Looking for a job in a recession? Here's the advice this career coach gives her clients.

• The job market isn't looking so rosy as companies and DOGE lay off workers.
• However, it's not impossible to find a job with the proper preparation.
• Career coach Marnie Lemonik shares the advice she gives her clients.

Recession fears, DOGE cuts, broad layoffs — It's a tough time to be looking for a job.

But it's definitely not impossible, and there are certain steps you can take to make sure your next job is more resilient to volatile economic conditions, according to career coach Marnie Lemonik.

Big companies like Meta and Blackrock have announced plans to cut down their workforce numbers this year. Unemployment has ticked up slightly from 3.9% a year ago to 4.1% now. And while DOGE layoffs didn't lead to a spike in unemployment claims in February, they could start showing up in next month's data, according to Shruti Mishra, an economist at Bank of America. Uncertainty around DOGE and tariffs could also lead some employers to pause hiring, Mishra added.

The choppy economic environment doesn't paint a rosy picture for those who are looking for a new job. However, it hasn't deterred some people — namely, Gen Z workers. In fact, the prevalence of layoffs might further incentivize some workers to start recruiting.

"The sentiment that I'm hearing from clients is 'I don't really feel a lot of stability,' and so that loyalty to a company for any given amount of time or reason is just less relevant because no one feels like they're getting that loyalty from the employer side," Lemonik said.

Here's the advice Lemonik gives her clients who are looking for jobs right now.

Be prepared

Lemonik's clients are exercising more caution in today's job market than they did in previous years.

Last year, it wasn't uncommon for Lemonik to see burnt-out clients quit their jobs with nothing lined up.

"Even a year ago, I felt like I was working with more people that were like, 'I'm really burned out at my job, and if I don't have another job in 3 months, I think I'm still going to take a break,'" Lemonik said.

Now, she's seeing more hesitation from her clients. "It's less so that people are gripping to the job that they have, but more so that they're not willing to take that risk of leaving without another job," Lemonik added.

One of the most common questions Lemonik's clients ask her when they interview for jobs is how they can determine if the job is safe from layoffs.

The biggest takeaway that Lemonik shared? You can't definitively predict if a job is "stable" or "safe."

"I think we all have to have some stability within ourselves in the way that we build our own career paths and financial safety nets because you can't put your stability or safety in any employer. This is my honest take that I give people," Lemonik told BI.

That's why it can be helpful to build up an emergency fund and evaluate your current budget to see where you can cut back on spending. Upskilling and investing in your career can also be ways to negotiate your salary at your next job and preserve job security in an economic downturn.

Ask smart interview questions

Lemonik tells her clients to take advantage of the opportunity to do their due diligence on a job when hiring managers ask, "Do you have any questions for me?"

"Could this be a department that's cut? Is this a smart type of role to be getting? Are these the first people out when there's no more budget left? These are the things people are trying to figure out," Lemonik said.

Asking the interviewer certain questions at the end of the interview can give you insights into how insulated the role is from economic volatility. Lemonik recommends asking about the direction of the company, as well as situational questions about how the company has dealt with challenges in the past.

She provided the following examples:

• "I saw online that you guys are going through your Series E funding. I'd love to know what the biggest goal is for the coming year on the team, and if there are any obstacles to that goal, how you are currently handling them."
• "I'd love to hear how you've handled a challenging time within the company in the past, and how you've helped your team rise above and maintain its culture as much as possible."

These questions allow you to examine if the role you're interviewing for has long-term growth potential. They also highlight what to expect from company leadership.

"I think anything you can do to explore how the leaders of the company operate when things are not as certain is a good indicator of how the company is going to react to potentially inevitable changes," Lemonik said.