For the tens of thousands who lost their jobs this year, and the millions of others fearing for the jobs they still have, YSN.com’s Jennifer Kushell shares these tips to survive the initial shock — and bounce back like a star.

1. Breathe. Stay calm.
The worst decisions are made under pressure, stress, or in a state of fear. Don’t allow yourself to be rash or irrational; keep your wits about you and commit to making it through this in one piece. Get a sense for what this layoff really means to you and what the real repercussions will be. Assess your safety nets: What are your back up plans? (All the way down to spending time with the folks in your worst case financial scenario.) Hopefully you’ve done enough to guard against that, and if so, take some solace in the fact that you’re prepared to weather a little uncertainty.

Links:
6 Steps to Survive Being Laid Off
Remember to Breathe
26 Steps to Stay Calm when the Situation Goes Bad
7 Powerful Relaxation Techniques

2. Look at this as an opportunity.
You know what they always say, “It’s not what happens to you, but what you do about it.” That might not be what you want to hear right now, but think about it: This sudden change could have a silver lining — so commit yourself to finding it. Take some time for yourself, even just a few quiet hours alone and reflect on all the things you truly liked and disliked about your job. What would you have done differently? Were you there because you had to be, or because you wanted to be? Ask yourself how you can now take the next step learning from your past experience. Is there a chance to take a step up? Or to change industries or careers entirely if you weren’t as happy as you wanted to be? So many times, abrupt changes like this are exactly what people need to get out of a rut and move on to something they’d really love to be doing.

Links:
Find that Silver Lining
Attitude is as Important as Skills

3. Audit your online identity.
Start paying close attention to your reputation management, to the platform that you’ve built for yourself online (if any) and to what new people will perceive about you when they google you. If you don’t like what you see online, or want to take control of that first impression you’re giving off, build a professional identity you can be proud of with a PROJO – your professional mojo. It’s a next generation resume/portfolio that you can share with contacts, add to/promote in your signature line, build out and keep up to date with your latest accomplishments to ensure that when someone searches for you, they find the “goods” on you, but the good!

Links:
Build your PROJO
Clean Up Your Online Act!
Manage Your Online Reputation

4. Stay connected to your network.
You probably have a lot more friends, colleagues and supporters than you realize. Survey your address books, PDA, business card files and social networks to see who’s really in your inner circle and wider network and who might be able to help lead you to some new prospective opportunities. Talk to friends and family and see who they know.

Then start reaching out to catch up with everyone you can. Befriend old friends online, shoot out a bunch of emails, even invite a few for coffee or drinks. Start talking to everyone you can! Ask your contacts who else you should be talking to, then reach out to them. Update your online profiles with the latest news and let people know that you’re actively exploring your options. This is not the time to hide out and wallow. Just make sure you force yourself to smile and at least appear to have a positive outlook for the future! Repeat the mantra to yourself: “onward and upward!”…until you believe it.

Links:
Keep Those Contacts!
Networking Your Way to a New Job

5. Assess your financial situation.
The first serious thing you need to do once you have the ability to think calmly and rationally (see #1) is to figure out the true state of your financial affairs. If you can, sit down with a financial consultant who will know how to ask you the right questions to get a proper assessment. Take a very careful look at any severance (if you’re lucky), benefits packages (like insurance policies, 401ks, etc.) that you may be able to “roll over” from your old company’s plan. (Take care of this right away too!)

Links:
Create a Budget — and Stick to It!
YSN Secrets #20: CAAAAASH

6. Ride the coat tails of senior execs.
If you’ve done a good job of befriending and staying tight with your bosses and other senior management, it might just pay off in real dividends now. Keep in close contact with them!!! The more connected they are, the faster they will probably find their next great opportunities and look to set themselves up for success in their new spot. When that happens, seasoned execs take quick steps to surround themselves with people they know and trust. They build teams from people they know — and that could include you! Make it known that you’re up for the new adventure if you are.

7. Use your leverage.
What can you do to leverage the experience you’ve had so far and the skills you’ve been building? What do you know that others want to? (Besides proprietary trade secrets!) How can you use what you’ve learned to your benefit and to others? You don’t have to play hardball or let your ego run wild to put your experience and expertise to work for you in a positive and proactive way. A great way to do this, and make some quick money, is to do some consulting work. Taking a few projects on will keep you in the game and buy you time to figure out your next move. Who knows, you might actually like it so much you decide to make it your new business!

Links:
Tips to Help You Stand Out in Your Profession
Learn to Understand Your Own Intelligence

8. Open yourself up to new opportunities.
Employment prospects or ideas you hear about from friends and relatives might not sound quite right at first, but give them a chance to explain — and yourself a chance to explore a bit. Don’t limit your attention to a very narrow set of options right after a layoff. Try to imagine yourself working in a whole new scenario and consider whether you might find happiness in some other industry or way than you’d previously envisioned. Ask a bunch of questions…even just to humor yourself. You might actually learn something you never expected or discover a connection to something that does actually fit you.

