Losing your job is a shock and a loss that can hit you in much the same way as bereavement with all the feelings of shock, anger and denial as you struggle to come to terms with the impact on you not just financially but emotionally; your self-worth and confidence can take as big a hit as the one you feel in your pocket and for anyone facing unemployment the biggest risk is reaching the point of seeing yourself as unemployable.
You are the same person with the same skills, knowledge and experience that contributed to the performance and productivity of your former employer or business – you haven’t changed but the economic landscape has and how you negotiate it in these challenging times must change too.
Your short-term goal needs to be re-entry to employment as soon as possible before the rust sets in. How quickly you do this will depend greatly on how you view your employment expectations in the current tight labour market and how you align those expectations to the reality of the jobs that are currently available now and the salary levels they command. This will involve you looking at positions and sectors that you would not previously considered and identifying how you can transfer your existing skills to new business contexts. For example, you may have a track record in financial services, marketing or procurement in the private sector, have you considered how your skills could be applied in local government, health care or the community and voluntary sector? You need to adopt an innovative approach to becoming employed and who knows you may find a rewarding career opportunity that will challenge and bring out your talents. You may of course opt for a survival job, by this we mean a job that can give you the space to explore your options and perhaps look at training and volunteering opportunities that can do so much to provide personal challenge and reward.
Whatever you do to find work will require work from you and you may need help and support with the nuts and bolts stuff such as CV’s and application forms and interview practice, especially if you are newly unemployed following a lengthy period in the same job or with the same company those skills can get a bit rusty.
You may also need some one to one personal guidance and mentoring to get you over that initial hump and of course, you may also need to sort out your benefit entitlements and seek advice on dealing with the financial side of reduced income and reduced earning potential. Seeing all these things as challenges and not threats will be a positive first step in moving from unemployment back into work.
It can be useful to apply the ACIP model – think of it like a new brand of tea or coffee or soft drink the first sip isn’t enough and you need to drink more before you decide whether it’s for you or not.
By ACIP we mean:
Alternatives – what are your current options for employment?
Consequences – what are the consequences of each option?
Information – what information do you need to help you decide on your action?
Planning – what is your personal employment action plan and who apart from you is involved in it?
You might have lost your job, been placed on redundancy notice or fear you will be next when the job cuts come, but this does not mean that you have to lose hope.
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