Further Research

July 22, 2009

So you've figured out who you are and what you have to contribute. Great! Way to go! Now comes more research, of course. Now you have to figure out where your market lies. That is, who will hire you do do what you do best?

Lucky you: most of this research can be done from right where you're sitting as you read. Open a new tab or window and go to http://www.bls.gov/emp/home.htm. That's the index of the Bureau of Labor Statistics. Labor Statistics? But I'm Management, dammit! Okay, yes, but even a manager performs a job, so strictly speaking, everyone, from the CEO on down, is a labor statistic.

On these pages of the BLS you will find such gems as exact descriptions of what a person does in a given job. In particular, you'll want to surf over to the Occupational Outlook Handbook. You could order a hard copy to have for your very own, but why clutter up your bookshelf? The handbook can be searched several different ways (the instructions are on the first page.) The handbook lists not only the duties of various occupations, but the employment outlook for the years up through 2016. It would be nice to pick something that's about to grow, wouldn't it? You don't want to be like the poor guy who went into buggy whip twisting the same week Henry Ford introduce the Model T, do you?

Since you're at the Handbook page, try it out. Look around, search for your skill set and see where it gets used.

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