From Fired to Hired eBook

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From Hired to Fired eBook excerpt

CHAPTER 1

 

Step # 1: Understand and deal with your feelings about job loss

 

One of the most devastating things that can happen to you is losing your job. You may have just grabbed your early morning coffee when you were called into your manager’s office or the HR office.

 

Five minutes later, you re-emerged like a stunned mullet… minus your job.

 

In actual fact, in those five minutes, you lost much, much more than your job. You lost a lot of the essence of who you are, including your self-image, your weekly income, perhaps your company car and mobile phone, your credit rating, the way your family and friends regard you – in short, everything that made up your personal identity when you arrived at work that morning.

 

WHAM! It hits you hard! You didn’t expect this and it’s a very confusing and frightening time.

 

Research shows that the longer you’ve been with the organisation, the greater the loss you’ll experience. It may even seem like a death in the family… and it is! It’s the death of your previous ‘working family’.

 

When someone or something dies, we accept that it’s normal to grieve. But, few people who haven’t been similarly affected will understand why you’re so upset about losing your job. You may think that you’re going crazy to feel so terrible, but you are simply experiencing normal feelings caused by a major shock in your life.

 

By understanding the stages of grief, you will gain insight into your own feelings and this will help you accept the situation and move forward.

 

Listed below are the stages of grief that most people go through following job loss:

 

Stage 1 – Denial

In the denial stage, you refuse to believe what has happened. You probably had no idea of your impending retrenchment (it always seems to happen to other people) and your first reaction was probably surprise, followed by utter disbelief.

You may have said: ‘You’re joking’ or ‘That can’t be right’. But, unfortunately, it is right and you finally realise that you’ve lost your job….and you’re over 45. And, you don’t have a clue what to do next.

 

Stage 2 – Anger

This might make you feel angry and you want to place the blame on someone. Or, you may be so upset that you want to actually punch someone. Some people will release their feelings by simply bursting into tears. This is a difficult stage, but these feelings of anger will pass.

 

Stage 3 – Bargaining

You may try to ‘bargain’ with your employer to change the situation – ‘What if I take a salary cut to save costs?’ Unfortunately, it doesn’t change the situation and the cold, hard fact is that your job with this organisation is over and you need to make plans to move on.

 

Stage 4 – Depression

You may not know where to turn and you may also feel guilty about losing your job, especially if your partner has to take on extra responsibility for earning the family’s income.

Physical health problems can result from the stress of job loss, including insomnia, depression, hypertension, fatigue and gastrointestinal illnesses. It’s wise to seek professional help if the depression lasts more than a few weeks.

 

Stage 5 – Acceptance

Research shows that the sooner you accept the loss of your job, the sooner you’ll move on to a new job. This is easier for some than others, so give yourself time to work through your own situation in your own time.

Here are a few words of wisdom regarding ‘change’ that I found at the ‘Quote Garden’. Check out more at http://www.quotegarden.com/change.html

 

Words of Wisdom…..

 

If you don’t like something change it; if you can’t change it, change the way you think about it. 

~Mary Engelbreit

 

We all have big changes in our lives that are more or less a second chance. 

~Harrison Ford

 

If nothing ever changed, there’d be no butterflies. 

~Author Unknown

 

You can avoid having ulcers by adapting to the situation:  If you fall in the mud puddle, check your pockets for fish. 

~Author Unknown

 

End of Excerpt.