9. Stay healthy…or make this your big chance to GET healthy.
Whether you’ve been really diligent about taking care of yourself while employed or have totally forgotten what an athletic shoe feels like on your foot, make your health a major priority now. Take the time to sleep, get some fresh air, walk, run, do some yoga — whatever makes you feel your best. The endorphins will help a lot in bringing a smile and positive outlook to your face. You’ll also project more confidence as you go out to pursue other opportunities. You never know who you’ll meet along that run either!

10. Use this as preparation for the next big shake-up in your life.
Right now this might seem like the end of the world, but the good news is that if you can weather this storm, you’ll only be better prepared for the next one. Though we’d like to say this will never happen again, the truth is that life is a cycle of ups and downs, and preparation is the key to surviving it all.

If you are ready to look at the big picture, listen to our Secrets of the Young & Successful podcast series and create the life you’ve always dreamed about — no better time than the present! You can also come and talk to others about what’s happening to you in our discussion forum. You never know where the next great idea or opportunity is waiting…

Good luck!

The positions advertised through the newspaper, employment agencies, your career office, or on the web only represent 20% of all the jobs that are available. Statistics consistently show that most people who are successful in obtaining employment do so through a process called “networking.”

Article by Bob Cohen an assistant director at the career services office at Harvard University.

Networking is Simple

Networking is simply getting information from people you know or developing contacts from them. It’s no different than trying to find out about a movie or a good place to go for dinner. You ask around and, sooner or later, someone knows somebody who knows the information you need. In the same way, everyone knows someone who can help them in the job search process. No matter how thoroughly you develop and use your network, you can always do more.

Who to Contact?

The following is a partial list of possible networking sources:

• Your school’s alumni.
• Professional, community, religious, political, or social organizations.
• Your friend’s parents and your parent’s friends.
• Faculty, advisors, staff members.
• Your classmates and former classmates.
• Former employers and co-workers.
• Neighbors, family, and friends.

Where to Start

1. Decide what market, function, and industry you’re going to target; make sure you can clearly explain your objectives.
2. Make a list of everyone you know. Don’t eliminate people because they do not seem to be in the right industry or field. They might know someone who does.
3. Call your contacts, be specific about what you’re looking for, and ask if they know anyone who could help you.
4. Keep adding to your network list. Your goal is to talk to anyone who is in a position to influence your job search.

Networking Tips

• Remember…you are not asking for a job. You would just like informational contacts in the industries or organizations you have targeted.

• Leverage contact names as a door-opener. Use names you are given to get to a contact in your chosen field or a decision-maker. Simply say, “Pat Shulman suggested I contact you…”

• Don’t worry about offending or intruding on people. Most people are flattered by requests for help or guidance.

• Use the opportunity to learn as much as you can. This will prepare you for actual job interviews.

• Always ask for other contacts. The name of the game in networking is to talk to as many people as possible. Try to never leave a network meeting without more names.

• Be certain to follow-up on every lead you get and acknowledge by letter your appreciation for the assistance you’ve received.

Bob Cohen an assistant director at the career services office at Harvard University and an active member on YSN.com – hint hint!

For many, finding a job or even the thought of searching for the right career can be daunting. We apply ourselves everyday towards success, whether through a test, presentation or performance, but navigating through the job recruitment system takes particular strategy. These other experiences can help you prepare, but when it comes to connecting to a career, there are a few key steps to help you focus and light the fuse.

1. Assess your assets. Between your resume and your personal talents, you have a leg up on your competition in some way or another. It’s time to start thinking about what your propellers are. Think about three major things you can bring to the table, and make sure these key words are visible in your resumes, applications and informational interviews.

If you’re having trouble picking out industries you may enjoy working in, make a list of things you enjoy, and things that you explicitly are not interested in. This creates your pool of interests and your boundary lines. Your major may not necessarily correlate with your interests, and that’s okay. Do you like traveling? If so, look for positions that allow you to move beyond the desk. It’s these simple personal tendencies that can make a big difference in your search.

2. Navigate before driving. Unfortunately, there isn’t a GPS system to acquire the perfect job or internship. So, it’s important to map out your plan of attack. This involves brainstorming and researching. Ask yourself a few questions with a long-term perspective. What do you want out of it? Why do you want this? Do you know enough about the industries you are interested in? Is there anyone in the industry who can give you insight? Dream big and act upon it. It’s scientifically proven that those who approach situations with a can-do attitude actually…can do it!

