Everyone wants job security. But most people never get it – even when they think they do.
It’s a real pity, because true job security isn’t as hard to find as people make it out to be. It doesn’t require an advanced college degree; it doesn’t require 15 hours in a stuffy cubicle; it doesn’t even require office politics.
In fact, true job security isn’t found in the office at all. True job security has nothing to do with your boss, her boss, or her boss’ boss.
Forget Corporate.
When I was little, my parents drilled into me the importance of finding a “real job.” Meaning a job at a big, well-respected company. The kind of job that’s supposed to guarantee a lifetime of steady income (and health benefits too)!
But if recent events have taught us anything, it’s that a corporate job is no guarantee at all. If you really think about it, having a corporate job means that you’re at the mercy of a boss who may or may not like you. You could walk into the office one day, only to be sent away with a pink slip and your employer’s “sincerest regrets.” And then what?
Set Jobs vs. Secure Jobs
The problem is that we’ve confused a “set” job with a “secure” job.
Corporate jobs are “set” jobs. When you’re hired by a big, established company, you have a pre-defined career path laid out in front of you. You get to do what millions of other people do every single day. You get employer-sponsored health benefits. It creates a very convincing illusion of safety and security.
But of course, even convincing illusions don’t last. If you’re ever fired or laid off, you quickly realize how flimsy the illusion really was.
A “secure” job, on the other hand, doesn’t just leave you out in the cold. It gives you something to count on; something that can’t be taken away from you just because someone somewhere decided to reorganize your department. It’s something you won’t find in a corporate office.
What Job Security Really Means (And Who Has It)
Job security means ownership. It means possessing the deed to a steady income, NOT borrowing the keys from an employer.
So where does this security come from? Who has real job security even in a down economy?
Entrepreneurs. Innovators. Direct marketers. Thought leaders. Bloggers. People who connect on a personal level with their customers. People who hold a position of authority. People who are known and trusted by thousands of people all over the world.
Consider someone like Oprah. If Oprah ever lost her show (unlikely), would she suddenly have no more job? No more income? Of course not. Even if every single television station in the world were to mysteriously disappear, Oprah would still have a job. A very lucrative, successful job. Why? Because thousands of people know her and trust her. Because Oprah is the kind of person who can turn a book into a runaway bestseller just by saying so.
Now, I’m not telling you to go forth and imitate Oprah. I’m telling you to learn from her. And from people like Seth Godin. Mark Zuckerburg. Leo Babauta. All of these people are entrepreneurs who have created their own jobs. They own their jobs. They have carved out a place in the world for themselves. They own their streams of income, and come hell or high water, they will continue to succeed.
But What About the Risk?
But wait, you say. Isn’t entrepreneurship risky? Don’t hundreds of startups fail every year?
The answer is yes. Entrepreneurship has risks. Startups do fail. But so do giant corporations – in whole or in part. The difference is that, when an entrepreneur runs into trouble, he or she can personally do something about it. Even more importantly, entrepreneurs build relationships. They develop influence and authority – things that cannot be taken away by a recession.
And that’s the whole point. An entrepreneur may change job titles, but he is never out truly out of a job. He always has new opportunities to explore, new goals to achieve, and a whole list of followers willing to help him do so.
That’s real security.
What Do You Think?
What does job security mean for you? How do you go about building a successful, secure career? Is entrepreneurship worth the risk?
Share your answers below!
Image Source: http://www.flickr.com/photos/ppdigital/ / CC BY-NC 2.0
{ 21 comments… read them below or add one }
Job Security and job success I believe comes from you. You control all the aspects of your success. You can be/ get anything you desire with enough hard work put in. Even though you may not achieve your desired goal, you have come a long way and have atleast gain some knowledge or contacts from it. For job security, you never know whats going to happen today but the best thing to do is represent and sell yourself to the fullest. Well because you can always get a good reference from the job that apparently doesn't have enough money to keep you unless you got fired that's another case.
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Job security to means being able to earn more than enough to give me the freedom to live the sort of life I desire.
Today with the business and economic world being in such a transformational state, there is no such thing as “job security”. More and more people are following their heart and finding what they really “want to do” rather than “have to do”.
Entrepreneurship is certainly worth the risk – otherwise why do it?! If it was easy, then there would be no point being an entrepreneur – it is the challenge that inspires the drive and creativity in us.
Good luck to all budding entrpreneurs out there.
Job security to means being able to earn more than enough to give me the freedom to live the sort of life I desire.
Today with the business and economic world being in such a transformational state, there is no such thing as “job security”. More and more people are following their heart and finding what they really “want to do” rather than “have to do”.
Entrepreneurship is certainly worth the risk – otherwise why do it?! If it was easy, then there would be no point being an entrepreneur – it is the challenge that inspires the drive and creativity in us.
Good luck to all budding entrpreneurs out there.
Fantastic post, Jeffrey. I think you're right on the money :)
Another thing about entrepreneurship that makes it more secure in the long run, is that your money comes from multiple sources. Losing one client isn't a disaster.
Hi Jeffrey,
I live in a country with a totally different Social Security System than the States. Losing your job usually doesn't automatically mean that you will lose your income too, at least that is how it used to be. Things are changing here also and people who actually get to celebrate 25 years of steady employment in the same company are getting very rare.
But maybe that is a good thing. From my own experience I can tell that a job with a lot of real security and benefits can also be a gold noose around your neck. It is hard to give up a comfortable place for an unknown future. Nevertheless I have chosen to go on my own path and follow my bliss instead of the gold paved road into boredom.
