Recession-proof strategy 3: Hide

- If you can't run during a recession, maybe you can hide. And hiding is all about setting yourself up somewhere relatively immune from a downturn, and then when the economy picks up again, emerging with even more experience and skills than you had before. You can hide in school or target a career in a recession-proof industry. Recessions don't last forever, and as sure as they will come, they will also go. It might take a year or two or three for things to turn around, but it will happen. Let's look at the school option first. Whether it's a world-class university in another state, the community college around the corner, or an online degree program that you can access from your laptop while wearing your pajamas, there are options everywhere for everyone and at any budget. The beauty of the hide in school option is that while you're hiding, you're also building, building skills that you can use when the economy recovers. Education is always part of your ongoing career development, but it can double as your full-time refuge when times are tough. One pro tip I would share about this: if you're currently in school, the trick is to graduate into a good economy. And if that means delaying graduation by a few years, maybe you should consider it. If you're 22 and you've just graduated from a four-year program but the job market is horrible, you may wanna go to grad school. Of course, this isn't a secret strategy. In fact, the applications for professional and grad school programs usually rise significantly during recessions, and the reason is that when you reenter the job market, instead of having a dusty bachelor's degree and two years of unemployment on your resume, you've got a bachelor's and a master's degree. So if you can swing it, think about locking yourself up in the ivory tower for a couple more years. Then come out fresh as a daisy with a sparkling new degree. Because no matter what your education level is, gaining more education during a recession can help you catapult yourself to higher earnings and a better job when the recession is over. Look at this 2017 table from the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, an organization tasked with compiling stats about U.S. jobs and wages. Jobs that require more education pay more and have lower unemployment rates with only one exception. Professional degrees like MBAs, legal, and medical degrees pay more than doctoral degrees. Otherwise, more education always equals more moolah and a better chance of having a job. And this relationship is generally true at any point in the business cycle. Other than school, the other place to hide during a recession is in a recession-proof industry. A recession-proof industry is one that barely flinches, even when other industries are hurting bad in a downturn. It's a safe haven in an economic maelstrom. That means that it doesn't go down with the rest of the economy. It keeps hiring even in the bad years. And need-based industries tend to be recession-proof, including healthcare, education, and government. But for most corporations, it's very different. If the stock price falls enough on Wednesday, there might be layoffs on Thursday. To protect yourself, think about what education or what recession-proof industry might launch you into a new job and a new income bracket.