Imagine losing your job and your savings all at the same time?
It's hard to imagine that massive layoffs won't follow the Bear Stearns meltdown last week. Many Bear Stearns employees not only worked for the company, but also had significant dollars invested in the company's stock. Imagine the stress of not only worrying about losing your job but losing your savings as well - all at the same time.
As people evaluate a company for employment, many will look for companies that have performed well over time and place great value on what they perceive as stability.
Bear Stearns, at 85 years old, appeared to be such a company - up until a week ago when they collapsed and was rescued by JP Morgan for about $2 per share. The dust is still settling on that number, by the way.
This corporate instability is one paradigm that job seekers and employees today must acknowledge and learn how to deal with. Scanning the internal and external business environment is a must. There is no guarantee that we will see it coming, but we need to be vigilant to recognize when things are trending against us. It is no longer acceptable, to think just about our careers and not think about the industry in which we work.
For example, even though the financial sector has lost jobs, not all financial analysts are in vulnerable industries.
Be courageous and do not be afraid to ask questions.
Here are some resources to poll your values:
Career Paths Online
Work Values Checklist
Career Values Connection
Why Do Career Values Matter
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