I got laid off!

The Coffee Shop
1

As I posted on my FB page, I’ve recently become a victim of the poor economy that has been created by the media. I was laid off on Monday and here is my story.

I knew something was fishy when I checked my bank account on Monday morning and there was a couple of extra thousands of dollars in it than I was expecting. I called my new boss and asked if I should come in today. He said yes. I then asked him if he knew something that he couldn’t tell me yet and he said yes. Knowing this, I put my lunch back in the fridge because I had a feeling that I wouldn’t be needing it today. I continued to get ready for work but I was just taking my time. The “meeting” was at 9am so I went to Starbucks and got a cup of hot chocolate.

I pulled into the parking lot and saw people walking out with white envelopes and boxes. Normally, I walk into work with my lunch and my “briefcase” in my backpack and then a water bottle or coffee mug in my hand. Today, I just went in with my coffee mug. I walked in and I sat there for about 30 seconds before my old boss comes in and says that he needs to talk to me. Then, I do the walk to the empty conference room and see my white envelope on the table. We go through the entire schtick and I’m sitting there almost smiling. Unfortunately, there isn’t any severance package besides a week’s pay and cashout of vacation, but that’s more than I was expecting. He went through the thing about medical plans and I said that I’ve already have plans made for it. Then, the thing about cleaning out my desk. I told him that most of my personal effects have already been removed because I have been planning that this was going to happen. I said I wanted to do a quick walk through to make sure I got everything and he asked if I needed a box. I said no because I have 3 empty boxes underneath my desk just for an occasion like this. I’ve been planning for situations like this. He discussed how the last year has been difficult for me but he still wants to give me a good recommendation. I thanked him for that, went over the last bit of paperwork, and then the walk to my desk. I grabbed a few things from my desk that I could carry out in my hands, but left my emergency pants behind. I shook hands with my coworkers with some knowing what was going on and others that had no clue. My boss walked me out the door and on the walk to my car, I was whistling and smiling.

Yes, it sucks I lost my job, but it doesn’t suck that I lost this job. I’ve figured that with my rent from roommates and unemployment, I can pay my bills each month and that is without tapping into my savings which will cover about another 4 months after that. I’m fine and I’m willing to take a huge salary cut to find another job because I live pretty frugally and know what I can get away with.

Yes, it is weird to be sitting at home wondering where I’m going to get my next paycheck, but I’m actually smiling because this will open some great doors for me.

What should I do with all of this free time that I have now?

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I am glad that you are taking it well. Living within your means when times are good is the key to surviving when times are bad. I am in a similar situation. A short time ago, there was a piece on NPR that said that most find that getting laid off was the best thing that happened to them, because it allows people to reassess their passions and goals and makes a career change based on that reflection. Unfortunately, the job market makes reentering probably a lot more difficult than when that study was conducted, but hopefully you will find something. Good luck!

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**What should I do with all of this free time that I have now? **

Look for a job?

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Sorry to hear this. You seem to take it very well though. Good luck.

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While it feels wierd to say, the tone of your post leads me to want to congratulate you. As you mentioned, it doesn’t sound like you were happy there and while it always sucks to lose one’s job this honestly may be the best thing to happen to you. And, good for you for planning so far in advance and living so frugally that you are in a much stronger situation then others right now.

As for what to do with all your free time, I’d first recommend taking a few days off from anything job related. Give yourself at least through the weekend before you start looking for a new job. And perhaps in that time figure out what job would really make you happy. If you come to the conclusion that it’s something different from what you’ve been doing, start to map a course that will help you get there. Perhaps you need to take a course or two to get you from here to there so now’s the time to start looking into those things.

As someone who works from home most of the week, I would also recommend getting some type of “schedule” in place (I’m assuming you’re like most triathletes and fairly Type A in that regard). Now that schedule doesn’t have to necessarily be job related but getting down some sort of schedule has helped me not turn into a blob infront of the tv everyday (infact, I just don’t turn it on now during the day b/c it’s so easy to get sucked in). You can also look into volunteering as a lot of nonprofits are really looking for volunteers right now. I’m on the Board of a local animal shelter and we could definitely use more dog-walkers to help us walk all the pups we have. It’s a great way to get out, exercise, and interact with people - and animals - who will really appreciate your help. And lastly, give yourself a goal. Whether it’s tri related or another nonjob project you’ve been wanting to work on work towards that goal so that you can feel as though you’re making progress towards something important.

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I’m doing pretty much anything right now to earn extra cash. Hell, I’m not above mowing lawns if it comes down to it. I’m looking at participating in some medical studies and participating in some exercise physiology studies at the local university. Hey, if I’m going to ride my bike anyways, I might as well get paid for it.

While I’m going to enjoy the time off, I wouldn’t mind finding a new job fairly quickly. I have some cash saved up, but I would rather save it than spend it.

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I have some cash saved up, but I would rather save it than spend it.

