Should We be Happy with the "New Normal"?
by Adam J. Kovitz
There have been many articles I've seen recently (most notably Five 'new normals that will really stick) about our current economic situation and the so-called "New Normals" to which we must adapt.
One such "New Normal" is Long-term Unemployment. According to the National Jobs for All Coalition, the official unemployment rate for July, 2010 was 9.5% (up 0.1% from July, 2009), resulting in 14.6 million U.S. citizens without jobs and collecting benefits. When you factor in the underemployed - 8.5 million and those working part time or those whose benefits have run out and are no longer counted - 5.9 million. Bottom line: a staggering 20 million people (18.2% of the labor force) are not working. There are roughly 10 job seekers for every open position available.
Even if economists are right in their predictions that unemployment will drop to 8.7% by the end of 2011 and 6.8% by 2013, it would mean adding 300,000 jobs per month for 3 years according to a University of Maryland Business professor.
So from where will these jobs come and what will those without jobs do to support their families until such time as they get a job?
There are many folks that still believe that they can get a job in the corporate sector - perhaps for a company that's fortunate enough to be "too big to fail". Good luck...it's a buyers market out there and they can afford to be brutally particular. I, myself, have found working for these types of companies to be life-sucking, demoralizing and just plain wrong for me - I like my freedom and refuse to sell my soul. Of course, the other problem is that many of these companies will continue to be under pressure by stakeholders to produce healthy profits. What better way to do so than by cutting jobs if you can't get more blood revenue from your corporate stones?
Is working for the government any better? Sure...they may have jobs, but many of them are temporary (like the U.S. Census Bureau). There is also the monotony the lack of creativity and the usual red tape that one must deal with.
My advice to those who are waiting for their dream job to magically appear is this...you have 3 options:
1.) Try to continue to find a job - remember the definition of insanity - doing the same things over and over and expecting different results. If you're hoping that someone else will create your dream job for you, you will be waiting a very long time. If quiet desperation is your thing, go for it. Accepting of the "New Normal"? Yep.
2.) Do nothing - giving up, letting your benefits run out (if you still have them), losing your house, losing hope, losing yourself. Sure...it's an option, and requires the least amount of effort. Accepting of the "New Normal"? Yep.
3.) Create your own dream job by starting your own business or joining another emerging enterprise - will it be difficult? Yes. Will you have to rely upon others? Yes. Will you live your life in quiet desperation? Possibly. Is there a chance you will fail? Only if you give up. Is this the only possible way to win and gain your freedom? I certainly think so. Accepting of the "New Normal"? No friggin' way!
To me, option #3 is the only option, and a winning one especially if us emerging enterprises work together. It's part of the solution and not a continuance or acceptance of the status quo.
In my own entrepreneurial journey that has involved countless hours of relationship building, personal agonies and triumphs (sometimes all within the same day!), and a lot of "luck", I have found those who would stand beside me and pitch in - it's wonderful when that happens.
I suggest you do your own soul searching and see which of the three options you may have tried and to what degree of success you have had.
In the meantime, if you choose Option 3 (and considering this is a publication for entrepreneurs and emerging enterprises you probably have), I know some great organizations who are willing to stand beside you and help you achieve greater success. There's always room at our table for those who simply cannot accept the "New Normal".
Moving on...
2 announcements:
1.) We are taking next week off as we always do in a month where there are 5 Sundays - no new National Networker Weekly Newsletter or Blue Tuesday Report, although you can continue to get us through our RSS and daily email feeds. Our proprietary suite of services will continue to run without any interruptions.
2.) Starting in September, we will no longer be releasing The National Networker Weekly Newsletter on Sundays at 4:00pm Eastern time (GMT -5). We will be changing our release date to Mondays at 10:00pm Eastern time (GMT - 5) - next release date: Monday, September 6th, 2010. The Blue Tuesday Report will continue to be released on Tuesdays at 10:00pm Eastern time (GMT -5) - next release date: Tuesday, September 7th, 2010.
See you in September!
All my best,
Adam
www.TheNationalNetworker.com
http://adamjkovitz.blogspot.com
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