Career Clinic #1

Your career is your most important financial asset - that is, unless you are one of those lucky few who do not need to work for a living. Yet, somehow, us personal finance bloggers typically focus on what to do with your money once you have earned it, how to invest it and how to spend less of it. Well, my thinking is that building your career is at least as important if you are trying to achieve financial security. So, with that in mind, I have decided to scour the PF blog community and promote those posts that offer sound career advice. Here are the ones that I liked:

Spilling Buckets has a post about going for Grad School rather than trying to find a job in a recession. That's a common tactic these days, but I am not certain that it's a good career strategy.

Free Money Finance talks about his networking plan. Networking is one of the key aspects of career development, yet most folks never bother with it until they are looking for a job. Big mistake. Just as importantly, networking doesn't have to be a pain - read the article for some fun AND useful suggestions.

The Simple Dollar talks about salary negotiations when receiving a new job offer - this is the one time in the employer / employee relationship when negotiations are expected and the power rests with the employee. You MUST take advantage of this opportunity.

Saving Advice talks about freelancing as a source of income. For some folks, that's a very valid career move. I think that my wife may be headed in that direction, but we'll see.

The Smarter Wallet recommends companies that are less likely to let you go, recession or not. I am not sure that this is the number one criterion most people should consider when looking for a job, but job security is certainly a good thing, especially in the current economic conditions.

New Grad Handbook makes a very valid point: not all promotions are good promotions... the most important thing to consider is how a career move will position you in the long run. It's a good article.

Job and Career Advice talks about how to conduct yourself in an interview.

Finally, check out my own post about building work place alliances as a way to improve your chances for success.

I hope you find these useful.

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