As the new year rolled in, the Class of 2020 had a lot to look forward to; the economy was roaring, unemployment was low, and the job market for educated professionals was going strong. But, as they often do, things changed. In the wake of the pandemic, unemployment – though it may finally be slowly recovering for some – has skyrocketed, the stock market has whipped up and down, and companies everywhere haven’t just been tightening their belts, they’ve been in full-fledged survival mode. The end result has created a massive challenge for recent graduates: few places are hiring, and the class of 2020 will now have to compete for jobs with seasoned professionals often decades their senior.
So how can the Class of 2020 prepare for this strange new world? While this situation may be new, in many ways, we’re just where we were twelve years ago when the Great Recession hit, and there are lessons to be taken from that experience. There are concrete steps this year’s grads can take to navigate the pandemic economy and launch their careers.
Choose hope, not fear.
The world is scary right now, and it’s ok to feel uncertain and even afraid. But don’t let those feelings paralyze or guide you; instead, make decisions out of passion and never out of fear, because I believe there is still good cause for hope, even in the midst of all this. The Class of 2020 is facing an incredibly difficult job market. I don’t want to downplay that. If you’re graduating into this, you are going to face significant challenges. But do not back away or hide from those challenges. Don’t let rejection or setbacks discourage you. They will happen, accept that, and keep moving forward. Get creative. We need you all more than ever. Help us forge a path to a brighter future. You have an opportunity to do that now more than at any time in decades.
Stay healthy.
One of the best pieces of advice I can give is to stay healthy. The economy is reopening all across America, but outside of a few places like New York, cases are still on the rise. The pandemic may have been forced out of the news, but it’s still here. A dear friend of mine got waylaid by the illness early on and heroically worked through it. But there is no anticipating how badly you may be hit, and companies are going to need to hire people they can rely on in this time of uncertainty because with so much of the workforce furloughed or couchbound, any dropoff in work getting done is going to have a compound impact. So stay home, wash your hands, and don’t think that being young makes you invincible. And in light of the mass protests against police brutality, more and more young people have been and are being exposed. While I am not telling you whether or not to take the risk of attending a march, I would ask you to please do so responsibly, with an eye for your own health and that of those around you.
Stay Connected, both Personally and Professionally.
Every aspect of our social lives has changed, which means professional networking is changing as well. This is, in many ways, actually a positive thing as new opportunities to connect have sprung up in response to the isolation so many of us find ourselves in under lockdown. So look for these emerging avenues for connecting. Get active on social media, participate in conversations, join industry-relevant groups and forums, attend webinars, virtual conferences and roundtables, and continually seek out these new networking opportunities. Stay in touch with former mentors, coworkers, and bosses. But also check in on your friends and classmates. Networking isn’t just about connecting with mentors and potential bosses. It’s also about forming strong relationships with your peers as you grow, push, and lift one another up. You will all rise together.
Be smart about graduate school.
During the 2008 crisis, I had many candidates for jobs who were nervous about their prospects and thinking very strongly about graduate school with the hope of entering into a healthier job market in a few years. While I laud pursuing higher education, your motivations for doing so need to meet certain criteria; above all, you must be absolutely certain that it’s what you want to do and not just a way to delay entering the workforce. The world is scary right now, but that’s not a good reason to go to grad school. Doing so for the wrong reasons will only hurt you down the line; the end result could be staggeringly more debt for training in a field you aren’t actually interested in. This isn’t an injunction against further education, but a reminder to be measured and honest with yourself in your decision-making. With that in mind, there couldn’t be a better time to hone your skills, learn and grow, and make your resume more competitive, whether through a graduate program or by pursuing alternative free and low-cost resources. Many universities are offering free online courses throughout the pandemic. There are also online courses in programming, in management, in investing, and so on. The critical skills workplaces are looking for, especially now, range from blockchain to UX design to video production, none of which require masters degrees to attain and can be learned through online training courses. Take advantage of these resources! If a graduate degree is what you want to do, I absolutely encourage you to pursue it; just be sure you are making that decision out of passion, not out of fear, and have a workforce strategy in advance.
Focus on your technical skills.
In the post-pandemic economy, so much of the softball interview is going to go by the wayside. Companies with homebound workers are increasingly focusing on results rather than productivity or amiableness, so go into every interview marshalling your education as a means to make those results easier to obtain. In the past, interviews have been as much about personality and cultural fit as anything else, but workplace socializing is, for now, a thing of the past; you want to make certain that every reason to hire you is spelled out in terms explicitly centered on ways you can not only ease the workload, but how you can bring a skillset to the team that they don’t have and may not even have been thinking about. Make sure they need you rather than simply liking you.
Make your own opportunities.
We don’t know the shape of things to come, which is why I very strongly advise recent grads to start looking for their own paths alongside sending out resumes. What business opportunities are out there? What pandemic niche is currently going unfilled? I’m not just talking about the gig economy, that unstable network of odd jobs and Uber cars that so many have spent the last decade turning to for economic support. It might just be time to start your own business, especially as existing organizations downsize, restructure, and reduce their offerings; is there a service that’s harder to come by now that you can facilitate? If so, hop on it! Be a part of the solution. There’s hope in this darkness for the shrewd entrepreneur.
Keep your head up.
The world isn’t ending, and while this is going to certainly have far-reaching consequences, right now what everyone needs is a get-it-done attitude and eyes on the future, whatever shape it might take. Stay positive, stay alert, and stay strong.
Liz Elting, Founder and CEO of the Elizabeth Elting Foundation, Founder and former Co-CEO of TransPerfect.