Things I Learned From Previous Layoffs
Jul 24th, 2008 at 10:24 am by Susie
1. Most important - who my real friends are.
2. Load up on the drugstore essentials while you can: Allergy medicine, etc.
3. Make friends with your local dollar store.
4. Forget aesthetics: shop in those odd-lot places where you have to bring your own boxes.
5. Don’t procrastinate! Get that resume updated and out.
6. Make sure you live in a place you can afford even on unemployment.
7. Don’t stay home and brood. It’s bad for the mental health.
8. But don’t waste too much gas, either.
9. Craigslist has lots of free stuff - and some good job listings, too. (Although I can’t help but think if you can only afford a free “help wanted ad,” I may not want to work for you!)
10. Don’t spend all day at the computer. (See No. 7, “mental health.”)
11. Network, network, network! I sent out an email last night to my online contacts and already got back several leads.
12. Get your car repairs done as soon as you have the money, for tomorrow you may be unemployed. (Thank God my car work was done last week!)
13. Did I mention how happy I am that I paid for my vacation in advance? Because now I really need one.
Wise list, Susie. I’m sorry to hear that you’ve been laid off. Mine happened about two months ago, and I’ve been putting off getting another job, mainly because I’ll never, ever get my career back (it’s all been outsourced to India, not just mine but everybody’s), but partly because the jobs that are available won’t cover much more than my gas costs.
I’m lucky, though. We’ve always lived very modestly, so I’ve got a little put away and have no debts. Of course, I have no health insurance either.
So I started walking (I’m up to two miles a day), clipping coupons, stocking up, cooking more from scratch, and doing house care and maintenance that I’ve neglected. I’ve stopped shopping. Now I’m starting to like being home, and I know that can’t last forever either.
I need a plan.
The one thing I’ve learned in the past two and a half years is there really is such a thing as age discrimination. And I have, quite simply, embraced it - nine years of college and four degrees, seven years of legal and academic tech support and five years teaching be damned. All that I have learned and accomplished in the transition from Dumb Fucking Logger* and Single Parent to Master of Science is mine, it can’t be taken away from me. And I don’t have to sell it.
Lately, I been giving it away.
Frankly, I enjoy flagging traffic. I’m outside, generally viewing a grand view of the Cascade Mountains or Colombia River, interacting with (for the most part) good people while earning a not necessarily bad wage. And though living with my son is merely getting by, not getting ahead, I am for the first time in many years strangely at peace with myself.
*No such thing. Dumb people don’t live long enough to become Loggers.
Hi Susie - SO SORRY to hear about your job layoff. Not sure if you remember me, I’m a recruiter - have lots of good online job search & resume tips & techniques to enhance your candidate visibility online. Pls. feel free to email me & I’ll reply w/ the tips. Also - for your next vaca., you’re welcome to come down to FL & stay w/ me, I’ve moved closer to the beaches in St. pete!
Karen, of course I remember you! Thanks for the kind offer, I’ll let you know if I need help. BTW, my brother now lives in Tampa, so I already have a place to stay.
Sorry for your loss. I was laid off last month after fifteen years, probably to be replaced by a freelancer (if the company runs true to form, they’ll make it a flat-rate contract and she’ll get screwed as the project drags on). Indirectly, it was age discrimination (I have forty years’ experience in my industry); I tried out for a similar job in another division, at a one-third pay cut, and didn’t get it because I didn’t “fit their model.” Their “model” is $30,000 a year. They hire young people, who leave as soon as they can find another. Quality? Good enough is good enough.
Sorry to hear this news. I went through my last major economic hard times eight years ago, so I can still squeeze a penny until it screams. I canceled all my magazine & newspaper subscriptions & got the balance refunded, went to slower speed on the computer & down to basic cable, unplugged every thing in my house unless I was using it, stopped using my dishwasher & clothes dryer, stopped going out to dinner or getting takeout anything, and knew what each food item I ate cost down to the penny. (Oatmeal, soup and the crockpot were my friends.) I was prepared for the long haul & I think that like taking an umbrella on a day where rain is forecast keeps the rain away, my preparations helped me get back on my feet fairly quickly.
Another source for free stuff is freecycle.org. (It’s a yahoo group.) Right now I use it to get rid of that perfectly good stuff I don’t need anymore, but in the past I’ve picked up a TV, a laptop docking station, a pair of brand new hiking boots, and a bolt of upholstery fabric from fellow freecyclers!
Good luck on your job search. I’m sure all your networking will pay off.
Susie -
so sorry to hear of the seriously crappy news.
Best wishes for some solid job leads and a quick hire.
joe
Susie,
I have been running my own consulting and services company for 8 1/2 years now, a company I started the first few days after I was RIFed. I have a major customer on a long term contract and have even become an authorized vendor for my former employer. If fact, as part of that contract I have, I actually have a better office at my former employers location than I did as a management employee…I also have been able to have more impact than I did as an employee…who would have thought. I have also been doing a seminar for over 7 years on things that a person can do so that a layoff is not a ‘train wreck’. Your original post hits quite a few of the items I cover for when (not if) it happens. Here’s a few more…
Protect Your Credit - Your credit score is looked at by many potential employers plus you need the availability of credit if you find that you have to relocate. Bad credit scores may even keep you from getting a good apartment if you sell your house.
Clean Your Plate - Make sure that anything associated with your ex-employer is cleaned up. Take back any company items you have (get a receipt) and offer to do a turnover to the person who picked up your work. Why the latter? It let’s you wash your hands of what was left hanging when you ‘disappeared’. The company may not accept the offer, but by offering, you did your part.
Count Yourself Among the Lucky - Say what??? Actually many studies show that the survivors of a RIF have more physical and mental problems that those that were RIFed. Once you have ‘cleared your plate’, you are free to move on without baggage. Your former co-workers have survivor guilt, have to pick-up your work load and are wondering when their turn will occur…all three are major stressors.
It’s Not About You - Remember that being in a RIF is not about you…its about the ‘numbers’ that led to the decision. Bad employees are terminated, only good employees are RIFed. You did not fail the company, your company failed you.
Move On - Hold your head high and move on. Look at the opportunities that are now available to you. Want a different career, investigate what it takes. Want to live somewhere else, look for jobs where you want to be…a new employer may even help you move there. Always remember that you only lost a job, you did not lose your life, your friends or your future.
I’ll say a prayer for you and you should say a prayer of thanksgiving for all that is good in your life. I hope that you find success as I have and will be able to look back in the future and say that getting RIFed was the best thing that happened to you.
- Jamie