How Job Loss Happens
A job loss happens in many different ways:
- You could have been in the proverbial "wrong place at the wrong time," when your employer decided to cut expenses (employees), also known as a layoff or reduction in force (RIF).
- You could have worked for an employer who went out of business and just closed up shop, turning every employee into a job seeker. Another wrong-place/wrong-time situation.
- Employers sometimes relocate all or part of the organization to another geography or location you couldn't reach, or couldn't reach at a reasonable expense. If moving wasn't an option for you, another wrong-place/wrong-time situation.
- You could have been fired from your job - being terminated by your employer is not uncommon and not necessarily the employee's fault (but also not necessarily the employer's fault, either).
- Sometimes people quit their jobs out of anger or frustration or because the work situation has somehow become intolerable.
- You could even have left voluntarily, perhaps taken an early retirement, expecting to relax and enjoy your golden years, but then lost your financial security through the recent stock market dive or other personal financial disaster.
One or more of these separations happen to all or most of us in our careers. Nan Russell, Job Hunt's Job Loss Recovery Expert, was fired from her first professional job, and went on to have a very successful career which included being Vice President of a multi-billion dollar company.
I was laid off twice, and both of those job losses launched me into completely different careers. Fortunately! They led me to this job as Job-Hunt's owner and publisher, a job I love.
Successful Job Loss Recovery Is Definitely Do-able
Regardless of how or why you lost your job, you have probably felt angry and disappointed, frustrated, even humiliated. Given what you've been through, those feelings are not inappropriate. But, getting past those feelings and learning new strategies for coping and excelling will help you to be more successful in your next job search.
That's what this section of Job-Hunt is about. Moving on. Successfully. It's not impossible - millions have done it!
Since Job-Hunt's Job Loss Recovery Expert Nan S. Russell has spent a considerable amount of time "on the other side of the desk" (as the interviewer, hiring manager, and head of HR), you'll find her insights helpful to you.
One Job Is Not Your Career
Stay tuned, and read Nan's articles in this Job Loss Recovery section of Job-Hunt to move on with your career. Remember, a career is a process, not a destination. Job loss won't stop your career.
