7 Ways to Distinguish Yourself From the Crowd in a Recession

By James Adams

Recessions bring danger and opportunity to your career, so it’s important that you rise to the challenge and distinguish yourself from the crowd so you can prosper. Perhaps the most danger lies in the sense of job security where you think that your experience and tenure means that you will survive the bad economy.

As hundreds of coworkers and unemployed workers compete for your job, many of them have more qualifications than you and show willingness to work for less money, so staying competitive in the workplace is more important to you now than ever before.

Here are 7 ways to distinguish yourself from the crowd in a recession:

1. Keep your resume updated: Do not make the assumption that you will have a job tomorrow. Dust off that resume or start making a new one now. Make sure it includes all your latest accomplishments and offers reasons that demonstrate why you are a valuable asset who can boost an employer’s bottom line.

2. Have a good attitude: A recession can mean that people from all walks of life have trouble maintaining their lifestyle, causing a doom and gloom environment at the office. Distinguish yourself by remaining upbeat. Bring a ray of sunshine with you everywhere you go and you will get the attention of supervisors, managers, and executives as a person they need to help the company through difficult times.

3. Get beyond the paper and market yourself: Insiders have already picked over jobs advertised in newspapers and on online job boards, so relying on those sources leave you at a disadvantage. Competitive job markets mean that you must find ways to get to the people with real hiring authority. Market yourself as a product essential to success. Employers need people like you who can make a direct impact on their bottom line. Bypass traditional job ads and contact decision makers directly. Online sources such as ZapData can provide names and mailing addresses you can use as you market yourself.

4. Use social networking to connect with opportunities: Take the time to build your social network on Facebook and Twitter. By making connections now, you will have access to more referrals when you need them. This type of strategy can take time to implement, so get started on it now.

5. Make yourself stand out: While at work, you need to get out of the shadows and into the limelight. Let your company see you as a problem solver, a self-motivated creativity engine willing to take the lead on new projects. Don’t make it all about yourself either: praise others, ask questions, and let it be known that you are a team player who is vital to the success of your company.

6. Improve your productivity: Working long hours may contribute to the perception of your value, but you probably will stand out to your employer by producing more in less time. Efficient workers produce the most and will likely survive layoffs more than those who stay content with the status quo. Look for ways to do your job better and faster and you will remain while others are gone.

7. Develop your skills: Difficult economic times represent good opportunities to go back to school. You can learn new, recession-proof skills or you can develop your existing skills that increase your value to a new or existing employer.

By following these 7 ways to distinguish yourself from the crowd in a recession can make the difference between prosperity and the unemployment line. Get started making your own opportunities now so you can excel during troubling times.

Author Information

James Adams is a full time analyst and writer at a leading UK based ink cartridges specialist where he spends his time writing reviews of new hardware like the HP 350XL.

Photo Credit: Harrison Keely

Despite Deep Recession, Google Plows Forward

Google Makes Money; No News There

Despite being embroiled in the middle of the worst global recession of our generation, internet giant Google continues to make money although not at the feverish pace of just a few years ago. Still, with its income up by 8% in the first quarter of the year, the company is in an enviable position.

As usual.

Once Again Google Performs Admirably

Analysts had been expecting Google to taper off, but the first quarter figures show that if any company can weather the current storm, then that would be Google.  Revenue did slip compare to the fourth quarter of 2008, but given that the worst of the recession didn’t settle in until after the first of the year, Google’s performance is admirable.

Google still makes a big bundle off of AdWords (advertisers) while not quite a few webmasters are still raking in big bucks with AdSense (publishers).  Google’s advantage is that the company basically owns web search which allows it to serve up ads to most everyone who logs on. Given that its algorithm is almost always spot on, Google remains an attractive and relatively cost effective way for businesses to get the word out.

Chairman Eric Schmidt Speaks

Relating to its most recently quarterly performance, Google Chief Executive Officer Eric Schmidt had this to say: “Google had a good quarter given the depth of the recession–while revenues were down quarter over quarter, they grew 6% year over year, thanks to continued strong query growth. These results underline both the resilience of our business model and the ongoing potential of the web as users and advertisers shift online. Going forward, our priority remains investing for the long term to drive future growth in our core and emerging businesses.”

Has Google’s Ad Income Peaked?

Some analysts fear that Google’s ad income may have peaked, but we’ve been hearing them say this for years. Clearly, advertising dollars are harder to come by, but given that newspaper advertising continues to dry up and internet traffic is still expanding, I’m sure that Google will find a way to keep moving forward. Should the economy begin to recover this year, then advertisers will come back, adding more fuel to the Google fire.

What About Twitter?

It is no secret that Google is interested in buying Twitter, given that site’s rapid growth and its threat as a search engine. Personally, I have found that using Twitter Search yields some amazing results, a great way to connect with people who are discussing topics of interest to you and in real time too.

Though I don’t use Twitter Search as much as Google Search, even an incremental shift by users can shift search traffic.

Google will pay handsomely for Twitter and they’ll figure out a way to monetize the site.   I could see Google incorporating the feature’s of Twitter Search into its own toolbar, but I also could see them leaving Twitter alone and running ads along the side of these results.  Maybe Google would do both.

Returning to Their Roots

As far as the rest of the web is concerned, the other internet giants will continue to work to make their business models more efficient. Now that EBay has sold StumbleUpon and has an Initial Public Offering (IPO) in the works for its Skype internet telephony unit, they’ll be returning to their core business of managing online auctions and internet retailing.

I expect that other businesses will be doing the same thing — dumping unrelated subsidiaries to concentrate on what they do best. In this economy, returning to your core seems like the wisest (and safest) move to make.