5 keys to moving your career forward – even in a downturn
Michael C. Wenderoth - Executive Coach
Executive Coach | Award-Winning Author, Get Promoted | Stanford MBA | Columbia Univ 3CP | Host, 97% Effective, the Career Acceleration Podcast
Welcome back to The Power Coach, the bi-weekly newsletter that skips “happy talk” and helps leaders ascend, one Hard Truth at a time.?
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Over the past few months, we’ve seen tens of thousands of layoffs in Silicon Valley. Meta, Salesforce and Lyft have laid off double-digit percentages of their workers, and the cuts appear to be continuing. The booming tech industry seems to be crashing, something I remember quite well having lived through it in 2000. Workers are finding themselves on edge or jobless, unable to land work as companies make budget cuts and declare hiring freezes.?
Last week, I spoke to a group of Silicon Valley employees who had been recently laid off. I shared with them what I’m going to share with you: an industry downturn doesn’t have to mean a lag in your career trajectory, but you have to follow a few important principles:?
It’s not the nature of adversity that’s most important, but how we deal with it. If you Google “how to rebound from a career setback” it’s always recommended that you look at how you might have contributed to what went wrong. While that can be useful, a mass layoff and economic downturn is not something you have much control over. A more productive approach is to shift your perspective, one of the major insights we’ve gained from psychologist Martin Seligman. Seligman found that most of us see setbacks as Personal (“it was due to me or who I am”), Permanent (“this will last forever”), and Pervasive (“this failure extends beyond work, into other areas of my life”).?
Do this: Shift your point of view by listing out the ways your current predicament is not personal, not permanent, and not pervasive. That helps put the situation in context and increases your optimism and hope, which are critical to resilience and faster recovery.
2. Get real and put yourself first?
The hard truth, born out by the latest cuts, is that most organizations and leaders are busy looking out for themselves. For all the talk of shared sacrifice, don’t be surprised if your budgets are frozen or cut and you are asked to do more with less, while top leadership continues to receive bonuses and take lavish leadership offsites. If that’s what you see in your company, then you are likely to be on the chopping block unless you’re indispensable or on the good side of those in power.?
Do this: Get real, and frankly a little less trusting. Sadly, not everyone will have your back. Put yourself first: always have other work options, and always know who you can call to get a job tomorrow.
3. Keep an active network by tapping into your “weak ties”
The majority of jobs and opportunities come to us through people (vs. listings), and often from people we aren’t in close contact with. Fact: 70% of all jobs are not published publicly on jobs sites and 80% of jobs are filled through personal and professional connections. Moreover, the research is stunningly clear that most new opportunities are generated through so-called weak ties. In fact, a recent large-scale longitudinal study by researchers at Stanford, MIT and Harvard showed that weaker social connections had the greatest impact on job mobility, whereas strong ties (people we are the tightest with) had the least. The important point: It’s most helpful to reach out to people beyond your immediate friends and colleagues when looking for a new job – and even better to get in the habit of reaching out to these “weak ties” on a regular basis. If you are kicking yourself because you spent all your time head down in your work, don’t panic: it’s never too late to start.
Do this: If you are employed, carve out two hours a week to ping or connect to weaker ties, or get involved in activities (even better if it’s part of your job) that help you regularly meet new people. If you are unemployed, remember that reaching out to weaker social connections are more likely to lead to a job. If doing so feels awkward, start out by reaching out to ten former colleagues, bosses, or classmates whose contact has lapsed over the years. These “dormant ties” were strong ties that have become weak, so they are likely to respond to you but also bring weak tie benefits.?
4. Expand your skill set and experiment?
Just like an athlete cross-trains to bring out the best in their performance, you can increase your chances of coming out on top by diversifying your skill set, particularly in emerging domains. Build new and marketable skills through projects, inside or outside your company. These could look like a cross-functional project in your firm, proposing to your boss some value-added work you can lead, or helping a mentor outside your company. Always take advantage of the resources your organization may provide, like continuing education courses or an opportunity to participate in an industry association that provides a broader view. These small moves build important new skills, enhance your résumé, and help you explore new arenas.? At the same time, they build that critical weak tie network, increase your visibility and brand, and identify potential niches that can become side gigs or part-time consulting.
Do This: Get proactive. Taking action, even in small experimental doses, provides insight. Think about this as strategic diversification of what you can offer on the job market, or simply ensuring you stay relevant in changing times. In a downturn, when the competition for work is most intense, ask yourself what kind of person is most likely to be hired or retained.?
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5. Surround yourself by supportive people who will tell you the truth
Losing your job, or fearing you will lose it, is never a great feeling. Being able to talk about it and having a support group can put things in perspective and help you rebound. But make sure that group isn't full of feel-good talk. “Don’t worry, it will all work out,” is useless advice if you relied on that paycheck to pay your mortgage.?
Do This: If you need to keep your career moving and that paycheck coming in, you are much better off acknowledging #1 and #2 above, get cranking on #3 and #4, and surrounding yourself with those who won't surgarcoat the hard truth. You want people who will keep you honest and hold you accountable to activities that most keep you moving forward.?
Let’s talk about it
Downturns are nothing new, so pay attention to the evidence of what helps you land jobs and accelerate your career. Study or talk to people who lived through the dot com crash of 2000, the financial crisis of 2007-08, or who have reinvented themselves. What did they do that increased their chances of success?
This week, ask yourself what actions you should take to stay afloat – even get ahead – during a downturn.
To build on this, consider these questions:?
The Power Coach is here to ignite discussion and debate, so share your answers in the comment section below or send me a message.
Powerfully yours,
Michael Wenderoth?
I help leaders ethically leverage power and politics to ascend.
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