So Jenkins emphasized her strong sales experience and started targeting sales jobs in healt hcare. Immediately, her job search reaped more results. “I started sending my résumé out and I got so much interest in that area,” she said. Her background even worked in her favor, she explained. “Companies were interested in my outside sales experience.”

Three interviews and one job offer later, Jenkins is now a community ambassador for Silverado Senior Living, an Alzheimer’s community in Los Angeles. She uses her experience in sales to promote the senior living center to doctors and other health care providers. “I go out and create awareness and educate the health care community about the senior living center,” she explained.

Jenkins says she makes about 25% less a year than at her previous position but after five months on the job she is “thriving.” The best part is that she’s no longer worried about getting laid off again. To Jenkins, that’s worth more than the $20,000 paycut.

Of course, no single job can be declared 100 percent secure. Yet, looking at the statistics, Jenkins was right to see that health care was on a trajectory most other industries weren’t–especially during that shaky economic period. In her scenario, a career switch was a smart move.

Still, it makes me wonder how many people are willing to take a hit to the bank account if it means knowing you’ll have a steady paycheck? You’re not guaranteed this lower-paying job will last, but it’s a safer bet than other better-paying jobs–and probably better than having no job at all. Kind of that whole “A bird in the hand is worth two in the bush” business.

For those of you who find yourselves in this situation, here are some questions to ask while you deliberate taking a secure job for less pay:

• Can you survive on the lower income?
  Some money (the new job) is better than no money (unemployment), but are you taking such a steep cut that you can’t feasibly pay any bills anyway?
• If you’ll be struggling to pay bills, can you take a second job?
  Maybe the lower salary almost covers your needs, so a small supplementary income would be ideal. If the new job doesn’t monopolize all your free time, you could possibly get a part-time job to make ends meet.
• Are you positioning yourself as a qualified candidate?
  The entire question of whether or not to make this career move is moot if you don’t market yourself as someone who deserves the job. Job seekers who are switching industries must remember to tailor their cover letters and résumés to the new employers. Your old jargon and job duties might not make sense until you translate them for your new audience.
• Have you researched the career potential of your new job or industry?
  Look at the projections for industries to see if growth is in its future. Also look at what opportunities for growth are available in a specific organization. On an interview, ask about the opportunities or where the previous person in this role moved to. You want to make sure you’re not sacrificing your professional future in any way.

Related posts:

1. Ask The Work Buzz! The Experience Dilemma Deborah asked a simple but universal question: How would you...
2. Jobs of the future Yesterday, the President’s Council of Economic Advisers released the report...
3. Top 10 cities for new grads While there’s relief that classes are over, exams have been...

Related posts:

1. How to wish your boss, “Happy Boss’s Day” I think “The Office’s” Michael Scott best described the role...
2. Are Job Seekers Going to Extremes? Now, I know the economy is bad — OK, it’s...
3. Video: Matching your skills to available jobs One of the things more job seekers are having to...

Well, there are other options!
When you’re looking to switch industries, you need to look beyond just the title of your degree or current profession. Switching industries can include switching from your educational background or from your work experience.  In most cases, employers will overlook those differences if you prove you’re a right match for the responsibilities of the new job. The best way to do that is to break down what experience and strengths you have. And if you don’t yet have a job on the horizon, it’s also a good way to discover what jobs you could be suited for.

Ask yourself these questions.

• What are my strengths in communication–verbal or written?
• Am I a leader?
• What’s my customer service experience? (Do I normally deal with them one-on-one or am I behind the scenes?)
• What about my last job/training did I like?
• What career goals did I initially have and can I achieve them in another field?
• On my resume, if I covered up my industry’s name (in this case “education”), what sort of jobs do I look prepared for?

Some of those questions might sound obvious or even silly, but they’ll get your mind thinking about your future beyond simply what you were trained for.

In the case of education, specifically elementary education, you probably have the following:

• Excellent verbal communication skills
• Strong leadership skills
• Experience thinking on your feet
• Creativity (seeing as you’re constantly thinking of new ways to engage the students)
• Conflict resolution skills (education courses often involve various classroom re-creations)

Some jobs that encompass these qualities and are often good for educators:

• Instructor for a business
  Businesses often hold in-house training sessions on a topic related to that industry or on continuing education. An education background makes you an ideal candidate for these positions.
• Textbook editors and advisers
  Seeing as you are an educator, your brain is ripe for the picking when it comes to creating course texts. You know what works, what doesn’t work, what’s lacking, etc.
• Admissions directors
  Your education experience also makes you a prime candidate for working with incoming students and aligning the admissions department with the school’s goals. (This could be at a variety of schools, including post-secondary.)
• Sales in education-related jobs
  Working in any school, you’re aware that businesses are constantly approaching educators and institution about new products, tools and resources.  Many educators are able to tap into their experience and realize what teachers need and how they want to be communicated with in order to sell these products.

