Looking for job opportunities during a recession can be really challenging. Would you be willing to look outside your local area for jobs?
Let’s take a look at the following charts (hat tip – NYT).
Chart A: Metro areas where the economy is shrinking
If you are looking for a job in these areas, you might need an extra ounce of effort and patience. Because local business climate will continue to deteriorate for some time. That type of business climate will result in lower revenue visibility for companies located in these areas. The result? More cost cutting + little to no hiring.
Now, let’s look at the next chart
Chart B: Metro areas where the economy is growing
These are areas where the economy is growing – although that growth might not be spectacular. At this point, I’m willing to take any amount of positive growth over negative growth.
These are the areas where it will be relatively easier to find a job. If you are already a resident in these areas – great. If not, you might want to see if you can exercise some flexibility and target companies in this area.
One quick tip:
Companies in these areas (like San Jose, Denver etc) are very open to remote employees. Assuming that you know your stuff, you can bring a really interesting value prop to the table:
- An employee that has somewhat lower salary expectations (as compared to a place like, say San Jose)
- Proficient in the subject area
- Can work in a different time zone – this could be a differentiator in some jobs like customer service etc
See, you can target companies in these growing metros with out (potentially) moving there. Now, all you need is a way to focus your job search. Good luck!
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