You’re Fired….and what to do next
In 2001 the global staffing firm that I was working for asked me to move to Florida to assist with an overhaul for their most under-performing office. This was my opportunity to continue climbing the ladder inside a company I just knew I would be with for a long time. After a little over a year, the office had almost completely turned over in staff and we had merged with another division office. It was the most stressful situation I had faced and I didn’t realize how poorly I was handling my workload or emotions. I banked on the premise things were about to be more stable, so I was committed to power through. Then, on one bright sunny morning I was asked to step into the new manager’s office and was unceremoniously FIRED.
How, after having moved my life to a new city and following the orders of upper management to be tough on the existing staff so that they either “shaped up or shipped out” was I being FIRED? I felt lost, confused, and betrayed. Being released from your job can feel like the loss of a family member and the grief is just as real. Now, looking back on my 20+ year career it was one of the absolute best things that could have happened. It started me on my entrepreneur journey.
Career transition in any form is hard and can be extremely stressful. Here are 3 strategies that can help you get back on the road to success…
1. Embrace the Change
Give yourself at least 1 week to process, ideally 3 months to fully decompress (this isn’t always fiscally do-able). An immediate reaction for some is to run to the next job as quickly as possible. The uncomfortableness is real, but rushing into something new almost always is the wrong decision.
2. Put a Project Plan in place
Sit down and take a look at your finances. Understand when you must be making money again, then build a plan backwards to the present day. Time, Money, Scope……you can have 2 of the 3. Allow yourself the ability to make strategic decisions, not reactive ones. A plan will help you with what you are working on each week and will help you stay focused on moving forward.
3. Define what “perfect” looks like
Write down the characteristics of what your “perfect” job looks like. Think of things like culture, industry vertical, size of company, and compensation. You can’t find perfect if you don’t know what it looks like. Then compare every opportunity against your grade sheet.
Getting fired doesn’t have to be the end, it can be a great new beginning.
Like Jeffrey Gitomer says “All things being equal, people do business with people they like. All things being unequal, people do business with people they like.” That only happens over time.
Need help, visit www.careerdesigncoaching.com.