Depending on the specific organization, you might need more training for these jobs, or maybe just an additional certification. Or maybe not. Workers constantly switch industries and employers know that expertise doesn’t just come from a certification or degree title. You can’t count yourself out of any job because you think you’re only trained to teach elementary school and nothing else. Look at your qualifications and then look at the qualifications in job postings and you’ll be surprised.

Have you been in Courtney’s situation and made an industry switch? We’d love to hear how you did it.

Related posts:

1. Ask The Work Buzz! Breaking into an industry with the ‘wrong’ background Here’s what Zaina’s asking us: I am a hospitality senior...
2. Great Jobs in the President’s Stimulus Plan On Friday, we told you about President Barack Obama’s economic...
3. Taking your awesomeness to the next level Unless you’re Barney Stinson from TV’s “How I Met Your...

Well, one day down; four to go, kids. In the meantime, here’s some reading material:

• Internships are about more than just getting coffee for the VP.
  Texas students find that Washington internships can open doors for jobs in future
• Are you to your company as Milton is to Office Space?
  How to be more social in the workplace
• This is one of those surveys that’s surprising…but not, if you know what I mean.
  Nobody Wants to Lead the Corporate Dance…

Related posts:

1. Thursday’s good reads roundup One day away from the weekend. Can’t you just taste...
2. Monday good reads roundup Hello, Work Buzzers. Monday’s been pretty busy here. And even...
3. Thursday’s good reads roundup The news today was a bit kookier than normal. Definitely...

• A little tough love comin’ atcha.
  Didn’t get the job? Post-analysis is up to you.
• We’re always looking for a silver lining.
  Laid-off workers seize fresh start
• Dress codes really do cause more confusion and anxiety than most any other issue, I think.
  Bare legs or pantyhose at job Interviews?
• Of course, to get a silver lining,  you can’t avoid the rain cloud completely.
  Americans working much harder – for less pay

‘Til Wednesday!

Related posts:

1. Tuesday’s good reads roundup Tuesday’s come and nearly gone (work-wise, at least). If you...
2. Thursday’s good reads roundup If you’re looking forward to the weekend, it’s almost here!...
3. Wednesday’s good reads roundup An eclipse, a health-care plan, Michael Jackson’s doctor…these are the...

In this report, the President’s Council of Economic Advisers (CEA) presents a projection of potential developments in the U.S. labor market over the next five to ten years and discusses the preparations necessary to develop the 21st century workforce. We discuss the skills that will likely be most relevant in growing occupations, the value and limitations of our current post-high school education and training systems, and the characteristics of a more effective education and training structure.

Here are some points of interest I found in the report in case you don’t feel like sorting through it:

• “…the health care and education industries are expected to contribute most substantially to job growth in the future.”
• “Retail trade is projected to contract somewhat in terms of employment share, partly because the growth in consumer spending is expected to slow going forward.”
• “Health care practitioners and technicians, which include physicians, registered nurses, and other health professionals and technicians, are expected to be in increasing demand. Jobs for medical records and health information technicians are also projected to increase. Investments in health information technology will only accelerate the growth in this occupation.”
• “Jobs in health care support occupations, also shown in the chart, are projected to experience even faster growth. The increased demand in this area stems largely from an aging population that will require care at home, at nursing care facilities, and in inpatient and outpatient settings.”
• “Distributing power through an updated, more efficient, system will require even more electrical power line installers and repairers, which was already a growing occupation according to the BLS projections.”

So what’s the point, right? I mean, that’s great and all, but people are unemployed now and need work immediately, not in 8 years. Well, the report is concerned with how education serves job seekers of tomorrow. When you read how many employers view today’s graduates and job seekers, you get an idea of how they might perceive your job-seeking competition. As a result, you can brush up on your skills or emphasize these talents to give yourself an edge. For example, a survey indicates

[Most] recent high school graduates lacked the basic skills of reading, writing, and math that were deemed necessary by employers. Among these basic skills, employers deemed this group to be most deficient in writing. Employers judged nearly three-quarters of high school graduates as unable to write at a basic level, for which competency includes knowledge of both spelling and grammar.

So employers think the people coming into their offices can’t write or communicate well. That’s your cue to show them that you can. Even if the job doesn’t seem to require superior writing skills, it doesn’t draw the interviewer’s attention to proof of your writing expertise. Whether you’ve prepared presentations for someone or given them yourself, verbal communication helps at any job and suggests you can be a leader.

