So, there have been like three rounds of job cuts at your place already over the last couple of years. And just when you were beginning to think it might finally be safe enough to move from your rented apartment to buying your own place, they put you under notice of lay off again.
The firm’s $100m profit is well down on budget and measures must be taken. Blah. Blah…
On the one hand it’s good to be told there’s a threat so you’ve got time to do something about it. On the other hand, the fear that you’re going to be one of those tapped on the shoulder in a month’s time can scare you witless.
Here’s how to get a grip.
Get The Facts
Detail can be thin on the ground during times of restructuring. Part of that is because leadership is often genuinely uncertain about exactly how things will pan out. But while good leaders will be confident about sharing what they do and don’t know, others will add to the air of suspicion and uncertainty by hiding in a cupboard for the next four weeks, or avoiding eye contact with you at all costs.
And scary monsters breed in silence.
You absolutely must put yourself in the driving seat here and make sure you know as many of the facts as you can. How many jobs are going? How many from your team? What processes are going to be used to select in or out? Will you have to apply or interview for your job? What’s that going to look like? What are the timescales? Is there any practical or emotional support being offered to you during this time? How would you be able to access it?
Focus On Your Deliverables
Once you’ve got the facts, focus on them. It’s really tempting to allow your productivity to slip, and take sneaky breaks down to Starbucks to bitch with colleagues about what may or may not happen. But while keeping other people onside with you is good, indulging in speculation can just make you feel more crappy.
Avoid this by making sure you keep a focus on what it is you’re supposed to be delivering each week and indeed each day. I’m sure you already have a To Do list, but you need to hold yourself accountable more so than ever for achieving it. Being able to tick things off and see things completed, gives you a sense of achievement and keep your personal confidence in a good place. Essential for keeping you bouyant during tough times.
Find The Certainty In The Uncertainty
Sometimes knowing what it is you should be doing is far from obvious. If you’ve been through round after round of terminations lately, the shifts in your job role can be seismic enough to be making you feel seasick.
Instead of feeling rudderless and waiting for senior management to sort things out, help yourself by figuring the things in the current picture that you can be certain about, running with them, and allowing that to anchor you.
At worst you may be criticized for doing something that’s off piste. At best you’ll be praised for your initiative. Either way, you’re keeping your own energy in the game.
Confront The Worst That Can Happen
What specifically is it that’s scaring you sh*tless?
That you won’t be able to keep paying your rent? That the loan you took out two years ago to bail out your credit card debt is at risk of being unpaid? That you’ll have to give notice on your gym membership and – hey – aren’t you on a twelve month commitment period there anyway?
That you won’t get another job? That your job is becoming a dinosaur and no-one’s hiring your skill set any more?
However gruesome and ugly these fears are, get them down on a bit of paper and start looking at them.
Figure Your Back Up Plan
Take each of your fears and ask, “what would I do if…?” Brainstorm your answers. Talk them through with a friend or hire a coach and come up with positive concrete ways of dealing with the worst case possibilities.
This could include thinking through what conversations you’d have with banks and other lenders about your finances. Or with friends about temporarily moving in while you get back on your feet. Or with ways to work out that don’t include gym fees. You may never have to resort to these things, but just knowing that you’ve got alternatives frees up serious head space.
Your plans should also include making sure that your resume is up to date and that your professional and personal networks are vibrant and in place.
It may even include taking time to blue sky ideas for setting up your own thing completely outside of a corporate arena. Who knows, if the conditions are right, the push – or even the fear of it – could be just the impetus you need to break out of your corporate set up altogether.
Living with the threat of lay off hanging over you can be a seriously depressing. But you can change the script on that by taking back your personal power and finding your own positive way through.
What talks to you in all of this? What other ideas would you add to help others in this scenario?
Twitter: CoachScotland
says:
Hi Christine
It is a horrible feeling to discover that your job could be made redundant. I have a friend who re-applies for his job every 3 to 4 years because of the changes that happen so frequently in the company.
He now refuses to live with a sword of Damocles over is head and has a back up plan which involved getting on top of his finances, updating his CV on a regular basis and keeping up a network of people in his area of expertise.
He has also changed his thinking and appreciates that the threat of redundancy is not a reflection on him – it is a reflection on the company!
