How to Get a Job During COVID-19

This is a painful time, but this is not the end of your career, especially if you are creative and strategic moving forward.

The current pandemic has been devastating in so many ways, including how it has impacted the careers of hundreds of thousands of Americans. We have seen lay-offs, small business closures, and the diminution of whole industries, including hospitality, leisure, travel, traditional beauty/fitness, office solutions, and the downturn of a once-thriving gig economy. Companies will need to re-create themselves in fundamental ways – and you will need to as well.

Yes, many industries are struggling right now, but many are thriving. Bio/health tech, streaming services, healthcare, pharma, and remote communication tools are all up. And needs have increased in government agencies and public and private healthcare systems working to provide care. Companies that connect people, promote wellbeing, and provide ways to stay healthy are also prospering; think Alphabet, Facebook, Amazon, Netflix, Johnson & Johnson, Campbell’s, Costco, Zoom, Slack, Uber, DuoLingo, Teladoc Health, Peloton, etc.  

Many industries are struggling right now, but many are thriving.

We are here to help you during this time and eventually get back on the horse and thrive. Take time to review the following information/resources if you feel unsure of your next steps career-wise:

• Keep yourself up to date on which companies/industries are struggling and which are booming: 

• Look at the stock market–which companies are up and which are down? 

• Be creative (speculate which types of companies you think would be doing well right now) and check your work (do a little research to see what’s going on in the world). For example, this crowdsourced list from our friends at Hacker News is a great resource. Reddit is another wonderful resource where crowdsourcing is being used to discuss which companies are hiring and where there are hiring freezes.

• When you are able, try to re-frame all of these unwanted circumstances not as your/global ruin, but instead as an opportunity. What does it make possible? Where is the silver lining? 
  
  Here are a few silver linings in terms of Career Development & Progression: 

• Networking: This is the best possible time to reach out and network! For once, people are not busy and are happy (if not desperate) to take time to connect digitally or over the phone. Not a lot of other people are networking right now–take advantage.

• Remote Work: Remote work is here to stay. If you ever dreamed of working from a home office or moving to a more remote location and earning a big city salary, post-COVID-19 is a wonderful opportunity to negotiate a lifestyle change or to move anywhere you want.

• Entrepreneurship: If you’re the entrepreneurial type, you might also think about creating a solution/business to meet the needs of society right now. What pain points of society are not being met? How can you help a world in need? 

• Personal Development: You can come out of quarantine as a better, more organized, grounded, person. You can use this time to take online classes to bolster your skillset/resume, or to develop personally. For example, Coursera is offering Yale University’s famous The Science of Wellbeing course for free! 

  
  Have compassion for yourself. It’s hard to find space in the home to work, to manage kids and finances. It’s hard to no longer be busy and instead to be alone with your thoughts. Be gentle with yourself, but don’t lay down and surrender. What do you need to function in these times? Structure? Schedule? What are you doing each day that brings you joy? 

  In conclusion, we leave you with this: 
  
  According to William Strauss and Neil Howe’s Fourth Turning Theory, every 80-100 years there is a major crisis and the generation that leads us out of it is the hero archetype. You are a member of the hero generation. So whether to you that means simply staying home and flattening the curve while you rest, or you decide to find work that fulfills you and/or supports the world around you, we’re here to help.

  Contact us to find out more about our new lower-priced career services. It’s our goal to make our services more accessible to a wider audience, especially during these trying times.

  If you found this post to be helpful, please share it with your community or anyone else you think may benefit!