Why do you hate the exonomy? :slight_smile:

Good luck, Eric. What do you want to do? I have an old colleague from my law firm days in Dallas who is quitting the law to become a RN. I think that’s awesome. Of course, his wife is a lawyer, too and a partner at a good -sized firm, so, he DOES have a sugar mama to fall back on.

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there isn’t any severance package besides a week’s pay and cashout of vacation, but that’s more than I was expecting.

How long had you worked there? Is this normal? Seems a bit harsh.

Sorry to hear about this, but it sounds like you knoew it was coming and seem to be in a good mood about it. It is a cliche but it is true - when one door closes another will open.

I was abuptly let go from a job a few years ago. It came as a bit of a surprise at the time, but was not completely un-expected given what was going on in the business that I was in and some politics within the organization. I hit the ground running and had something lined up with in 2 months that was much better for me personally and financially as well.

Turns out this was amazingly well timed as that job that I had been let go from was indirectly connected to the manufacturing sector, which since that time has only gone further and further downhill. It was a essentially a dead-end.

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Sorry to hear that. I realized the other day I haven’t been without a job for more than two weeks since I was 15…and those two weeks were when I moved away to grad school with no job waiting. If I were in your shoes, I’d be freaking out, but that is just me.

I have had several close friends laid off and all have found something within a month or less, two of the three actually found better jobs. Good luck!

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In the past, there was a pretty good severance package of 60 days pay with basically an extra week of pay per year that you worked. Since I was there for 4 years, I would’ve previously gotten 3 months of salary and that’s not including my vacation cash out. They said no severance package because if they paid severance packages, they would be out of business within the next few months. I wasn’t singled out because the company laid off 35% of its workforce on Monday. They are having to do more and more drastic things to stay in business and I could be pissed about it, but at least I don’t have to deal with it. The main issue that I had with my job was that it was a very, very negative work environment to work in and it weighed me down heavily. The most important thing that I’m looking for now is a place where everyone is happy to go to work. Yes, I am in a good mood about this and I’m not stressing about it as well. I really think that this is what I needed.

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What kind of work do you do?

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Sounds to me like you are young and have no reason to stay put. Travel!

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Are you still young & single without kids or mortgage? Then don’t sweat it. My 24 yr old daughter lost her job recently. Took her a week to find another.

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Here is more info about what I did and what I’m looking for.
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Young (30), single, no kids, but I have a cheap mortgage ($515). I’m not sweating it at all.

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Well, hopefully this will be a blessing in disguise. I went through a similar situation in 1990 when our manufacturing business in Des Plaines, IL (ITW Fastex) let go a huge amount of staff. I actually knew it was going to happen 3 days prior as one of the engineers who was supposed to go on a trip was staying late one night to pack up his desk (they let him go prior to his trip so nobody asked him any questions).

I had scheduled lunch with some friends downtown Chicago, and was simply awaiting the “call” at my desk. After all was said and done, I was walking out and did the big “YES” fist pump with my severance in my hand - when I turned and saw my engineering manager, HR manager, and new company division President walking out behind me. I instantly went to the bank where the check was drawn and cashed it - just in case :slight_smile:

That was also the last engineering job I had. I moved into sales & marketing after that and have been doing it ever since.

As I was laid off back in May of last year, my suggestion would be to get on the schtick in looking for a new job. Normally, having the time off could be nice (I’ve worked for 11 companies since 1986 - 2 I left for better careers, I worked for my best friend for 4 years and things got ugly so I was terminated once - the other 8 either moved out of state, downsized, reorganized, went out of business, were sold, etc.), but right now, there are many applicants out there looking for minimal amount of jobs. Pay is also lower, as business owners know they have the leverage right now (as they should)…so I wouldn’t wait until the last second to get a job. You can always accept an offer, then ask to push your start date back so you can enjoy some of that time off.

You can also move into the “consulting” world if you have experience or skills that can be done outside of the workplace (ex. I broker engineering talent to companies who can’t afford to hire right now, or are looking for specialized skillsets i.e. Nastran finite element analysis analysts, engineering design, bike design, etc.). It really doesn’t take much capital to put up a website, make some business cards, and start calling people/companies you know to see if they would be willing to shop out work. If you are not in this type of environment, then you obviously have less options.

Either way, good luck…hang in there…and keep at it. That’s funny - it sounds like what I tell newbies I’ve worked with when they go race their first race :slight_smile:

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what are ‘emergency pants’?

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Life happens. You may be at work and you bend over and split your pants or you may get them caught on something and rip them. Now, you are walking around work with either your ass or your junk hanging out. It may get you promoted or it may get you sent to HR. Either way, you need a new pair of pants. In that case, you can go home and get new pants. Or you could have a pair of emergency pants at your desk and all that you have to do is go into the bathroom and change your pants. In addition to emergency pants, I also have emergency socks, emergency underwear, and an emergency shirt.

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the poor economy that has been created by the media.

lol

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You may laugh but I truly believe that part of the economic situation that we are in has been exacerbated in some part by the media and their doom and gloom reporting.