar to what you do, they might think that you are taking business away from them. So, for now, my advice would be to leave it off the LinkedIn profile. Instead, I would focus on putting together a website for this new endeavor. You can at least
point people there and eventually when it makes sense for it to become your full-time profession, then you could add it to LinkedIn. Yes, management is often suspicious of employees and, like a jealous spouse, is quick to look for signs of cheating. But, even if yours is an open-minded management, you still have a decision: Keep your endeavor a secret and risk being found out or just talk openly about it? In a world where everybody knows everything, secrets are temporary. So, if you can shrug off your side work to your coworkers as a “hobby,” you won’t have to worry about being discovered. The key is to never let management question your loyalty. You have to be the ultimate team player, and that means shutting your piehole about your side hustle, even when it’s the thing you are dying to talk about. Jeanine “J.T.” Tanner O’Donnell is a career coach and the founder of the leading career site www.workitdaily.com. Dale Dauten is founder of The Innovators’ Lab and author of a novel about H.R., “The Weary Optimist.” Please visit them at jtanddale.com, where you can send questions via email, or write to them in care of King Features Syndicate, 628 Virginia Dr., Orlando, FL 32803. (c) 2021 by King Features Syndicate Inc.