Fear of redundancy has spread to almost half of full-time workers, a poll showed after the Government's latest multi-billion economic rescue package was met by plunging bank share prices. This was reported this morning on the news pages of Yahoo UK.
In these challenging times it is natural for people to feel concerned and anxious about their personal situation. Even if they have been fortunate enough to not be impacted by job losses personally, chances are they will still be feeling under pressure, not least because they probably have to do more and more work with less resource.
On the other hand, these challenges times might well crate a golden opportunity for you. When times are tough, the natural responses might be to:
o Step out of employment and start your own business
o Take a career change into something that is seen to be less risky
o Move to another employer in the same industry
What is clear in the current challenging times is that even some of the most experienced and senior leaders are finding it tough. Just look at financial services and non essential retailers for some evidence. So, in these tough times it might be that the golden opportunity for you is to make your mark where you currently work by being part of the performance turnaround.
I am guessing that when you consider this you are probably starting to come up with a whole host of reasons why this is not possible. The reasons might include:
o I am not senior enough
o No one will take me seriously
o People will think I trying to be smart or too big for my boots
o The senior people have probably thought about my ideas already
Here is the reality:
o You might not get listened to initially
o People might dismiss your ideas
o People might have considered some of your ideas
On the other hand, what you will demonstrate is that:
o You are looking at the possibilities for the organisation your work in
o You have an initiative and want to contribute
o You have potential to grow and develop in the organisation
o You are not just someone going through the motions
If you are in an organisation that is struggling at the moment, take a few minutes and consider the following questions:
o What are the key drivers of our success as an organisation historically?
o How well are we doing on these key drivers right now?
o If you were put in charge of the organisation tomorrow, what are the three things that you would tackle straight away that would make an immediate impact?
o What things are not working as well as they could that we not fixing?
Chances are these questions will spark some ideas and solutions. Test them out with some trusted individuals across the organisation and see what sort of response you get. If it becomes clear that you have ideas that have not been considered, create an opportunity to discuss with your boss and other senior people. It might just be the launching pad you need to take your career to another level.
Bottom Line - If you want to maximise your employability, progress your career and reduce the possibility of you losing your job, you need to be ready and willing to seize this golden opportunity.