ISBN: 1-57023-220-2
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"Few publications go from 'A through to Z' so comprehensively
and I recommend a thorough read to both job seekers and career
practitioners alike."
--Career Planning and Adult
Development Journal
By Ron Krannich, Ph.D.
Forget about those trendy theories and anecdotes expounded by others
on jobs, careers, and the economy. Here's the book that tells it like
it really is from the job search trenches. Now in the 23rd year, the
new edition of this highly acclaimed blockbuster represents a rare
combination of analysis, synthesis, predictions, and practical advice
for job seekers from all walks of life.
Featured in
U.S. News & World Report as one of the top two career
books. Comprehensive, encouraging, and loaded with no-nonsense advice,
examples, and exercises,
Change Your Job, Change Your Life
covers everything from identifying today's best jobs and employers
to writing resumes, interviewing, negotiating salaries, relocating,
and starting a business in a new boom/bust and cowboy/casino economy.
Its 18 hard-hitting chapters include:
- 103 compensation elements for negotiating salaries.
- 47 tough job interview questions you must be prepared to answer.
- 35 coming changes for industries and occupations.
- 32 job search myths that may hinder your progress.
- 30 best and worst jobs today and in the decade ahead.
- 28 careering competencies for success.
- 25 best cities offering excellent jobs and lifestyles.
- 20 key sources for acquiring additional training and job search
assistance.
- 20 principles that lead to job search success.
- 17 questions you should always ask at a job interview.
- 12 sample resumes and letters.
- 12 strategies for starting a business.
- 10 critical job-keeping skills and 8 job survival tactics.
- 7 sequential job search steps you must follow.
- 5 techniques for turning negatives into positives.
- How to write and distribute effective resumes and letters.
- How to network for information, advice, and referrals.
- How to conduct job interviews as well as negotiate salary
and benefits.
367 pages. September 2004.
SPECIAL: 20% discount on 10+ copies.
IN THE MEDIA: This book was the topic of a WBAI-FM
(New York City) radio
interview with author Ron Krannich on Dec.9, 2005.
CLICK HERE FOR OUR SPECIAL PRICES BELOW!
CLICK HERE TO READ THE PREFACE TO THE BOOK.
TABLE OF CONTENTS
- Prepare For the New World of Work
- Career and Re-Career in a Boom/Bust Economy
- 33 Coming Changes Affecting Your Career
- The Best and Worst Jobs For the Future
- Myths, Competencies, and Planning Your Success
- Identify Your Skills and Abilities
- Specify Your Interests and Values
- Know Your Motivated Abilities and Skills (MAS)
- Develop a Powerful and Realistic Objective
- Write Effective Resumes and Letters
- Research Alternative Jobs and Communities
- Network for Information, Advice, and Referrals
- Interview For Job Offers
- Negotiate Salary, Benefits, and Your Future
- Advance Your Career
- Find Your Ideal Place to Live and Work
- Start Your Own Business
- Develop a Realistic Plan of Action
THE AUTHOR: Ron Krannich is one of America's leading career
and travel writers who has authored more than 80 books. He has
written such bestsellers as
High Impact Resumes and Letters,
Dynamite Resumes, Dynamite Cover Letters, Get a Raise in 7 Days,
Interview for Success, The Best Jobs for the 21st Century,
Jobs for People Who Love to Travel, and
Discover the Best Jobs
for You.
PRAISE FOR PREVIOUS EDITIONS
"This timely and comprehensive career guide offers
predictions on job and economic trends for the next decade - and
how to act on them....An excellent, no-nonsense handbook that
presents information in an accessible fashion."
--ALA
Booklist
"A truly impressive book...filled with advice on how to spot
jobs of tomorrow, how to best determine your capabilities, how
to communicate your qualifications, and even has an unusual
section on how to evaluate the kinds of communities in which
you might most like to live."
--Career Opportunities News
"The book is outstanding...a thorough treatment of the U.S. economy
and its trends and employment....Areas that have been covered
in many other books are covered in this one with characteristic
thoroughness."
--Small Press Book Review
"The perfect choice...the real value lies in discussions of future
job situations which may demand new skills and even relocation.
Readers anticipating change will find this goes beyond the more
casual job search titles."
--The Midwest Book Review
"One of the very best all purpose tool kits available for job search
and career management."
--CAREERPLUS
"An extraordinary book...one of the most comprehensive and thorough
books available."
--The Search Bulletin
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to place special orders. Prices given below do not include shipping.)
5-9 copies, 10% discount - $19.76 per book
- 10-24 copies, 20% discount - $17.56 per book
- 25-49 copies, 30% discount - $15.37 per book
- 50-99 copies, 40% discount - $13.17 per book
- 100-499 copies, 50% discount - $10.98 per book
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PREFACE
Welcome to the ninth edition of
Change Your Job, Change Your Life.
In the seventh edition, written in 1999 during a period of major
economic expansion and optimism, I began this Preface with these
cautionary and now prophetic words:
We enter the 21st century with lots of trendy and
chauvinistic theories about the end of inflation, unemployment,
and jobs based on nearly nine consecutive years of unprecedented
American economic growth. We should be so fortunate, and perhaps
naive, especially since were surrounded by a world that is still
trying to recover from a major economic bust that began in 1997.
