It's official, the recession has been over for a few years now, the stock market is soaring and the economy is booming! Related: 3 Reasons No Experience Will Land You That Dream Job That's what they say when you turn on the news. If only reality was as pretty as the picture they paint on TV. In reality, people are still suffering. Millennials are still unemployed. Gen Xer's are still underemployed, and Baby Boomers are nearing closer towards retirement and they're watching their income stagnate or in some cases decrease. Every career consultant, guru, expert, yada, yada, yada, including myself keep telling people it will get better. Attend networking events, build a better resume, build a personal brand, we say. Those are all great tactics, but they take time, and what happens when you don't have time? What happens when you are running out of money and need to pay the bills? Here's something you probably haven't considered in your job hunt: Looking for jobs in other areas. We live in a global economy now and it's possible that by limiting your job prospects to just the places in your area, that you're missing out on tremendous opportunities elsewhere. Unfortunately, it might be time to pack up and move. That's not the best solution or even an ideal one. Afterall, no one wants to uproot their family and move clear across the country, but that might be your only option. In the mean time, you could be depleting your savings accounts, 401K's, and taking out home equity lines of credit on your home just to keep the bills paid, all while living in the illusion that things might get better. Maybe they will, but what if they don't? This emergency option should especially be heard loud and clear for Millennials, as many of them are unmarried, without kids, without a mortgage and without any other commitments beyond themselves. Millennials should be forewarned that it may not be appropriate to settle into a lifestyle that once worked for their parents, where they graduated from college, got a good job and stayed there for 5-10 years. Millennials must remain nimble. In fact, we should all remain nimble. We shouldn't be afraid, but we should be cautiously optimistic. Plan for the best, but prepare for the worst. Employment has changed and evolved in ways that no one could have ever imagined just ten short years ago. In the past ten years, we've seen a technology boom take effect that has made many old positions now obsolete. For the first time in history, we're also seeing three generations competing for the same jobs. Millennials, Gen Xer's, and Baby Boomers. Now more than ever before, the competition for jobs is at an all-time high, so before you waste any more time on yet another job hunting tactic, ask yourself if you've truly weighed all of your options, including moving.
