If you’re currently working multiple jobs or planning out a strategy in case things at your current job go haywire, you’re likely already engaging in career cushioning. The meaning of career cushioning is almost evident from the term and refers to professionals who take precautions to cushion their landing if things work out poorly in their current careers and jobs. While it is by no means a new phenomenon or idea, it has been something that employees have been doing more often in recent times, regardless of how well they’re personally settled at their current organization. The importance of career cushioning is hard to deny, especially considering the job uncertainty and high number of layoffs in 2023.
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Employees have had to seriously consider that they could lose their jobs at any moment, prompting them to start preparing for the worst, keeping their eyes peeled for any opportunity. Whether you consider it to be a buzzword worth investigating or not, the phenomenon is occurring on a global scale and its impact will remain far-reaching as more workers begin to consider their alternatives more resolutely.
What Is Career Cushioning?
The meaning of career cushioning is essentially providing cushioning for the future of your career, even when you are currently employed. It refers to the process of taking various measures to protect your career in case you lose your job and are forced to reevaluate your prospects. Instead of waiting for the loss to occur, employees have begun to take other more proactive measures that don’t necessarily improve their standing at their current organization, but do make them better able to start a new role immediately if necessary.
According to ZipDo, a job posting receives about 250 resumes, and concurrently 40 percent of job seekers have to apply to at least 11-20 jobs before getting hired. Recruitment agency Randstad US found that it can take approximately 5 months for an employee to find a new job. There is clearly heavy competition for any given job role and it might be quite a long wait for most before they find employment again. For employees living from paycheck to paycheck, this wait can bring on many additional struggles to add to the job loss.
From toymakers to autonomous vehicle companies, layoffs have swept across industries with absolute disregard for who it was affecting, leaving employees feeling unbalanced and insecure with their jobs. Without any direct reassurance from their organizations, employees then have no choice but to start looking for jobs, even if they have no desire to make the switch themselves. This can negatively affect organizations because their employees’ commitment to the current role is clearly affected and part of their energy is diverted by applying and preparing for interviews and alternate roles. In case these employees do land on a role that is more beneficial to them, they will likely go ahead and make the move, especially considering their current organization has not given them a reason to stay.
Importance of Career Cushioning
With the economy still in the process of settling down and the job market being what it is, career cushioning becomes almost essential for employees who want stability. It can be very easy to turn into a passive player in your own career and if that works for you then maybe the urgency of answering what career cushioning is and how to pursue it does not necessarily hold up for you. But if you’re someone who is looking to keep a more active reign on the progression of your career, then the importance of career cushioning becomes more apparent in your case.
The process of career cushioning could be a good way to gain some confidence in yourself and the work that you do as well. A lot of employees tend to put up with terrible, toxic, and abusive work cultures solely because of the fear of getting fired for speaking up. This makes for a very difficult time on the job while still feeling like you could lose the position at any given moment. By having an up-to-date understanding of the industry and alternate income opportunities lined up for yourself, you might be able to better represent yourself at work and speak out against unfair practices when they do come up in your current organization.
It is also important to note that these career cushioning examples do not have to start and end with you looking for other jobs either, as there are many other ways to plan ahead for your growth. Investing in the process of career cushioning means investing in growing your knowledge and skills to expand to areas that may be relevant to the alternate career paths you are considering. The new learnings could directly correlate to your current occupation and there may be ways to improve your performance at your current job, but even if the learnings do not directly correlate with your work, any industry insight is good to have filed away until you need it. The learning of new skills might be enough to compensate for the nervousness you are feeling, eliminating the pressure to find another job.
Career Cushioning Examples—Where Do You Start?
Now that we’ve answered your questions on “What is career cushioning?” you might now want to know how to set up a few cushions for yourself.
Update Your Resume and Understand the Job Market
The most obvious one is to update your resume to include the most recent work that you’ve done while taking into account what recruiters on the job market seem to be looking for. Your resume will lead your path towards any alternate opportunity so it is important to ensure that it represents your experiences and capabilities currently. While reviewing job opportunities, set a clear idea in your mind about the job you are looking for and what adjacent ones would be acceptable to you as well. If you are open to working in roles that use your skills but are different from the kind of work you do so far, you might find it easier to identify new opportunities. Being able to teach in your area of expertise or write about it well might put you in a position to say yes to a host of different opportunities so consider your abilities and interests carefully.
Improve Your Skills and Qualifications
If you are unable to identify alternate career paths or feel insufficiently skilled to shift to a new role, remember that this state is not permanent. You can always enroll in a course, work with colleagues, and practice from various in order to broaden what you are capable of. If you believe that teaching is out of the question for you because of poor communication skills, then work to improve these skills in particular. Take on more opportunities at your current job where you can learn the skill and practice it more regularly to get the hang of it.
Your current employers might also appreciate the development and see you as a more valuable asset to the organization, prompting them to put more effort into retaining you as top talent. You can simultaneously become more confident in your abilities to make a change to a new role if necessary.
Build Your Circle
Habits that fall in line with career cushioning examples also include networking. Talking to other experts in the industry can give you more insider insight into the status of work in the field. It can also guide you to the right contacts when you need assistance at any time. Many job opportunities can be found through contacts as you might come across someone who is looking for your niche set of skills. At any given point in time, you might be able to set up a mutually beneficial association with someone you come across at a workshop or job fair, so always be open to building connections and making them last in the long run.
This networking does not have to be limited to your industry either. Someone who is impressed with your performance as a manager might recommend you for the role of a strategic planner at their organization. Now while it might be a more narrowed-down version of your current job description, you can consider it among career cushioning examples that are open for you. This is why it is important to build these associations and connections wherever you go.
For career cushioning to work in your favor, you need to know your worth and understand that there are things that you can do to be in control of your career. While the shifting winds of the industry may not always push you forward in the direction you want to go, you still have the option of navigating towards alternatives that are more desirable to you. Take a step back from the panic that has set in and evaluate the various career options that are out there, waiting for you to consider.