Recently, I was one of thousands of employees who was laid off from their company. This is a common occurrence in many industries now, including technology and mortgage. We've all seen the headlines of Meta, Twitter, Stripe, and companies in the mortgage industry like Sprout and Finance of America laying off thousands or closing their doors for good.
With rising inflation, impending doom of recession, companies cutting costs and not meeting projected revenues; employees across all verticals are feeling the pain and are on the receiving end of this crisis. It's like having the rug pulled from beneath your feet. When your career is your livelihood and necessity to life, it can leave you grieving. This is the time to get creative and improvise.
Take the time to grieve, to be angry, happy, sad, or grateful then polish up those resumes and get back out there.
Network
Don't be ashamed to announce it on LinkedIn. According to CNBC, this can be one of the smartest career moves for you. Now is the time to take care of yourself and do what is best for you. Reach out to your connections. Follow up with leads. See what's out there.
Give yourself time
This is the time to rebrand, refresh, and renew. Update your resume, take some time for a breather. Change your headshot, write a new bio, you will slowly begin to feel anew.
Evaluate your skill set
Determine your strong points. Hard skills vs. soft skills. This is the time to reevaluate your strengths and weaknesses. Take the Myers-Briggs Type Indicator (MTBI) if you have not already done so. Go into your next role feeling confident in what you do, and what you do best.
Get creative
Whether it's starting a blog, picking up a forgotten or new hobby, do something to channel your creative energy in your newfound free time. You never know this creativity could turn into something positive.
Improvise
Maybe that creative hobby or passion turns into a business or side hustle. Now is the time to improvise and when you combine this and creativity, something beautiful can blossom.
Pay it forward
Be a mentor. Write a recommendation. Share a job posting you think your friend or ex-colleague would be a good match for. Paying it forward can in return help you.
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