Keeping your career on track and out of “bankruptcy”
There’s no one clear explanation for why Puerto Rico is on the verge of bankruptcy. It’s complicated. You might feel like Puerto Rico when it comes to your career, it’s also complicated. The United States and Puerto Rico have a complicated relationship. Because Puerto Rico is considered a U.S. commonwealth, it was able to take advantage of a federal tax break that made doing business on the island very attractive to manufacturers. When that ended in 2006, it was one of the many factors that triggered the island recession that is currently at its peak. Whether you feel like your career is in a recession or booming, we’ll give you four tips to keep your career away from the brink of bankruptcy.
1. Always be learning
If this seems like age old advice, it is. There was a time in the not so distant past when people thought the desktop computer was a passing fad. Don’t be left in the dust by failing to explore new technology or new ways to enhance your daily tasks. Today, Puerto Rico is having to come up with creative ways to pay its bills while keeping hospitals open and its students learning. Don’t wait to learn something until you’re forced to get creative to learn it. Be proactive and thinking about new ways to tackle an old problem. Your boss will likely value you more and thank you for it!
2. Two words: Emergency Fund
If Puerto Rico had saved some of its revenue when its economy was booming, it might have had enough in its piggy bank to make its minimum loan payment this month. Make sure your own piggy bank has three to six month’s salary in it to ride out any crisis. Should the unthinkable happen to you (job loss, health problem, accident) an emergency fund will help soften the blow. It might not totally mitigate the financial circumstances, but you won’t have to immediately go into crisis mode to handle the issue. Unfortunately for Puerto Rico, the lack of an emergency fund is setting up potential country-wide impacts that are substantial. However, unlike Greece, Puerto Rico has the U.S. Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation that will insure customers’ money in the event a bank can’t pay. The silver lining? Puerto Ricans, unlike Greek citizens, will not have to storm the ATM’s to get their money from a broke government that doesn’t have insurance.
3. Know your allies
Do you know who your biggest supporter is in your office? Do you have a United States like individual in your corner? If so, try to determine how to optimize your partnership. Are there areas that you could support each other in to form a majority? Are there ways that you can work together to fix a known issue or find efficiencies? While the relationship between the U.S. and Puerto Rico isn’t perfect, the support for an independent Puerto Rico never seems to make it much past the idea stage. Work with your work allies to get all of your great ideas out of “idea stage” and into action.
4. Understand your status/ position
We know you want to be great at your job. You put in the extra time and answer calls, texts and emails in your free time to stay connected. However, don’t be so great at your job that you’re not replaceable. Being “un-replaceable” can lead to other people getting promotions because you’re “too valuable.” While it’s nice to be appreciated, it can also lead to stress and extra work. You might feel like you can never go on vacation, and teaching someone what you know will be next to impossible. So try to let go a little bit, let parts of your role be “replaceable.” Puerto Rico’s issue is very different. When the tax breaks ended for the manufacturers that provided the jobs and revenue acting as the backbone of the Puerto Rican economy, the manufacturers left. They went looking for other tax breaks. In essence, Puerto Rico was replaced as their product assembly site and didn’t prepare for it.
We will have to wait to see how the bankruptcy situation in Puerto Rico turns out. However, you have four strategies you can use today to keep your career on track and out of bankruptcy.