With every passing day it increasingly appears we are entering a global recession. Talking with friends over the past few weeks, the disappointment of our cancelled MBA graduation has given way to fear for our career prospects. As jobs offers are being rescinded and interviews cancelled, I could not help but get flashbacks to the last economic recession.
In 2008, I was fresh out of my undergraduate program and was ready to embark on my professional life. Those first few months were disheartening with few businesses wanting to hire someone with no proven track record, and a liberal arts background. My prospects were limited to part-time work or internships that barely paid the minimum wage.
For 18 months, I balanced working at restaurants in the evenings and internships during the day to get my foot in the door of a company. At the end of 2009, I finally received my first full time job offer. Entering the job market at such a volatile time taught me to not take anything for granted professionally and how crucial it was to be prepared for change.
It is still too early to know how long this crisis will last, but as someone that has gone through a similar economic meltdown, these are some tips that may help:
Focus On What You Can Control:
- Develop your resilience: Limit your time reading media headlines and focus on your mental & physical well-being. Whether that entails working out, mediation, yoga, or baking. Apps like Nike and Headspace are providing free or reduced pricing for their content.
- Build your network: Reach out to potential employers, join groups, and build relationships with older alumni of your universities. These people may not be able to hire you immediately but can be essential connectors when the economy bounces back.
- Enhance your skills: The amount of free content, courses, workshops, and certifications available online have exploded since the last recession. For example, there are over 450 Ivy League courses available for free currently.
Get Your Finances in Order:
- Re-budget: Cut down to your essential spending, barter for services and items between friends, sell any quality items you do not need on Poshmark or similar sites. Cancel any costly subscriptions or try to get reduced student pricing.
- Refinance your debt: Recently, I was able to refinance my private student loan to a significantly lower APR with an offer letter. Many companies like Laurel Road or SoFi will accept offers that begin 3–6 months away. If feasible, roll your credit card debt to a 0% interest credit card for the next 12–16 months.
- Learn about investing: Watching my modest retirement funds shrink over the past few weeks I have started to think more strategically about my financial future. Websites like Wealth Noir are offering free webinars on financial planning during the pandemic.
Share Your Wealth:
- Share your skills: Chances are you have some valuable skills in programming, social media, or speak other languages. Many organizations and nonprofits are overwhelmed currently and looking for support.
- Share knowledge: It is impossible to know every resource that is available. Share free courses, job leads, internships, deals and tips. In that spirit, this is 100% user generated list of companies that are still hiring, and those that are freezing hiring.
For those of us that are graduating in 2020 or currently in school, I know that at this moment you may be feeling demoralized and uncertain of your future. I have been there before, and I am there with you now as a recent graduate. Let’s try to do what we can to support each other and our communities.
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Originally published at https://www.linkedin.com.
