In Concierge Confessions, Kate Ryan loses her engineering job and has to start over. It's not easy for her, especially with the economy in a tailspin and her belief that her age is against her. As in real life, Kate is not alone. I've seen various statistics about the number of times a person will change jobs or careers in their lifetime (from five to eleven or more times), but the experts agree that the days when people held one job for all, or most, of their working life, are long gone.
If I don't count part-time work in high school and college, I've started over in a new career field a total of six times. But those were voluntary changes. In each case, I started over at a time when it was less likely for employees to remain at a specific company or in a specific career out of loyalty. I, like many others, made changes because of the opportunity to develop myself and my career. Today, however, a large number of people are in the job market not by choice, but as a result of downsizing, outsourcing, forced retirement, or the closing of businesses.
Job searching and networking, along with staying on top of the job market, has become an integral part of everyday work life, rather than something done once or twice in a career. Whether starting over is voluntary or forced, it can be a daunting task. Kate eventually finds a new job as concierge at a luxury condominium--in fact, the same complex that she helped build as project engineer. It's a drastic change for her but as time goes on, she finds she likes her new role and thrives.
What about you? How many times have you changed jobs? How would you rate the experience?
If I don't count part-time work in high school and college, I've started over in a new career field a total of six times. But those were voluntary changes. In each case, I started over at a time when it was less likely for employees to remain at a specific company or in a specific career out of loyalty. I, like many others, made changes because of the opportunity to develop myself and my career. Today, however, a large number of people are in the job market not by choice, but as a result of downsizing, outsourcing, forced retirement, or the closing of businesses.
Job searching and networking, along with staying on top of the job market, has become an integral part of everyday work life, rather than something done once or twice in a career. Whether starting over is voluntary or forced, it can be a daunting task. Kate eventually finds a new job as concierge at a luxury condominium--in fact, the same complex that she helped build as project engineer. It's a drastic change for her but as time goes on, she finds she likes her new role and thrives.
What about you? How many times have you changed jobs? How would you rate the experience?
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