Talk about crazy coincidence! You know how I was just complaining about how I don’t have enough time to read all the blogs I subscribe to and I am worried that I will miss another Christmas season because I will be totally obsessed by work? Well, as luck would have it I was laid off yesterday! Suddenly I have more time than I know what to do with!
Yes, it’s true. Monday at 9am I was at a meeting where I closed a small 50K deal. At 11am I was packing my brush, lint roller and extra sweater and walking to my car. It was very surreal.
When I got back to the office after my meeting, my old manager was there, crying. CRYING. I knew immediately what it was about. What really surprised me was how calm, cool and collected I stayed. I think in my heart of hearts I was glad. My intention was to give this job 3 years anyway and I am just a couple months shy of that goal. Besides, business hasn’t been good. I couldn’t see past January. I sold so many three year contracts that this next year would have been like starting totally fresh. This was something I was not looking forward to doing.
“Why? What happened?” I asked. He said the company is hemorrhaging and I was just 1 of 15 people being let go.
I am so happy that I didn’t cry. I smiled and took the news in total stride. My old manager wiped his alligator tears away and we gabbed for about an hour. He was relieved, I am sure.
It’s odd but I really felt protected. I thought they would have gotten rid of anyone else but me! Turns out I wasn’t nearly as popular as I thought. You never really know how you are being perceived. You think you are putting out a specific vibe but people filter it differently through their own personal lens of experience and insecurity.
Wanna hear something crazy? The night before I had a dream that my manager called me to tell me I was being let go. That morning as I was getting ready for work, I felt change in the air. So when I saw my old manager in my office, I was prepared and ready.
What to do now? I gotta do some contemplation. I gotta figure out what I want to do with my life. I am tired of working ungodly hours and living a life in which I am either at the office or waiting to go to the office. Leaving in darkness and arriving home in darkness. Getting home and wanting to fall asleep. Not knowing what to do when I am not working – and being unable to stop thinking about work at all times.
I would love to have an Internet business– something that would allow me to work for myself. A business or blog that could almost run itself and that I can easily manage without getting totally lost inside of it. These are just my initial thoughts. Who knows what I will ultimately decide is realistic and doable. Right now I want to investigate these ideas as well as see what else is out there. I know the economy is in shambles but I honestly feel that somewhere out there people are still conducting business and making money. Whether I figure out a way to work for myself or I decide to work for someone else, I know there is something out there for me. Something that I will love doing and something that I will enjoy.
I truly believe this is the right thing to happen to me. I am excited.
Good luck finding a job in this economy. Not impossible, but tough. I will keep my eyes open (if you want to go back into tech sales).
Good luck to you in your
job search. Here’s what I did when I looked for a job two years ago: I moved
1200 miles to a sparsely
populated, very cold state.
In other words, no options
were out of the question.
I left my family and my friends and moved to a place
where I knew no one.
Jobs ARE out there…if you’re willing to go there…
I know exactly how you feel.
But realize that my mom and dad worked 50-60 hour weeks
for years and never complained. Compared to The
Depression they experienced
as youngsters, 60 hour work
weeks looked good.
Sorry to hear about you losing your job, but your attitude is inspirational. Best of luck to you in the coming days!
No job makes you happy all of the time. That’s why they call it “work”. The key is to be making enough money to make the suffering worth it.
I just finished working 5 mins ago. Trust me, I understand… You will work long hours with your own business.
Believe me, I do not mind working long hours. However I am sick and tired of stuffing other people’s pockets. For once I would like to work for myself and keep the money I earn. And if that means long hours– so be it.
But at this moment who knows– my head is still spinning.
P.S.
My dad worked 60 hours a week
AND WAS HIS OWN BOSS.
The money he made went into his own pocket.
If you can avoid being a wage slave, MORE POWER TO YOU!
Sorry to hear that but glad you’re finding the silver lining.