The 5 P’s of Being Laid Off

So you find yourself laid off from work, you have been giving it your all since that day you received the news and now discover yourself deeper into your layoff period than you would have liked. It looks like it is time for a reboot in order to get yourself back in the game, kicking ass, and taking names!

1. Prepare — take a minute to prepare yourself for the next phase of your journey. Settle in with the thought that you will have some time on your hands and it is best not to let them be idle, put them to work. Keep on the job hunt but try to do something fulfilling for yourself so that don't lose your mind during these times. Take time to get your affairs in order, get all the incidental aligned so they are off your mind, and prepare your workspace for some hard-core sitting time!
2. Process — like most things you may be working toward, a process comes in handy when trying to get from point A to Point B. Build yourself a way to keep organized and driven, start your work log spreadsheet, and get all your papers in order. How do you want to start your day and how do you want to break it up? Don’t forget when being laid off and trying to find your next career path you will want to take a little time to process what has happened and what you will need to do.
3. Productivity — try to remain as productive as possible, it can be very easy to fall into a slump over a period of time. Staying productive will keep you motivated for your search and figuring out what it is in life you really want to be doing with your time. Apply to a lot of jobs in order to keep your interview practice up, take meetings, have coffee dates with friends, and stay active. All these things will help your mental health during this journey. If you do find yourself in a slump take a minute to recalibrate and start the list over again.
4. Practice — as stated in the previous step, take lots of meetings in order to practice your interviewing skills. If you have been out of the game for some time you will want to get those work conversation skills up to par and practice telling your story over and over again. You don’t need to just practice on jobs that might not be for you, call in your family and friends to help out and give advice
5. Patience — like with all good things, they come to those who wait. You will need some serious patience when it comes to this time in your life. Whether you are just getting started, starting again, or in the thick of it all patience will be your best friend. Nothing happens overnight so settle in, make yourself a cup of tea, and dig into your plan as it is going to be your best friend over the upcoming weeks and hopefully not months.

Being laid off is hard work if you take it seriously, with the job hunting, phone and Zoom interviews, presentations you have to do, and the endless sound of crickets from those jobs you never hear back from, you will be exhausted at the end of every day. If you are not you should go back and see where you can fit in some more because when done right there is enough work to knock you out even when you are not employed.