It is scary though, so thank you for writing great articles that help me gather up my courage and get on with it.
So glad to have found you!
I agree completely, Jeffrey – in fact, I referenced this idea of job security being an illusion in my recent guide to becoming self-employed. Keep up the great work!
Good point, Ernest. You can't really guarantee that you'll get job security no matter what line of work you're in. The important thing is to make sure you are valuable to other people, because that's really what it's all about in the end.
I think real success comes from doing what you love; otherwise there's always that sense of incompleteness, no matter how much money you make. I think, however, that there -is- such thing as job security, but that it comes from you as a person – and your relationships with other people – rather than what title you happen to have at the time.
Diversifying! Great point. Another benefit is that, when you start small, you tend to know your clients and connect with them. That way, even if things don't turn out exactly as you planned, people begin to know and trust you.
I really enjoyed that guide, Leo! I even left a comment telling you so :) Thanks for the encouragement – it's nice to know that other people share my beliefs and passion!
Thank you so much for stopping by, Marianne. I -love- your gold noose analogy! It is very hard to step out into an unknown future, but I think our ability to do just that is one of the best things about being alive. I'm glad to hear you've taken the first steps, and I wish you the very best of luck! Should you ever need help, encouragement, or camaraderie, just drop me a line :)
Right on Jeffrey! The illusion of security created by Big MNC has got to be the biggest hoax ever. The fact that downsizing has become such a trend even before the disaster shouldn't be taken lightly just because the newspaper doesn't always give the spotlight these kind of news deserve. The justification given are only appropriate in economic sense. Profit for shareholders has been given top priorities and the victims happen to be the one working their ass for the company while CEOs enjoy their golfing session on some rich people only golf course.
Don't get me wrong, i don't hate rich people. I hate the lies. The school prepares the middle class kids to work for this people. The rich prepares their son to take control of the company and these kids. Rich becomes richer, poor poorer.
Entrepreneurship is probably their best bet to break free from this cycle. Risks or no risks is a good question, but a better one would be aware or otherwise.
Entrepreneurship is how we break free from class restrictions. A brilliant innovator can come from anywhere – upper class, middle class, lower class – and that's a good thing.
I think it's possible to be a good CEO for a large corporation, and honestly I think we need a lot more of them. The problem is that so many modern CEOs have gotten used to golden parachutes protecting them from the real consequences of their decisions. Even if they do a terrible job, they still have a fantastic severance package waiting for them.
Who should be rich? People who work for it and earn it.
Excellent post! I often use a thought experiment to determine to my level of marketability. If society did not exist as we knew it and we had to rebuild how would I be of value to my fellow human beings. This motivates me to continue to grow and develop my skills and talents and decide if I need to develop new ones.
A very thought provoking post, brilliant! Culture and the generation gap has a lot to do with this too.
I remember as early as 15 years ago, working for a big brand and a large stable company was a mark of success. Charles Handy writes about his experience when he joined Shell more than 50 years ago and they on his “induction day” he got a package which marked out his career progression with Shell all the way up to retirement :-). There was really no reason why anyone would want to move on from Shell!! Of course, he has gone on to play various other roles and write many a thought provoking book.
One question, though. Isn't entrepreneurship and starting up a company more like a sport, with 1 winner and 99 losers? Thats a perception which holds many people back from starting up. How would you address this fear?
And hey, looking forward to reading more of your brilliant posts!
Cheers,
Krishna
Your post made me remember something I'd long forgotten: in reality everyone who works in corporate america is a temp. Some are paid by temp agencies and some are paid by the corporation but at the end of the day, they're all temps. I'm working on starting my own business right now and I hadn't realized how exciting it was to realize that I can hold my own destiny in my hands.
That's a pretty dramatic thought experiment, but I agree that it's worth doing. Our societies may rise and fall, and the ingenuity of individual human beings is all we can really count on.
By the way, I like your blog, Bakari. You cover some very important topics; I'll definitely be keeping tabs on you in the future :)
Risk: If you think about it, we all take risks everyday.
Do you drive to work? RISK
Do you plug electronics into a socket? RISK
Do you walk up/down stairs? RISK
I have been planning my exit out of the corporate structure and hope to have good news in the future. Without risk, there are no rewards.
I once had the same thought, having a job in a stable, probably with billion dollars of revenue company, will secure me a job, thus providing me a good feeling of job security. All these, become a false illusion, until one fine day, I witness a bunch of my older colleagues being called up to the president office. Thereafter, I ask one of those seniors who had gone into the office, and I was being told that they were presented a letter of termination for their services, with only a thank you note for their many years of service. However, the real reason behind was that they are already old and no longer useful to the company, and this is the way to get rid of them. Yeah, I am young now, but one fine day, I will be old. I asked myself, what happens I am old and the company will treat me like what my seniors had been treated, giving me a letter, asking me to go. Somehow, it trigger my mind, as you get older, the lesser the job security is. After reading your blog, I concurred with you, There is no such thing as job security! It is only a false hope if ones think that a job offer security. Be an entrepreneur, be a business builder.
Ken – I'm glad to hear that you're “planning your exit' – and I wish you the very best of luck! Keep me posted on how everything goes for you, and let me know if there's anything I can do to help you out :)
My father was laid off from his job at a telecommunications company about a year ago after decades of service, so I can definitely understand what you're talking about. If you don't building something uniquely yours in the world, then your future is often decided by other people. The time to act is now!