Losing job is one of the worst things that can happen to us. It is unpredictable and come as a shock to us. Over the last few months due to pandemic, many around the world faced with this situation and they were in a lot of stress about it. Some even had family to support and they were not earning that much that they could run the household for long without any source of income. Such situation is common throughout the world and other than the pandemic it can be because of economic slowdown or restructuring or even cost saving by companies. A lot of thoughts clog up time mind at the same time and its cumulative pressure can be overwhelming. But slowly we will have to pick ourselves up and move forward. Let’s see what can be done in such a situation:-
Feel
Such a situation means that a significant part of your identity is gone and you can’t do anything about it. So it is normal to have a lot of negative feelings like sadness, grief, insecurity, anxiety. These all have a cycle so let those emotions have its full cycle, only then will you be able to overcome it. Grief passes through 5 stages, denial- anger- bargaining- depression- acceptance. You can create a vision board or write about your emotional state and what you are thinking; this will help you recognize your emotional weaknesses.
Your close ones
Your friends and family are your biggest support and in times like this it is better to lean on them. Don’t be shy of sharing your situation with them. These are the people for whom you matter, not your job. Once you share with them then they will support you, love you and encourage you. These people will take you out the park or for a coffee or for a yoga session when you will resist it. It may seem difficult in the beginning but it is best to talk to them.
Ask for help
This is one difficult thing – to ask for help, as we all feel uncomfortable about it. But we have to make us comfortable with this uncomfortable feeling. If we do not ask for help then it will not be forthcoming. You will have to make a list of people you need to approach for a new job; it can be your colleagues from your last job or the one previous to that. You never know from where help will come to you. Your friends and their links can also be a good place to start. So don’t be shy to ask for help as your options otherwise are very limited. There are people who will help in some way or the other, but you have to ask.
Create a routine
The initial few days will be difficult; you will be in the bed and pondering over things, battling your emotional state. You will feel like not doing anything at all, even your eating habits will be erratic. You will feel comfortable staying in the house and not going out, at the same time you will feel that the house is closing in on you. So it is important to create a daily routine as if you are still doing some work. Get up in the same time as you got up to go to office and follow the same routine as you did in the morning like running, yoga, meditation whatever it might be. Then go out to some coffee shop and sit and work on your resume, applying for jobs, making network etc and then return in the same time as you did earlier. This will help you keep engaged productively throughout the day.
Set small goals
Losing a job is not the end of the line. You need to set small goals like applying for 3 jobs per week, or meeting 3 people per week, doing volunteering once a week. These small goals will give you the list of things to do rather that idling away time and keep you focused and on track.
Enjoy the pause
Though this may sound counterintuitive but this is the time to recalibrate your life. Take it as a challenge thrown to you and test your grit. The lessons you will learn passing through this phase will ultimately do a lot of good to you. The turbulence will surely shake you but it is also creating space for you to grow and find new opportunities.
So keep a positive attitude and deal with it, as there is no escape from it.
great article