One of the more difficult situations to accurately judge is determining what is the state of today’s economy? I say this because the country has been inundated for several months with consistently conflicting storylines about the economy.

>For example: one week the White House and the media are telling everyone that things are going “as planned” and the economy has turned away from the brink. The next week we hear from the Federal Reserve that net unemployment will not improve for at least five years. Then, this week’s Newsweek magazine’s cover story boldly proclaims, “The Recession Is Over.” Yet, the Congressional Budget Office consistently advises that the country can’t sustain its present level of debt – meaning the country will go bankrupt. Confused? You have every right to be.

Because of the confusion this conflicting testimony creates, many Americans have defaulted into a dangerous wait and see what happens mode; i.e., dangerous because the key to surviving in a bad economy is knowing what is coming and, therefore, being able to do something about it. Ignorance is not bliss in a bad economy; rather, knowledge is king. Accordingly, my immediate concern is that too many people are ignorant about this economy and will get hurt accordingly. Therefore, the question:

What Is The True State Of The U.S. Economy?

As always, the “facts” will tell the true story and the facts about this economy are: (i) the Obama administration has committed to a national debt level never before seen in this country; (ii) heavy debt assures that heavy inflation will inevitably follow; (iii) today’s unemployment rates (10.1% when only those receiving unemployment checks are counted but 16% when those who have worked through their unemployment eligibility period and still do not have jobs are added to the count) are the highest in decades; and (iv) if the proposed Health Care, or Cap & Trade (global warming) bills become law, the tax consequences to the American people (especially those supporting the private golf club community) will be devastating.

The summary conclusions that can be drawn from the above set of facts are clear: yes, the economy is in trouble; and yes, it is plausible that the economy could get decidedly worse before it gets better. You should know this.

But, there is also a vital lesson that can be taken from this economy; i.e., by taking the initiative to search out and identify with the true nature of the economy, you will plan better and, therefore, be in a better position to secure your job. Whatever the number of superintendents is that might lose their jobs in this economy, I believe that 90% of these jobs can be saved by knowledgeable superintendents taking the appropriate initiatives. Your job puts you in the batter’s box of a high stakes game. This is not the time in your career to take a “called third strike.”

(Reminder: two of my earlier blog messages, the June 5^th blog, entitled, “Addressing Job Insecurity” and the July 2^nd blog entitled, “The Bad Economy Offers An Opportunity To Secure Your Job” custom detail the ways you can establish a job-saving communications rapport with your employer.)

Superintendents, want to help your assistant(s) on their career path? Print out these Career Corner posts and responses on an ongoing basis and assemble them in a hard copy binder for your assistants and crew.

Can you imagine in this day an age an entire country population that has never considered or adopted the concept of long range planning within its culture? I found this notion hard to envision until I visited the country of Israel a while back and became acquainted with its people’s way of life.

From the year of the country’s birth in 1947, the Israeli people have never had the luxury of bringing the concept of long range planning into their lives for one unrelenting reason: you can’t plan into future years when no one could be certain that the country would survive for two or three years – never mind fifteen years – down the road.  Surrounded by countries dedicated to its demise and terrorized by suicide bombers year in and year out, planning and investing five to ten to fifteen years ahead simply was not an option. Yet, how Israel and its people have succeeded and actually flourished in many ways through the years within this environment offers invaluable lessons that we Americans – now working through our own difficult times be they of a different nature (i.e., a steadily deepening recession) – can learn from.

The Israeli Way

Born out of necessity, the Israeli way is a beautiful enigma to behold; for example:

• always deal in the present because that’s all there is
• prepare well to maximize what you are doing because there will be no second chance
• be aggressive with life and when conducting business
• be result oriented
• emphasize schooling and education
• communicate directly
• balance work, play and family life, and finally,
• be respectful of neighbors but when neighbors take advantage of this trust – be willing and able to vigorously defend what you believe in.

In many ways, immediacy (what is left when long range planning is not available) is a far simpler, more effective way of dealing with life and doing business – especially in recessionary times – because it applies solid planning and necessary funding to problems before they can metastasize over time into something more difficult to deal with; i.e., put out the fire before it spreads. The single piece of evidence that irrefutably supports this premise is the fact that when left to its own devices Israel has developed and for some time maintained one of the strongest three or four economies in the world; i.e., better than the U.S. economy on a per capita basis.

