Building a long-term career strategy in a red hot (for now) market

The career challenges we are confronting are new and we are in the midst of finding solutions.

The “New Normal” is not normal, but it is new. The most significant shift is that the jobseeker is in the driver’s seat and the temptation to make a quick move for more money and short-term gains is tremendous. My advice is to be prepared for a marketplace where offers are made in a matter by weeks.

Decide on long-term goals

An old Chinese proverb warns, “Be careful what you wish for, lest it comes true.” That truth definitely applies to today’s job market.

Before you start to job hunt, before you casually say you are looking to your closest friends, decide what you really want in your next position and if what you are looking for will meet your mid- to long-term goals. For example, I recall a start-up craze over 15 years ago where many mid-career professionals jumped to young, about-to go-public companies. A few years later, when many of these startups went belly-up, these pros were on the street trying to pick up where they left off. Unfortunately, by then jobs were hard to find and they had no career achievements to point to.