While you’re looking for work now and/or planning your career path, you should take a look at this report. It not only tells you where the jobs will be, but it could help you find one now. And it’s also an excellent resource to help you align yourself with upcoming trends.

Related posts:

1. Jobless Rate Jumps Up Again in December (But There are Still Jobs Out There) The BLS released its monthly unemployment numbers today and, as...
2. Great Jobs in the President’s Stimulus Plan On Friday, we told you about President Barack Obama’s economic...
3. Go back to school? Yeah, right When you’re searching for a new job or career, a...

As a child, I was all about the TV show. I had the action figures. I memorized lines. I might have even pretended my Big Wheels could go from plastic vehicle into intimidating, robotic machine. Don’t judge me.

With the  movie franchise taking off and raking in plenty of cash, I’ve had a wave of nostalgia overcome me. My $10 Skyfire sits somewhere in my parents’ attic and I wish it were on my desk.

So in the spirit of childhood memories, the movie’s release and The Work Buzz’s love for all things career, we put together a list of 10 jobs that would be good for the Transformers. I’d love to see Optimus Prime wear a name tag or Omega Supreme sit in a cubicle.  But that’s just me.

1. Public transportation…worker?
   Normally we point people to positions like bus driver and train operator, but the Transformers could be the transportation with no additional help needed.
2. School principal
   If you’re a badly behaving student, wouldn’t you be scared to hear thumping, metallic steps coming down the hall?
3. Junkyard proprietor
   I think that one’s pretty self explanatory.
4. Assembly line worker
   Again, not hard to see how it’s a good fit. And between the machine-like precision and personal touch, you’d be getting the best of both worlds with them as employees.
5. Bouncer
   I dare you to try to slip past Whirl if he says the club’s full. Go ahead–try it.
6. Laser eye surgeon
   Why bother with fancy medical offices? All you need is a big enough room to house a transforming giant. Oh, and a really big lab coat.
7. Search and rescue
   They can find crime and eradicate it. They can find missing persons.
8. Pizza delivery person
   They’ll always be on time. And they can heat it up on the way!
9. Waste management specialists
   The heightened sense of smell and the ability to get dirty without being squeamish. Perfect fit.
10. Movers
    You can’t always rely on friends to help you  move, and many movers charge by the hour as well as amount of workers. Why not hire one Transformer for an hour to get everything from the old place to the new one?

What other jobs would you recommend?

Related posts:

1. Halloween costumes at work Halloween is only a few days away, as the terrifying...
2. In a tough economy, check out the library If the recession has taught us one thing (though I’d...
3. Thursday’s good reads roundup I admit, I was about to title this “Friday’s good...

Nonetheless, today was another big news day. That missing South Carolina governor? Not so much missing as having an affair with a woman in Argentina. The U.S. soccer team came out of nowhere to beate Spain. Whoa.

And, of course, buried beneath these attention-grabbing headlines were the relevant news to job seekers and employees.

Here are some news items we thought you might like from today and yesterday:

• OMG GOOD NEWS! READ ALL ABOUT IT HERE!
  Despite Recession, High Demand for Skilled Labor
• Anyone paying back student loans in this recession knows the pain it’s causing on your wallet. There might be some hope.
  New law to help in paying back college loans
• So the unemployment outlook is grim (according to these people)–but how will we handle it?
  Living With Long-Term Unemployment
• The government’s putting a lot of money into green jobs. Let’s hope it works, for the sake of unemployment and, you know, Mother Nature.
  Labor Secretary announces $500M for green jobs

See you Thursday!

Related posts:

1. Monday’s good reads roundup Yaaaaawn. We’re nearing the end of Monday. A summer Monday...
2. Thursday’s good reads roundup Can’t you just taste Friday? Or can you just taste...
3. Tuesday’s good reads roundup Heeeey, Tuesday. Long time no see. So much to read...

Good news: Businesses are catching up!

In fact, one-in-ten employers say they have added “green jobs,” otherwise known as environmentally-focused positions, in the last 12 months, according to a new national survey of more than 2,500 hiring managers by CareerBuilder. The survey was conducted between February 20 and March 11, 2009.