Immediacy… applies solid planning and necessary funding to problems before they can metastasize over time into something more difficult to deal with; i.e., put out the fire before it spreads.

Lessons To Be Learned?

Rather than spell out what lessons I believe you should take from the above Israeli profile, I am asking you to do this for yourselves. In a few words, write out the one overriding lesson you take from the “Israeli Way” as described above; then, share your selection with your fellow readers by submitting it through the “Leave a Reply” section below. We can learn a great deal from each other if you will participate in this exercise. Thanks for this support.

Superintendents, want to help your assistant(s) on their career path? Print out these Career Corner posts and responses on an ongoing basis and assemble them in a hard copy binder for your assistants and crew.

As expected this time of year, I have received numerous resume and cover letter drafts from superintendents asking me to evaluate the effectiveness of their job application documents as they prepare to apply for jobs that will open this coming summer and fall. There is nothing unusual about this, except that this year I have noticed two emerging patterns worth commenting on:

1. The majority of the drafts received this year are coming from superintendents who are presently unemployed while in past years the majority of drafts came from employed superintendents looking to upgrade to a better job. This reversal of employment status is understandable in today’s economic environment.

2. Virtually every resume and cover letter draft received is identical in tone to the resumes and cover letters the superintendents who have recently been released (to purge higher salaries) undoubtedly submitted to get hired by these same clubs/courses a while back; i.e., they were prepared as if today’s bad economy did not exist.

The unintended consequence this approach creates is that it virtually eliminates all possibility of a candidate being granted an interview because search committees clearly are looking to go in a different direction when hiring within today’s ever tightening economy.

Revised Application Guidelines

Following is a checklist intended to lead candidates successfully through the job application process during these tough economic times that are not about to go away:

1. Do not fall into the trap of presuming a continuing sound economy when preparing your cover letter because this will always be a high-risk interview denying approach – especially for veteran superintendents with more established salaries; rather . . .

Freely acknowledge that the economy is the reason why you are presently unemployed… because the truth sells well…

2. Use your cover letter to freely acknowledge that the economy is the reason (if this be the case) why you are presently unemployed (or are looking for another job while still employed). Tens of thousands of summarily dismissed private sector people across America today have comfortably adopted this approach when job-seeking because truth sells well when there are jobs to be had. Superintendents are encouraged to follow this same approach when presently seeking jobs and to incorporate the following within their job applications:

a. Request/require that your former employer provide you with a reference letter that confirms your solid job performance and clearly states that you were reluctantly let go solely for economic reasons. This letter will become a valuable tool when applying for your next job. Under the circumstances, most employers should readily comply with this request when asked because you have earned the right to and are entitled to this support.

b. Prepare and submit a standard resume (with a personal web site, if available) that fully optimizes your career performance. Do not soften your resume in an attempt to avoid being characterized as “over-qualified” because this is not where adjustments should be made to accommodate the economy.

c. Rather, use your cover letter to accomplish this task. Before going on, readers should review my April 30^th blog message entitled, “Don’t Waste Your Cover Letter” to place the following commentary within appropriate context when applying for a job.

It is essential that you use your cover letter, resume and web site to advise/educate prospective employers that you have the vision and prerequisite experience to restructure their golf course maintenance programs to fit within today’s economic means while still maintaining the integrity (not necessarily the cosmetic look) of the golf course.

To prove this point – after using your resume (and personal web site, if available) to get the attention of the search committee – clearly state in your cover letter that should you be granted the privilege of an interview you would use this opportunity to personally inspect/audit course, maintenance facility, equipment and budgetary conditions for the purpose of submitting a workable written plan of action (with budget drafts and a recommended personal salary appropriate for the situation) to the search committee that you will be prepared to defend during your scheduled interview. (Candidates should incorporate the interview technique presented in my March 20^th blog message entitled, “Stress Free Job Interviews” within their cover letters.)

The above-described initiatives create a “win-win” situation for all parties because employers and golf course superintendents will once again have found the mutual ground where each can best serve the other within the worst of economies.

Superintendents, want to help your assistant(s) on their career path? Print out these Career Corner posts and responses on an ongoing basis and assemble them in a hard copy binder for your assistants and crew.