Dealing with Job Insecurity

In a time of credit crisis, banks relying on the tax-payers to bail them out, and major auto makers begging the government to be saved, job security for the worker in America is obviously a thing of the past.

Forget job “security,” we’re now dealing with job INsecurity.

If you’re like me, you already know one or several friends or family members that have been laid off either due to poor profits or a company going out of business all together.  Psychologically, this can cause severe trauma not just to the person it’s happening to, but everyone surrounding them as well. It’s the wondering that becomes fatal.  At least the person affected directly has something tangible to deal with - you’re left to worry about how you might be affected next month, next week, or even tomorrow!

The Stress and Anxiety of Unknown Job Security

Everyone deals with job stress and anxiety differently.  When the security of our job comes into question, those coping methods become extremely important.  Do you let your mind start creating horrible possible outcomes that make your stomach cringe?  If the unknown about your job starts you down a miserable spiral, there are a few things you can do right now to get your security - and sanity - back.

Keep in mind, any of the things we’re about to talk about are going to take a quality you must have first.  If you don’t have it, you have no choice but to learn it before you are able to fully correct your path to job security.

** You MUST be able and/or willing to completely believe in yourself to accomplish anything, without doubt.  This may sound too simple, but the sad truth is that most people just don’t fully believe in themselves.  Here’s a job security belief test you can try:  Say to yourself, “I truly believe that my financial future is secure.”  Now, if there is any doubt, you will have felt a small, uncomfortable ‘twinge’ in your stomach or chest.  This is your internal mechanism for determining the safety of something.  It’s the same feeling you might get if someone were to ask you to lie, or if you saw someone doing something illegal — it’s your ‘gut’ - and it’s telling you that you don’t believe the words coming out of your own mouth.

Ok, so you felt the ‘twinge’ - now what?  For some people, having doubt like this is simply a matter of needing a plan.  For some, there are underlying beliefs that, until confronted and delt with, will forever have a negative affect on our ability to earn money and have any type of job security.  You need to truly believe that you are deserving of a secure future  — without this, in the end you will receive what you believe you should receive.

Addressing Job Insecurity

There are a few core things I can recommend trying if you’re not secure in your job today:

1. Communicate! Try talking to your boss or someone else higher-up in your company depending on how it’s structured.  Ask a few tough questions like, “How are we doing financially?”  Depending on who you are, this will either seem too simple or completely out of the question.  The fact is, a line of communication needs to be opened up so you can get to the TRUTH of your situation.  Maybe the outlook for your company is bleak… at least you’ll know for sure and can take the proper steps to counter-act the grim possibilities.  But what if you learn that things are good and there’s no need to worry about layoffs?  Wouldn’t you feel better actually knowing?
2. Become invaluable. Too many people spend their days doing just enough to get by.  Those are the people who will let go when jobs are called for.  But what if the company couldn’t survive without you?  Of course, in the end anyone is replaceable, but what if you were too important for them to let go easily?  Communication comes into play here again - ask your boss what else needs to be done outside of your area, come up with a plan to streamline something you can see is broken, offer to lend your expertise on something that you really don’t get paid to do, and maybe most importantly… arrive first and leave last.  Someone who is obviously spending more time dedicated to the effort of making a company better gets rewarded in the long-run.
3. Fire your boss.  That’s right, walk into his or her office and put in your 2-weeks notice.  Tell them, “This economy has forced me to let you go, I can no longer afford to work for someone else besides myself.”  Of course, you shouldn’t do this without a plan, especially if you have a family to think about,  but now is one of the greatest times in America’s history to start your own company.  It could be as simple as blogging part-time about a topic you love or something more extravagant - one of my friends just started a holistic dog treat company!  There’s nothing better than waking up in the morning, putting on shorts and a t-shirt, and heading down the hallway to your home office to start your day.

We spend a lot of time diving further into what home business possibilities are there for you when you’re ready, so subscribe to our RSS feed and keep tabs on what’s cooking at Good Plum.

Do you have any suggestions on dealing with job securtity?  Say so in the comments below.

Money: The problem and the solution

Let’s face it, money is the force that moves the world, moves people to do things they never thought were capable of doing, and it is the thing that would be the solution to so many problems!
For the people that don’t have that much money, which makes the immense majority of the world, having a certain amount would be the solution to their problems!

So, what is your amount? And what would you do to get it if you could? What is your “price”? Some people think that the magic number is 1 million dollars. They can pay the mortgage on the house, do some repairs, send the kids to college and invest in something so they can live comfortably the rest of their life.

Daydreaming is probably one of the things people spend more time on, especially when they don’t have what they want. So, if you are looking for your million dollars, Read more

Preparing for a Job Interview

Getting ready for a job interview is a job in itself. Taking the time to get yourself prepared for the interview will make all the difference in the world and help to separate you from the rest.

A job interview is a sales pitch, and you are the product. Here is a list of things you can do prior to your interview, to increase your chances of getting the job:

1. Do your homework:
Before going into an interview, make sure you have gathered all the info you can find on the prospective employer. This can help you look knowledgeable of their products, their customers and their services.

2. Look the part:
Dress conservatively, comb your hair, act casual and look professional. Read more

How to Make Money and Become Wealthy

The stars on the movie screen have a life that is worth aiming for. But, those people are often not the richest people in the world. Everyone defines being rich in a different way, if your definition requires a lot of money.

In order to move from making money to wealthy, you will need to change your perception of life. These tips to a successful life of making money and becoming wealthy will surely help.

Your mind and your money. It is important to think about money in a more organic way if you are going to become wealthy. Money will have to be something you save and not something you spend. Being thrifty today can save that wealth for the long run.