Elsewhere I challenged the end of the boom/bust economy theory:
The roaring 90s showed signs of re-entering a traditional
boom/bust cycle at the beginning of the 21st century. A turbulent
international environment and unique events seemed to be better guides
to the future than this trendy low inflation theory. Boom and bust
cycles seemed well and alive, although temporarily residing abroad,
and would most likely affect future jobs and careers in America....The
bust side of another boom/bust cycle did not seem far away.
A New Economy and Job Market
Sixteen months later the highly over-valued stock market and shaky
dot-com economy crashed and unemployment increased significantly.
One of the most important unique events in American history took
place on September 11, 2001 with simultaneous deadly terrorist attacks
on New York City and Washington, DC. An already ailing New Economy
officially went into recession and unemployment continued to increase as
the luster came off this over-hyped economy. Major business scandals
left over from the go-go days of the late 90s once again revealed a
boom/bust economy which also had become a cowboy/casino economy - a
place where lots of people ponyed up to get rich quick on risky New
Economy schemes and scams. - In the process, many people lost their
jobs, and personal insecurity increased accordingly.
By mid-2004,
the economy appeared to be gradually recovering from the 2001 recession.
However, it was a rather anemic recovery characterized by a great deal
of Wall Street hype countered by evidence of a jobless recovery. While
the economy showed increased signs of strength, largely due to a booming
housing sector, low interest rates, and high levels of consumption/indebtedness,
few new jobs were being created in this recovering economy.
Indeed,
the low rate of job growth was largely due to two related developments -
increases in workplace productivity and the offshoring of jobs to cheap
labor markets. The boom side of this New Economy generated few new jobs,
and what jobs it did create were disproportionately low-wage jobs for people
without a four-year degree. This new trend had important implications for
individuals who would increasingly face difficulties in finding good-paying
jobs in the decade ahead. For them, careering and re-careering would
play an important role in their future.
As we go to press in late
2004, the economy appears weak, job growth modest and mysterious, and
offshoring remains an important economic and political issue in a volatile
presidential election year. At the same time, the economy and job market
operate in the shadow of a war on terrorism and limited, high-cost world
oil supplies.
What used to appear as unique events that could
unexpectedly alter the economy and job market now seem to be predictable
events. One important lesson learned since 2001 is that a major act of
terrorism can fundamentally alter the economy and thus the job market.
In fact, Americans live in a new era of uncertainty where major global
events can have a significant impact on the jobs and careers of
individuals.
The Book
This book was originally published in 1983 as
Re-Careering in
Turbulent Times. It has been periodically updated to reflect
changes in the economy, job market, and employment scene. Many
of the predictions and principles I outlined in the original book,
as well as in subsequent editions under the title
Careering and
Re-Careering, remain true today.
Above all, this is a book about empowerment - taking charge of your
own career destiny. Unlike other career planning and job search books,
I've purposely placed individual-level strategies and techniques
within the larger context of a turbulent economy where the best
laid plans often go awry because of unanticipated events.
The process I call
careering and re-careering for uncertain
economic times is as true today as it was 23 years ago. Indeed, I
continue to hear from readers who have successfully used the book
in planning their careers and changing jobs.
This book has
benefited from over two decades of observations and analyses of the
changing U.S. economy and employment scene. What has emerged during
that time is a highly competitive, talent-driven economy that requires
new skill sets that did not exist two decades ago. In this fascinating
economy and its rapidly changing job market, a clear pattern for career
success is evident: the best jobs go to those who are well educated,
skilled in the new economy, work hard, behave like savvy entrepreneurs,
and know when to stay and when to leave.
Since jobs change, so
must you. Today's economy continues to transform the nature of work
and the workplace with lightning speed. The skills you acquired
recently may soon become obsolete. Not surprisingly, the job you
have today may disappear tomorrow. One thing is certain: we live in
a highly volatile economy where jobs are constantly created and
destroyed in response to the changing nature of work and the workplace.
If left to the winds of change, your future will be very uncertain.
The job you possess today will not be the one you possess five years
from now. And the job you'll have in five years may pay less than the
one you have today.
The Possible New You
So where are you going with the rest of your life? Do you have the power
to shape your future and change your life, or do you feel powerless - a
passive recipient of changes initiated by others?
If you want to change your life, you first must possess the power
to change your job and your career direction. For the power to change
jobs and chart new careers is also the power to potentially change
your life.
Whether you are starting your first job or changing jobs or careers,
you're joining millions of other people who redefine their lives by
changing what they do. Possessing this
power to change is one
of the most important assets for determining what you will do with
the rest of your life.
Change your job and you'll probably
change your life too! Never has this dictum been truer than in today's
economy. The job you occupy today will most likely be radically different
from the one you will perform 10 or 20 years from now.
Like it or
not, you
will pursue careers that never existed 10 or 20 years ago.
You will probably seek jobs and careers that are most compatible with your
work-life goals. When given the choice, you will change jobs, because you
want to change your life. If you're smart about your future, you will
pursue jobs fit for you rather than try to fit your interests and skills
into existing jobs.
