Do you need a JOLT?
If you don’t have your JOLT you may not know why you’re having difficulty finding your next job. The JOLT directly impacts your life. Your solution is an adaptive response, as you will see.
JOLT is the acronym for the Bureau of Labor Statistics report that highlights job openings and labor turnover (JOLT). It is one of the millions of reports the Federal Government inundates us with daily. That answers the question ‘What is a JOLT’, now for ‘Why JOLT is important’.
The September JOLT told every reader that the unemployment picture was far from rosy, and the trend appears to remain headed downward. You can read the details at the Government site, available at http://www.bls.gov/news.release/pdf/jolts.pdf . The information indicates that we have 2.4 million total job openings in the USA and we have 15.1 million unemployed people. This simple math is at the fingertips of every newscaster and politician, yet nobody wants to say the reality. If every available job, from fruit picker to CEO, was filled today we would have nearly 13 million unemployed people, not to mention the marginally employed and underemployed. Another way of saying the reality is that for every job there are seven unemployed people.
This report tells every reader that pursuing the position you left, in the geographic region where it existed, may be a fruitless pursuit because the job is probably no longer available. It’s gone, either moved or it is filled by a lower paid employee, either way it is gone. Long-term job seekers are left only a few options to earn an income: Move to follow the job or career, or continue applying and competing for the few available remaining positions within your commuting range, and then the third choice. How do you generate a family income in a market that has shrinking opportunity in nearly every segment? You transition into a field that has growth and where your experiences can give you the edge over other candidates. This third option is one that works well for those who understand how to shift their career path.
Career transition is the logical and adaptive response to evaporating job opportunities. Transitioning careers, while at first daunting, can be a huge relief when done properly. There are two obvious reasons for this, the job seeker regains hope for their future, and they also resume earning an adequate income. Most people transition with guidance from those who have successfully accomplished it or who successfully guide others on a regular basis. The assistance is available; the opportunities for an income are available. Your first step to regaining your life is to adapt to the country’s and your economic reality.
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Saturday, October 3rd, 2009 at 9:40 pm under