Small is Good. When thinking in terms of money and saving, small is good. Those small amounts of money you save and invest here and there will not take anything from your daily comfort, but they will grow and grow over the years, earing a lot of money for your wealthy retirement. Read more

Living Your Reality

After a long day when you go to bed, right before sleeping, what is the last thing in your mind?

When you wake up in the morning, what is the first thing you think of? It totally depends on what you do and who you are. For most of us, those last and first thoughts are related directly to what is a problem in our lives. For a mother might be things like what to cook tomorrow, how to cope with teenager hormones and moods, or perhaps, how to pay for that gift that is really out of the budget.

For so many people, those last and first thoughts are directly related to their jobs. Many are worried of loosing that income, even though they can’t stand working there. Many are working extra hard to get that promotion, to improve their performance, to be in a better situation.

But what can drive you to be a better worker if you don’t like what you do? Read more

Why Coaching is the Way to Go

When you hear the word “coach”, what comes first into your mind? Do you picture a basketball team with a man/woman shouting out directions? Or perhaps a football team with a man/woman pacing to and fro and calling out the names of the players?

Coaching is no longer reserved to sports teams; it is now one of the key concepts in leadership and management. Why is coaching popular?

Coaching levels the playing field.

Coaching is one of the six emotional leadership styles proposed by Daniel Goleman. Moreover, it is a behavior or role that leaders enforce in the context of situational leadership. As a leadership style, coaching is used when the members of a group or team are competent and motivated, but do not have an idea of the long-term goals of an organization. This involves two levels of coaching: team and individual. Team coaching makes members work together. In a group of individuals, not everyone may have nor share the same level of competence and commitment to a goal. A group may be a mix of highly competent Read more

Recruiting Online

Being able to recruit online has really opened the door for those in direct sales to build large sales teams. Since communicating through the world wide web is a lot different then communicating face to face, there are some things you should be doing as well as some things you should not be doing while recruiting for your direct sales business opportunity.

First of all be honest with your potential recruits. Don’t try and make it sound like the direct sales company that you represent is the only company out there that is profitable. Just let them know the honest facts about the income potential that they can have with your company and by all means share how excited you are about what you are selling. Read more

Being a Successful Stay-at-home Mom

What is a successful stay at home mom you might ask? I know when I tell friends that I feel like I am a SUCCESSFUL stay at home mom they question me with things like “HOW can you be successful if all you do is stay at home?” Well, my reply is usually something along the lines of “My children are happy, my family is strong, my house is clean, I’m organized and overall I have no worries.” If you are going to do something in life, do the best you can, right?

As a child I remember writing essays on “What I want to be when I grow up”. I’d often answer housewife because I thought it would be amazing to sit at home and do nothing all day. As an adult I have been able to be a stay at home mom and I do love it. The first few years were stressful, tiresome and so unorganized that I just didn’t think it was for me. It wasn’t that dream life I had often thought of as a child! After I had my second baby I found the key to success as a stay at home mom. Read more

The Journey of The Perfect Career

Finding the perfect career is like a journey. You will have to walk many different roads sometimes they will lead to a dead end other times they will open many doors. At times you will find you’ve reached a standstill, you are lost and don’t know which road to take. There will be mountains to climb and many twists and turns.

Success is hard to achieve and if you want to be successful in whatever you do you have to find an inner strength. You have to have the strength to walk the journey. It is this strength that keeps you going when you are at a standstill. Life is an adventure and a journey. Career success is very important because it will either bring you happiness or sadness. When you are happy with the career choice you have chosen then you know it is the correct decision. Happiness is a major factor in any work situation if you are not happy then you are not in the right job and need to Read more

The Keys to a Happy Retirement

Retirement is something that most people look forward to. The chance to take a break, to have all the time for yourself, to enjoy life after many years of hard work is indeed a very inviting prospect. However, financial instability makes the future of retirement a little bleak.

The Bleak Reality of Retirement

For many retirees, having an investment and savings can make a big difference when retirement arrives. In fact, recent surveys show that retirees today are only counting on their personal savings for support. Although the government gives Social Security, not all companies or employers provide traditional pensions for their employees. According to the Boston College Center for Retirement Research, in 2003 there were only 19% of workers who have traditional pensions to support them. This percentage continues to decline as more and more employers cut back pension plans for their employees.

Faced with this reality, it is clearly important to make the necessary preparations early in life to have reliable personal savings in the future. Investing in insurance, dividend-paying Read more

Using Start-Pages To Create Wealth

I’ve developed a habit, and it’s seems that it’s paid off huge. A couple years ago, I started playing around with the different start-pages. I started with Pageflakes, then tried Windows Live and Netvibes. I’ve landed on Netvibes now after trying every other start page out there, but I digress. How in the world could’ve this helped my wealth?

Let me touch on Netvibes and how I use it so you can see how it’s affected my life. Any of these may work for you too!

First of all, I do Web Development for my day job, so I’m almost always at the computer whether I’m at work or at home (this is touchy with the girlfriend, but that’s for another post!). This allows me to have my Netvibes page open in a Firefox tab all the time.

Notes
Netvibes has a notes application that allows you to simply click and type a note. This note is then available to you anywhere you have access to the site. I use this for simply things like to-dos ideas, etc. For more complex lists, I also use the Remember The Milk module.

Niche Feeds
Whatever your area of interest, whether Internet marketing, real estate, programming, or mowing grass - there are sites out there devoted to what you’re passionate about. I have a Netvibes tab devoted to Design, one for Programming, one for Marketing, one for Personal Blogs, etc. This allows me to Read more