While many successful people acknowledge a
mixture of serendipity, excellent connections, sound planning, and smart
decisions for their career fortunes, few people are fortunate to see their
career and lifestyle dreams come true. Only some people are lucky enough
to find a job they really love going to each day. Buffeted by the winds
of change, many people feel they lack the power to shape their lives.
Indeed, most people fall into jobs by chance, fail to examine many
job and career alternatives suitable for their interests and skills,
and pursue careers that are less than fully rewarding. After a few
years of work experience, they wish they had better planned their careers
as well as their lives. But by then many feel it is too late to make
fundamental changes in their career direction.
Their jobs lock
them into particular lifestyles which appear increasingly difficult to
change. Facing the realities of family, home ownership, mortgages, and
the high cost of daily living, they either don't dream or they feel
limited in their ability to make their dreams come true by taking the
risks necessary for changing jobs and careers.
They accept
their present work and life pattern as inevitable rather than something
they can shape in the future. Like millions of others, they feel stuck
in what appears to be a career rut. Only if they lost their present job
would they be forced into making some major changes in how they approach
the world of work and their lives.
Many people do lose their jobs;
the fortunate ones see such a loss as a wake-up call, re-examine their
lives, and move on to more rewarding work. Others are less fortunate.
If you are not doing what you really love to do, if you're unsure what
you might do better, if you are interested in exploring new career
possibilities, or if you are interested in creating a work-life that
is compatible with a desirable lifestyle, then this book is for you.
If followed closely, it will help you give renewed direction to your
career as well as chart a clear course for doing what you really want
to do with the rest of your life.
This book is all about how to
better experience serendipity, plan your career, and make intelligent
job moves. It's a very different book for individuals interested in finding
jobs and planning their futures. Unlike other career books, this one
focuses on the
processes of careering and re-careering within
the
context of an economy and society undergoing fundamental
restructuring.
Given this context, job search skills alone are
not enough for long-term job and career success. Individuals must
learn to career and re-career several times during their work lives.
This means continuously acquiring new work-content skills, making
strategic career moves, and relocating to communities which offer
better job and career opportunities. They must be open, adaptive,
and mobile.
With vision, determination, and a well organized plan of action,
you should do well in finding rewarding jobs and careers in the decade
ahead. But if you lack the necessary knowledge, skills, and motivation,
you could well repeat past patterns as well as find yourself in a
dead-end job which offers few rewards and a less than promising
future.
If you are unemployed or about to experience a major career
transition, this may be the best time to seriously consider
acquiring new skills and relocating to communities offering more
promising job and career opportunities. For what will certainly
emerge in the decade ahead is a restructured job market in which
the best jobs go to those who have the requisite education, training,
and retraining capabilities demanded by employers in the new and rapidly
changing job market. The worst jobs - those offering limited
opportunities for career advancement and few financial rewards - will
go to those who fail to take initiative to acquire the necessary
education, training, and retraining to get ahead in this job market.
Dealing With Uncertainty
What should you do in the face of an uncertain job future? Are you
prepared to take fundamental control of your job and your life?
If you feel your job is a life sentence, if you dread going to work, if
your work is unfulfilling, if you think you're inadequately compensated,
or if you're not doing what you really love to do, consider changing
your job - and your life. You'll never regret having taken a risk
to create a better life for you and those around you.
I know,
because I and millions of others have successfully careered and
re-careered. Thousands of others do so each year. We've discovered
the secrets to changing our lives by changing our jobs. We've
decided to risk discovering new jobs and careers that are right
for us.
One thing has not changed in this new edition - the underlying
philosophy of this book. It's very simple, real, and achievable:
you are responsible for your own employment fate. And you must become
even more responsible for your employment in the decade ahead, a
revolutionary period of major economic restructuring both at home and
abroad. No one is responsible for giving you a job or keeping you
on the job indefinitely.
While the government operates many
different employment programs, these are primarily designed for people
who lack basic work skills and initiative. They help train people for
an uncertain and unpredictable job market affected by a larger, yet
equally uncertain and unpredictable, economy which is responsible for
both creating and destroying jobs. On the other hand, employers spend
over $300 billion each year on training and retraining programs for
ensuring a competent and competitive workforce.
You should put
your employment fate in your own hands by learning how to operate in the
job markets of today and tomorrow. In other words, the philosophy here
is one of individual responsibility and empowerment - empower yourself
to make things happen your way rather than in response to the wishes
and whims of others as well as the boom and bust cycles of the
economy.
Today's 8 million unemployed merely testify to the validity of
this philosophy. Many wish they had taken better care of their jobs and
careers prior to receiving the shocking news that they were dismissed.
And millions of others seek more rewarding jobs.
While I focus primarily on the individual, I'm also aware of the
importance of other forces and actors affecting jobs and careers.
Consequently, the first part of this book places the individual within
the larger context of today's changing economy. There I analyze the
present economy and employment situation as well as identify trends and
make predictions for the future that have particular relevance for
individuals.
For the remaining 80 percent of the book, I return to you, the individual,
who must operate within this larger organizational and societal
context.
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