Underemployed? Try a Career Fair

Most people think career fairs only are for the unemployed and the recent college graduate. In today's economy, this is no longer the case. It actually is a smart idea for people who already have a job to attend career fairs. There are a few reasons why you will find more and more employed people at your local job fair. The main reason is because fairs have such great networking potential. Even if you are not looking to leave your current job in the near future, it never hurts to make contacts in your field that could help you get a better job someday. You might even decide to venture into a new field, and those people you met at the fair could help you make the move successful.

Another reason why many employed people are starting to attend career fairs is because they realize that no one's job really is safe anymore. People did not have to worry about this even five years ago because so few companies and businesses were shutting down. Nowadays, you never know what company is going to announce a massive layoff or even closure. As a smart employee, it always helps to have a backup plan. Attending a career fair is a great way to jumpstart that plan because you will see what types of jobs are out there.

Career fairs are a great place to see what is out there because they are the companies that are hiring and trying to put themselves out there. They are promoting their business by attending the fair. Most companies on the brink of closure or a massive lay off will not attend a job fair because they would get nothing from it. This is great for you because you will see the businesses that have a successful future ahead of them. If you are going to attend a job fair while still employed, you have to remember one important thing. You need to make sure that your company is not at the job fair as well. You actually could get fired if your boss saw you looking for a new job, so make sure the fair does not include your company.

Even if your company is not in danger of layoffs or a closing, it still could help you to attend a career fair. You never know if you can do the same position for more money somewhere else. You might even be able to get a better position at a different company. You need to think of what is best for your future in today's unsteady economic times.

Tony Jacowski is a quality analyst for The MBA Journal. Aveta Solutions - Six Sigma Online (http://www.sixsigmaonline.org) offers online six sigma training and certification classes for lean six sigma, black belts, green belts, and yellow belts.