Breaking Away From an Unhealthy W-2 Dependency

It seems like lately I have been increasingly running across articles on the Internet where people are encouraging company employees to quit their jobs. This is intriguing to me considering the U.S. is still in the middle of a "soft" economic recovery with jobs still being very difficult to come by for so many Americans. Is this a bunch of hubris or is there something to what all these people are saying?

The latest article I read, entitled Why You Should Quit Your Job Now, advocates that employees rethink their employment perspective by rejecting the notion that your current job is going to last a long time, while at the same time pursuing alternative streams of income. The author calls people who operate like this "entre-employees."

People who are in denial about the real state of the modern workforce have an unhealthy W-2 dependency, i.e. they can't see themselves as anything other than an employee who gets a "guaranteed"  check every 2 weeks. In essence they have "W-2 Dependency." Unfortunately for them, the typical 9 to 5 has been going the way of the dinosaurs for a long time, and I believe the pace is accelerating. 

Did you know that temporary employees make up 20% - 30% of the current workforce? And some experts believe that number could increase to as high as 60% within the next 10 years. Corporations are driven to maximize profits by increasing income and decreasing expenses. Guess what the biggest expense is for most corporations? People. So guess where they are constantly looking to reduce their obligations? Temporary employees are much less expensive than full-time employees (mainly because they don't have to pay for their benefits) and much easier to transition in and out of the company based on project-type work.

(RELATED: RePurpose My Career: Success Skills for the Entrepreneurial Economy)

Position for Your Transition
It's not practical or wise for most people to just walk away from their jobs tomorrow. Instead, I encourage you to proactively prepare for your next career opportunity instead of hoping you won't be a corporate casualty. Here are three key aspects of creating an entrance plan into your next career venture:

1. Identify Your Passion. What are your life goals? What is your dream career or business? What type of work do you want to do that requires no external motivation?
   
2. Evaluate Your Professional Skills. What are you excellent at? What skills do you possess that others would consider you great? What are your transferable skills that you can utilize at any company?
   
3. Create Your Plan. Expect the best, but prepare for the worst. Determine the relationships, revenues, and resources you need to have established prior to your transition. Plan your work and then work you plan. 
   

 In future articles I will offer more spiritual and practical advice on how you can continue to break away from W-2 dependency.

Read the full article: http://finance.yahoo.com/blogs/daily-ticker/why-quit-job-now-151346969.html

What are your thoughts? Please leave your comments below...

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