Job layoffs have become a fact of life in the current volatile economy. The US Department Of Labor reports that year-to-date totals of layoff events (12,542) and related initial unemployment claims (1,274,765) in 2008 were the highest January-August totals since 2003. This is a pattern being repeated in many parts of the world.
Dealing with the layoff and staying focused on finding a job is tough. Here are some practical steps you can take to lessen the fallout from this traumatic life event.
Edit Steps
- 1Acknowledge your emotions. Before all else, be honest about the depth and strength of the emotional fallout and be gentle on yourself. You're likely to experience shock, panic, a sense of identity loss and fear all at once. Suddenly your dreams are being pulled out from under you, along with your financial stability. Acknowledge that it is all right to feel these emotions; indeed, it would be unusual if you did not feel this way.
- Don't be afraid to seek counseling or psychological support if you don't feel as if you're coping. The sooner you are able to work through your emotions, the faster you will mend and find yourself back on your feet again.
- 2Begin to process these emotions and regain control. A cathartic activity is to write down your feelings. Put together a letter to the company detailing how you feel about it and the manager's approach to laying off staff. Once it is all down on paper, burn or shred the letters. Keep doing this till you feel the anger subsiding. Keeping a journal is another way of doing this. The reason for writing it down is so that you get it out of your system in a private environment and don't burn your bridges by letting loose a harangue of anger in the workplace. How you leave truly matters, as people remember and word gets around to potential new employers, so aim to leave with dignity.
- Try to avoid sitting around and talking about it endlessly with mates, family or other colleagues. This can make the situation a lot worse as you either feed off one another and build a great ball of negativity together, or you frighten those around you with your vehemence and anger. Remember that none of you are likely to have the "big picture" of what's going on and a lot of fear can result from hypothesizing rather than focusing on taking care of the "what next".
- 3Be proactive immediately. This is not a time to wallow in self-pity. Update your resume and build a portfolio of accomplishments. It can be helpful to have a professional update of your resume done, to remove the emotion from going back over your own work history and to ensure that it's in the best shape possible. Remind yourself of two things constantly - you have skills and you will find another job. List all the experience and skills you have. Highlight your strengths and accomplishments. Rework your resume to reflect these.
- The difference between someone who wallows and someone who gets moving to find the next best thing is resilience. If you lack resilience, bouncing back will be extremely difficult and you risk giving up. Focus on bolstering your resilience to get you back into the search for a new job.
- In between interviews, consider volunteering. It's another networking resource and resume addition all in one. Employers generally respond quite well to this.
- 4Get really good references and letters of recommendation from the company. Look at it this way; they owe you big time to provide quality statements about your work with them. Select relevant work samples that demonstrate your abilities such as proposals and reports. Develop a portfolio that focuses on the value you can bring to a prospective employer. If you were a tradesperson, take photos of things you did to add to a document outlining your building, baking, sewing etc. skills. If your bosses have a hard time trying to write references owing to large numbers of layoffs, or their own woes, help them out by writing one for yourself and getting their sign off on it on company letterhead. Demand at least a few minutes of their time to sit down and do this together.
- Good references are one of the reason for leaving work in a polite and considerate manner. It's all about guarding your future, no matter what you think about the company or people you used to work with.
- 5Start networking. Be open about your layoff and inform every relevant person that you are currently in the job market. It is not a shameful thing; it is simply a reality of companies failing in good money management or being overly optimistic about their projected earnings. Develop a concise but clear summary of what you're looking for and what skills you have to offer. Have business cards ready to hand out at the right moment. Ask for the business cards of people you network with to follow up.
- 6Stick to a daily action plan. Develop a structure for your day that involves scheduled activities. Set aside time slots for different activities - networking, job search, researching prospective employers, writing cover letters and sending out resumes. If you need to contact banks and other companies concerning changing payment schedules, include this in the plan as well; facing such needs sooner rather than later is essential.
- Get good financial advice from your bank and financial adviser as to tiding you through the layoff period before you get a new job.
- Stay connected with friends in the same boat; meet weekly to exchange ideas and possibilities. Share your tales of woe but don't get bogged down in these; try to keep a good sense of humor about your situations and be grateful for one another's friendship through the hard times.
- Be sure to include important activities such as exercise, healthy eating and some time spent on hobbies or activities that help you relax. It is important to get out of the house so visit the library to do some job research or simply take a walk through the park. All of this will keep you in top work shape and prevents you from wallowing in misery or turning bitter.
- Join-in-the-End-of-the-Profit-Motive.
- 7Be realistic. Sometimes you need to practice inverse promotion and take a job lower than your previous level. If this is what it takes to get your foot back in the door and the mortgage paid, do not be too proud. You will show what you're made of in no time and start climbing the ladder again.
- Another option may be to start your own business. However, be sure to get very solid advice about what is involved and be careful of anyone trying to take advantage of someone in your position. Also be aware that running a small business is extremely demanding, especially in start-up mode, and you may be working 24/7 initially.
- If you have the ability to return to school, consider retraining for a new career or for improving your skills. Don't discount existing degrees or qualifications; always ask how these count towards reducing the amount of additional study you'll need to do.
Edit Video
Edit Tips
- Be prepared for ongoing questions from friends and family, such as "Have you found a job yet? Has anyone called to set up an interview?" While they mean well, as time passes you may get tired of talking about your job search. If so, it's perfectly fine to say "When I get a job, you'll be the first to know."
- Make sure your interview clothing is clean and pressed, ready to wear. Check for missing buttons and broken zippers. Polish the shoes that go with it, and make sure you have the correct socks/hosiery. You don't want to be scrambling to put together an outfit the night before your interview. If you've been out of work for a long while, try everything on to make sure it still fits.
Edit Warnings
- Don't start staying up late and sleeping in. You'll find it a hard habit to break when you get another job.
- Initially it may seem like the end of the world. However, it isn't and for some people, it can turn out to be the best thing that ever happened to redirect your life's focus. It is very important to push beyond the feelings of hopelessness and fear, and if you need support to do this, never hesitate to seek it. It's easier when it's a shared journey.
Edit Things You'll Need
- Quality up-to-date resume
- Neat, pressed interview clothing
- Daily schedule of actions
- Talks with banks, utility companies and others about payment schedules and financial strategies between jobs
Edit Related wikiHows
Edit Sources and Citations
- Source of original article: http://www.best-job-interview.com/layoff-rights.html. Shared with permission.
Articles for You to Write
Here is a list of suggested articles that have not yet been written. You can help by researching and writing one of these articles. To get started writing one of these articles, click on the red link of a title below.
Article Info
Featured Article
Last edited:
April 11, 2012 by Codes for us
Categories:
Featured Articles | Job Loss and Change
Recent edits by: Ali, A day wid friends, You Might Be Giants (see all)
