Between Job Survival

I've been learning that more and more people I care about are losing jobs. All are having a tough time finding something new. I wrote a long text to a friend and she found it helpful, so I thought I might share.

When I lost a job here's how I spent my days until I found something new.

TLDR:
🛌 Find a reason to get out of bed.
🔎 Limit job searching to 4 hours or less per day.
📖 Use part of each day for a personal project.
💬 Get comfortable talking about it.
💪 Learn and grow from it.

Details:

1. Find a reason to get out of bed. I joined a running club because they met early and it was something I always wanted to try. It gave me something to talk about and something to be proud of.

2. Limit job searching to 4 hours or less per day. Pick days where job searching was behind a computer and days where it was using my network. Kept me from agonizing over lack of email responses.

3. Use part of each day for a personal project you have never had time for. I taught myself how to strip and resurface cabinets. Made me thankful for the free time.

4. I tried to get over the shame by talking to my therapist and then family and then friends. It made it easier and easier to talk about it. Supportive people made me feel ok about myself. Also, it got easier to discuss so I could get through interviews without stumbling if it came up.

5. I realized how this helped me prepare for leadership roles. Until you know how hard it hurts, you don’t know how gentle to be when it’s your time to terminate someone. IMO-no one should be a manager without having gone through serious set backs.