The Effects of 2024 Layoffs: The Rise of Bridge Jobs
So far, tech companies have laid off 42,324 employees.
And that’s just within the tech sector.
The wave of layoffs across various industries has driven many employees to seek “bridge jobs.” Traditionally, bridge jobs have served as a transition into retirement for professionals. However, now they are becoming a haven for those who have been laid off.
You Can Leverage Any Job to Grow Your Career
Even if you’re a former software developer and you’re used to working in “fancy” offices, you might find yourself considering roles like a sales clerk or Uber driver out of necessity.
The good news? You can use these “bridge jobs” not just to make ends meet, but also to continue advancing your career goals. Taking a temporary detour is perfectly acceptable—and sometimes, it can even be a strategic move.
And who said “Bridge Jobs” have to be boring?
3 Exciting ‘Bridge Jobs’ That Boost Your Skills and Your Bank Account
- Escape Room Designer: An Escape Room Designer creates interactive, engaging puzzles and storylines for escape rooms, where players solve a series of puzzles using clues, hints, and strategy to “escape” within a set time limit.
- Skills You’ll Develop: Puzzle creation, storytelling, team management.
- Requirements to Get Started In The Role: Creativity, experience with game design or puzzle creation, teamwork skills.
- Medical Scribe: A Medical Scribe works alongside healthcare providers, primarily physicians, to take detailed notes during patient visits.
- Skills You’ll Develop: Medical terminology, fast typing, attention to detail.
- Requirements to Get Started In The Role: Understanding of medical terminology (training or background in healthcare beneficial), strong typing skills.
- Mystery Shopper: A Mystery Shopper is employed to visit stores, restaurants, and various other establishments incognito to evaluate the quality of service, product availability, and overall customer experience.
- Skills You’ll Develop: Attention to detail, evaluative skills, report writing.
- Requirements to Get Started In The Role: Observational skills, ability to act discreetly, strong communication skills.
Strategies for Listing Bridge Jobs on Your Resume
I strongly encourage and teach my career architecting clients how to optimize their job titles and present themselves in the best possible light, especially in a competitive job market.
So how do I teach them to do that?
I teach them the art of “tweaking” their work experience to better suit their immediate needs.
The easiest ways to tweak your “work experience” is to:
- Tweak Your Job Titles: Adjust job titles to more closely align with the industry and roles you are targeting. Ensure the new titles truthfully represent your responsibilities but are framed in the terminology used within their desired field. For example, “Customer Service Specialist” might be more relevant than “Call Center Agent” if you’re aiming for roles that emphasize customer engagement and problem-solving skills.
- Highlight Relevant Skills and Achievements: Focus on the aspects of the bridge job that are most relevant to the targeted role. Use bullet points to describe key responsibilities and achievements, emphasizing transferable skills or technical skills that apply directly to the new job. Example skills might be leadership, project management, and customer service.
- Use Action Verbs and Quantifiable Results: Start job descriptions with strong action verbs that convey leadership and initiative, such as “managed,” “created,” or “increased.” Where possible, include specific, quantifiable outcomes to demonstrate impact, like “improved customer satisfaction ratings by 20% through enhanced service strategies.”
Optimizing Your Job Title: AI-Guided Suggestion
I broke down how you’d rewrite your resume bullet points to reflect the results and impact you’ve made with your bridge job in a past post. In this post, I’ll teach you how to “tweak” your job title!
Here’s an AI Prompt to Get Your Started:
“I’m currently a [enter job title 1] and I’m transitioning into [enter job title 2]. Give me a list of 10 alternative job titles for [enter job title 1] that will make me competitive in the market for [enter job title 2].”
Enter this prompt in Career CoPilot, the AI Career Coach, to get started. 👇
From Theory to Practice: A Job Title Change Example
A couple of weeks ago, I shared an example of someone wanting to transition from being an Uber/Lyft driver to working in Events Marketing. I used Career CoPilot (my AI Career Coach) to get realistic advice on how someone might reframe this experience to land an Events Marketing role.
Recognizing that most might hesitate to list their role as an Uber/Lyft driver, I consulted Career CoPilot once again to get a list of alternative job titles that someone might put on their resume. Here’s what it suggested:
- Independent Transportation Consultant: This title suggests a focus on providing solutions and consulting services, which can include managing and navigating transportation logistics—key skills in event planning and coordination.
- Transportation Solutions Specialist: Focuses on your expertise in providing efficient transportation solutions reflecting skills in logistics and operational efficiency valuable in event planning.
- Freelance Hospitality Coordinator: If you often helped passengers with recommendations or assistance beyond driving, this title emphasizes your role in contributing to a positive customer experience, similar to ensuring guests’ needs are met at events.
- Independent Client Services Manager: Highlights your ability to manage and fulfill client needs independently, showcasing autonomy, problem-solving, and customer relationship management.
Quick Notes: Smart Tweaks, Not White Lies
Once you realize how easy it is to tweak your experience, it becomes EASY to run wild. I’m not an advocate for lying, but I am an advocate for tweaking language to get you where you want to be.
Use the tips below to refine your job title and enhance your interview language, but remember — don’t lie!
4 Things To Do Before You Tweak Your Resume
- Know Your Boundaries: It’s tempting to amp up your job title but keep it real. You want to enhance, not fabricate. Remember, stretching the truth too far could backfire.
- Tweak Wisely: Adjust your job title to better showcase your skills and responsibilities, but stay within the bounds of accuracy. It’s all about putting your best foot forward without stepping over the line.
- Match Industry Norms: Make sure your revised job title resonates with industry standards. This isn’t just about sounding right—it’s about being right.
- Explain Like a Pro: Be ready to eloquently justify how your actual job duties align with the title on your resume. It’s your chance to shine and show you’re not just playing word games.
Need a Career Partner-In-Crime to help you tweak your resume and define your career goals. Hit me up here.