.-= Marion Anderson´s last blog ..Financial Freedom – Confidence brings more Money =-.
What a horrible position to be in, indeed, Marion! Still, I like your friend’s attitude – you can’t be fully resourceful with a sword of Damocles over your head and having a back up plan puts him in the driving seat.
I also like that he sees the continual redundancy threats more as a reflection of his company than himself. It can be SO tempting to see the opposite, but so much more empowering – and indeed fun – to see it his way!
Twitter: JulieWalraven
says:
Brilliant post, Christine! But there is nothing new about that – your posts are always brilliant! You cut to the quick and hit it on the mark.
Everyone who is on the edge should read this and take the steps because I have seen unemployment last a very long time here. Most of the time, it has more to do with the unwillingness to invest in help. But even with help, it can be a long struggle.
Last week, I heard that one of my clients who came to me in the middle of his unemployment is now back to work as a Purchasing Manager after 21 months off of work. Another client who took a year off after being let go from a major bank out east and met with me in February, is re-employed as of July 30 and has already been promoted to Assistant Vice President of a regional bank. Other transitions are happening. I just had a client move from a smaller General Manager position to a larger restaurant within a hotel as the General Manager to better use her hospitality management degree. And on it goes, rays of hope in a dark world.
.-= Julie Walraven | Resume Services´s last blog ..Do YOU Look Credible =-.
Julie, these are great results. As you say, rays of hope in a dark world.
I too know people who are taking a long time at the moment to settle into whatever they next do. I think we all need to be clever and duck and dive a bit to outsmart the current scenario. One thing is for sure – the old rules of work are gone and we all need to reorient to what’s true now.
Christine, I’m so glad you direct folks to the known and clear: I find that it’s very easy to make suboptimal choices when operating in ignorance.
.-= Ed Han´s last blog ..Staying Focused- Being the Known Quantity =-.
Hi Ed, it’s good to see you here.
It is indeed easy to make poor choices when you’re working off the basis of what you imagine, rather than what is. Getting the facts can be hard, but there’s a reality there that ultimately brings its own strength.
Thanks for dropping by!
Twitter: jblack2012
says:
Layoff scares are a great reason to start working on a side business at home. You din’t have to be a full-time entrepreneur. Perhaps you just pick up a little freelance work.
Having multiple streams of income, even if they are just a trickle, can be a great back-up plan for those that are trying to stay positive during rocky times on the job.
-Joshua Black
The Underdog Millionaire
.-= Joshua Black | The Underdog Millionaire´s last blog ..101 FREE Ways to Attract More Customers than You Can Shake A Stick At =-.
That’s terrific advice, Joshua, and thanks for sharing it.
I think financial fears are the ones that are most crippling. With a bit of smart moonlighting, getting some products under your belt that make you money independently of your company, not only could you survive a layoff – it could even be the best thing that happened to you!
Times of instability in the workplace are such a drain on the emotions and the productivity of staff.
You’ve given some great advice here Christine. For the best of your tips (so to speak) are to focus on the deliverables; we easily can slip into the bitching and moaning mentality, and working out the worst case scenario; which often isnt as bad as we think.
Reframing the situation and working on delivering what you must is so important when the axe is falling in cubicles around yours.
.-= Ben´s last blog ..5 Top Tips for getting back on the change wagon! =-.
That focus on deliverables and getting to grips with the reality of your fears, as opposed to the free-floating anxiety of them, is absolutely key.
Is tough to go through these things. But approached in the right way they can teach people so much!
Twitter: bigfishtopdogs
says:
Hi Christine. I really like that you’ve mentioned taking time to blue sky ideas for setting up your own thing outside the corporate world. Your article addresses some quite frightening possibilities. Confronting the worst that can happen is great advice. Sometimes your very worst fears turn out to be blessings in disguise. I love your proactive attitude throughout your post. Well said. Excellent advice!
~Theresa
.-= Theresa Bradley-Banta´s last blog ..If you want to start a business… =-.
Thanks, Theresa. I think you sum things up brilliantly here: “sometimes your very worst fears turn out to be blessings in disguise”. Hard to trust that that’s the case when you’re in the middle of it, but holding that flame alive can make tough times just a little more bearable.