3. Branch out. While career fairs and career expos are helpful and encourage interpersonal interaction with campus recruiters, it’s also important to take a few paths that aren’t as mass marketed. By funneling through the same channels as everyone else you are increasing your competition, and decreasing your chances of being noticed. Accompany this by finding a unique avenue.

4. Have confidence and keep talking. Once you have researched, planned and taken action, don’t be afraid to peacock your distinctive qualities. The best way to do this and leverage your job candidacy is to network. Networking is valuable at a social, professional and virtual level. You never know the windows that can be opened by just talking to people and sharing stories. Be sure to slip in your career goals, and stay authentic.

Attend networking events and join social networking groups online (Ning, LinkedIn, Facebook, Twitter, InternCircle, etc.) Cultivating a personal network will be key to your future career support. You never know when you are going to need to lean back on your network, so don’t be shy about reaching out and sharing bits and pieces of your professional self.

Article written by Chelsea Prince the founder and Editor-in-Chief of InternCircle.com, the first social networking site for interns and employers, which also serves as a central clearinghouse for internship recruitment. Chelsea operates an advice column for interns at Intern Circle, and contributes weekly advice.

Over the past few weeks we’ve talked a lot about finding internships and launching new careers; But some of you reminded us that many of you aren’t just starting out.  You’ve been working for years now.  But maybe you’re looking for something new.  A change perhaps?  So, this week, I wanted to dive into a whole other perspective on career transitions – changing careers, or what is often called “recareering”.  It’s way more common than you might think, and it can actually be exactly what you’re looking for to shake up your own career and start anew.

There are a lot of reasons that people decide to “recareer”— that is, start over with a new career.
Some get tired or fed up with the path they’re on and decide to try something completely different.  When industries or companies start shifting or collapsing, some are forced to look for different kinds of work.  Others leave the workforce to raise a family, pursue higher education or just take time off.  And then there are always those who just like to jump around to keep things interesting…or because they lack direction or a bigger picture career plan.

Regardless of the reason, recareering doesn’t have to feel frightening or dreadful.  It can, after all, be the beginning of a whole new life and adventure.  If you or someone you love is considering, or in the process of making a dramatic career change, here are a few tips to keep it the most positive and productive experience possible:

• Don’t let your past experience limit your options.

• Try to get away from your usual environment for a bit to clear your head and allow yourself to fanaticize about what your future could look like.

• Think about all the things that you’ve dreamed about doing throughout your life, even casually or jokingly.  Allow yourself to go as far back as childhood.  Consider whether there might be any merit to those prospective paths.

• Define what success might look like for you.  Don’t allow others to define it for you.  This is your life.  Not someone else’s you’re planning.

• Build a laundry list of things you could do.  Don’t edit yourself down by what’s practical just yet.  Be sure to include both industries you’re interested in (ie: sports, publishing, international trade) and any functions or roles (ie: sales, accounting, teaching, lab technician).

• Separately, make a list of your biggest goals and priorities (ie: paying off debt, saving for your kids’ education, buying a house, achieving a comfortable life/work balance, etc.) Use this list of your top 5 priorities and goals as a decision making filter.  As you consider different opportunities, work your way down the list to see how many objectives you can achieve with each prospect.  Then start to focus in on the options that will allow you the resources or space to achieve what matters to you most?

• Consider what made you unhappy about your past career.  How can you avoid it or minimize those elements or characteristics?  Also think about what you liked the most or excelled at.  How can you try to incorporate them?

• Once you’ve honed your list down to 3-5 of your best new career opportunities, dive into some heavy duty research.  Research industry blogs, newsletters, books, trade magazines, associations, conferences, and any other great hubs of information you can find to learn more.

• Reach out to your network and find connections to people in those areas of industries who you can talk to and ask for some advice on next steps for you.

• Study you resume and consider all the transferable skills, experiences and relevant expertise you can leverage in these new career paths.

• Work on your verbal and written pitch and start using it to get you the best new opportunity you can find!

• Lastly, be sure to pursue something you really like, or at least find really interesting or challenging.  Find a way to monetize doing what you love if you can. It truly is possible to make money doing just about anything.  You just have to be clever and creative enough to figure out how to package it so others will pay for it.

Think of recareering as a new adventure, an opportunity to start fresh, start over…and the future will suddenly look much brighter…even if the path ahead is still a bit fuzzy.

Jennifer Kushell, Co-Founder & President of YSN.com – Your Success Network.

I went to my University the other day to get advice on taking a different approach to applying for jobs. They pretty much told me that when I make phone calls to companies and such that I should ask for the department that I’m interested in and say that I’m looking for advice, and that I will more likely get better information and do better networking. Other than making phone calls, I’ve been applying for jobs directing from websites and searching for job postings on international study abroad websites. Is this a good strategy?

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