I expect there to be a minor recession this summer. We will be out of it before the year ends.
Three things will surely happen to companies in the next recession:
- Companies will have layoffs and close.
- A lot of people will retire.
- Musical chairs will become the biggest game in corporate America.
In a recession, companies close down divisions and lay off people. Many will offer early retirement to their older and more expensive workers. A lot of those retirees will decide to really retire.
I saw one estimate that half the US workforce is over 60 right now. I’m suspicious of that number. However, there are a lot of people who will retire and won’t look for another job. They are highly skilled. Someone has to take their place. Prepare now and you will find the coming decade to have incredible possibilities. There will be more openings at high levels in companies than there have ever been in the history of America.
Take advantage of the future retirements. In your company and division decide who is going to retire in the next 3 years. Someone will fill their job, and then a domino effect will happen. It will look like musical chairs as everyone scrambles to fill open seats created by the guy who just got promoted. Musical chairs in the corporation is going to be incredible. Prepare now and position yourself.
There is no such thing as luck. There is only adequate or inadequate preparation to cope with a statistical universe. (Robert Heinlein)
Something To Do Today
Figure out who will be retiring where you work. How can you take advantage of it?
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Later: Some jobs give you a bad reputation, no matter how good you are.