#44 Does job security really exist?

I don't think so.

One of the main arguments that usually comes up when comparing independent careers with full-time employment is the higher job security of the latter. Indeed, if you have a permanent contract with a large company, you have a guaranteed stream of income. Moreover, if you reside in a country like France, where I live, your level of social protection is substantial.

According to French statistics, only 13% of the active population were self-employed in 2023, which is close to the median in the EU. When I saw these numbers, I became acutely aware that I am advocating for a minority position here. Yes, the gig economy is a new buzzword, but I doubt it will ever be mainstream.

I am also quite conscious that people treat the pandemic as an exception, even though it affected every industry in one way or another. The wake-up call that happened in 2022-2023 impacted mostly the big tech industry, which hasn’t seen any major disruptions since the dot-com bubble and the economic crisis of 2008. Very few of my friends lost their jobs in the past year.

Full-time employment remains the first choice in many countries.

So why did I decide to still write this edition today?

The reason is that, when I started properly thinking about security and comparing the two options, I noticed some nuances that I wanted to highlight.

Security vs stability

First of all, it is important to differentiate between job security within one company and job stability, which is your ability to make a living in the field of your professional expertise. While you might be making choices between more and less risky employment options, chances are you already have a set of skills that would allow you to find a job. Not necessarily a dream job, but a source of income for sure.

But what exactly is stable during full-time employment? 

When we choose a job, we usually base our preferences on a set of factors such as job responsibilities, the manager we will work with, the team we will be part of, and the company itself.

If I draw from my corporate experience, things can go south at every step of this journey:

• Job responsibilities tend to change, and you might end up doing an entirely different job compared to what you signed up for during the interviews.

• The manager you liked so much may decide to pursue their own goals, change teams, or even quit the company several months after you start. You end up with a different person whom you didn’t choose and with whom you need to build a relationship from scratch.

• The higher you go in the corporate hierarchy, the faster you reach a plateau, both in terms of salary and professional growth. Things become very narrow at the top of the pyramid, as they say, and not everyone makes it there.

• Projects get deprioritized, and you can get demoted simply because you were in the wrong place at the wrong time. In the best-case scenario, you continue coasting for some time while looking for a solution. In the worst case, you lose your job.

Essentially, when we agree to be employed, we receive stable financial income in exchange for a significant degree of uncertainty regarding the actual job. Corporate jobs are not as stable as perceived because they remain subject to company priorities.

All it takes is for someone to edit a line in the company's budget for you to lose it all.

I am in my early 40s, which also means I am actively thinking about my retirement and financial planning for it. Additionally, I work in tech, and I am a woman. I haven’t seen many women in their 50s around me in the industry, to be very honest. In fact, more than 50% of women drop out of the industry by mid-career.

While I hope things improve by the time I turn 50, then 60, and probably 70 (my grandma chose to work until her early 70s), I want to have better control over my professional life. I prefer to be realistic and address potential risks now that I can structure my activities differently. Speaking of statistics, in France, the share of self-employed individuals among people over 50 is 16.5%, compared to 12.6% in the 25-49 age group. I do not know which factors impact this number, so I prefer not to speculate.

I do not think I will ever again rely solely on one source of income, and this is exactly what I strongly encourage people around me to do. Evaluate your options, diversify your income, and plan the next 40 years of your life.

You do not want to make these decisions from a position of panic.

The best time to start planning your income portfolio is now.

Your future depends on your ability to create value for your economic security. 

Until next time! 

nat

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📚 To read:

• It’s Time to Rethink Traditional Career Trajectories - an inspiration for everyone, HBR

• Women in tech can get out of the mid-career limbo by being themselves–and using this one superpower to get ahead - an inspiration for women, Fortune

• Reddit’s former CEO: Here’s why I left Big Tech—and used the skills it taught me to save the planet instead - an inspiration for men, Fortune

• Why I’m yet another woman leaving the tech industry - not so much of an inspiration, Fortune