Not only are companies showing their commitment to the earth by creating new environmentally friendly positions, but also through “green” programs that get current employees involved. Seventy percent of companies say they have added programs to be more environmentally conscious in the last year. The most popular “green” programs include:

• Recycling (50 percent)
• Using less paper (45 percent)
• Controlling lighting (44 percent)
• Powering down computers at the end of the day (30 percent)
• Purchasing office supplies made from recycled materials (27 percent)

“Green jobs have increased in popularity over the last few years as companies take continued action to become more environmentally conscious and reduce their carbon footprints,” said Rosemary Haefner, vice president of human resources for CareerBuilder. “The economic stimulus plan is expected to spur an increase in the number of green jobs by creating investments in alternative energies. There are a variety of positions that fall under the green category that could present great new career opportunities for job seekers.”

The following are examples of green job opportunities:

1. Hydrologist: The median annual income is $64,604.
2. Environmental Engineer: The median annual income is $63,673.
3. Pollution Control Technician: The median annual income is $47,403.
4. Biologist: The median annual income is $53,665.
5. Science Teacher: The median annual income of kindergarten, elementary, middle and secondary school teachers ranges from $41,400 to $46,991.
6. Fund-raising Director: The median annual income is $79,762.
7. Urban Planner: The median annual income is $55,365.
8. Economist: The median annual income is $82,628.
9. Forester: The median annual income is $48,110.
10. Environmental Attorney: The median annual income for attorneys specializing in construction, real estate and land use is $90,146.
11. Community Affairs Manager: The median annual income is $57,359.
12. Environmental Health and Safety Technician: The median annual income is $47,403.
13. Landscape Architect: The median annual income is $53,241.
14. Waste Disposal Manager: The median annual income is $31,572.
15. Environmental Chemist: The median annual income is $48,850.

Related posts:

1. Hug a tree, earn a paycheck (aka get a green job) Having a “green job” is definitely a hot topic right...
2. Want to earn an $80K salary? From our years of research and experience here at CareerBuilder.com,...
3. Half of workers who were laid off in the last three months have found jobs! The economy’s not improving as fast as any of us...

American Idol is back on the air and for an hour every week we think, “Yeah, we have the chops to be the next Kelly Clarkson or David Cook.” Eh, who are we kidding? We’ll gladly be the next William Hung.

And if you’ve ever been to a music festival, a good song can convince thousands of people that they’re good dancers…when my observations convince me that most of us are not, in fact, even decent dancers. And based on the killer lineups that Coachella and Bonnaroo just unveiled, this year’s festivals will have even more rhythmically changed people awkwardly clapping than you’ve ever seen.

Plus, this coming Sunday we’ve got the Grammy Awards, which, for the first time in over a decade, seem to be cognizant of good music. Yay!

So today I thought I’d feed your fantasies that you might one day be on that stage accepting an award for Best New Artist, even though today you’re more suited to be a CPA. Below are how some of today’s big music stars earned their first paychecks. Plus, it’s a nice reminder that these celebs were once mere mortals like us.

Carrie Underwood
Carrie Underwood struck gold after winning season four of the singing talent competition “American Idol.” But before that, she worked as a gas station cashier in her hometown of Checotah, Okla.
Gas station attendant’s current income: $21,232/year

Lance Bass
Before Bass found success in the former boy band ‘N Sync, as a contestant on season seven of “Dancing with the Stars” and as an almost-astronaut, he made a living doing the simpler things in life.

“I worked at a snow-blowing place,” Bass told the New York Daily News. “I was making $100 a week and I was very proud of it. I kept it in the bank, even though I would always spend the whole $100 a week on stupid things, mainly six-packs of beer.”
Snow-blower’s current income: $19,536/year

Madonna
Try picturing Madonna — one of America’s fittest and most famous — serving pastries behind a counter. It’s hard to imagine, but believe it or not, when Madonna moved to New York, she earned extra cash by working the registers at Dunkin’ Donuts.

“I was sacked from Dunkin’ Donuts for squirting the donut jelly all over the customers,” Madonna has said.
Cashier’s current income: $23,213/year

Miley Cyrus
Before Miley Cyrus (born Destiny Cyrus) got her start as Hannah Montana in the Disney series of the same name (and with a successful singing career to boot), Cyrus had a job cleaning toilets. In a 2008 interview, she revealed her first job was cleaning houses.

“I had one normal job and I actually liked it,” Cyrus said in an interview with Us Weekly magazine. “I worked at this place called Sparkles Cleaning Service and I cleaned houses. I was, like, 11 … I can scrub a toilet,” she boasted.
House cleaner’s current income: $23,826/year

Salary data from CBSalary.com.

Related posts:

1. First jobs of the rich and famous This week, we are celebrating the official start of Barack Obama’s...
2. Ask The Work Buzz! Salary history From Kathy: Hey, Work Buzz! Boring question, but necessary answer....
3. How Much Time Do Employed Workers Spend Working? Last week, I told you what laid-off workers are doing...