Fear of being let go

One of my former colleagues called in desperation because of the rumors in his organization about imminent layoffs. He was concerned about his role being eliminated and was anxious about the future given the current economic situation, and his ability to find another equivalent job. He wanted to talk it through with someone and so I got on a call to assuage him with words of hope; words, I believe, helped to allay fears and get the focus onto things that mattered now. Given the current economic situation, I felt that I share this opinions here with hope it may help someone.

There are four possible reasons why someone could find themselves in the position of being asked to go

• Code of Conduct Violation
• Performance
• Internal Polics (squeezing a person out)
• M&A, PE Buy Out, Divestiture
• Economic Downturn

Code of Conduct Violation

This is violation of employment "contract". There is no valid reason for anyone to step outside the boundaries of what is considered unacceptable by the organizations code of conduct policies. Not just that, one must need to be mindful of the rights codified in Title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964, Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) of 1990 and other laws of the land that prohibits express discrimination. When in doubt, common sense law still reigns supreme: treat others like the way you like to be treated; this is still a sure shot way of not finding oneself in the soup. This is something that is with in one's control.

Performance

Performance, in my opinion, is attitude towards work. There are still no substitutes for sincerity, perseverance, attention to details, growth mind set and other valuable characteristics that are evergreen and adds value. But then there are times, due to changes or other events, a mismatch between skills one brings to the table relative to those that are desired by others arises. Even here, one could choose to push as hard as possible to bridge the gap. For certain, the attitude of grit will be noticed and appreciated. Last but not the least, to be relevant is to learn continuously. Learning cannot stop till the last breath for it is a lifelong endeavor. One who has managed to keep up with learning and brings in the right attitude, seldom have to worry about being let go due to poor performance. This is also within one's control as well.

Internal Politics

Any organization or entities have a degree of politics. Some are healthy, and some are unhealthy. Politics exists because of the tussle to wrestle control, weaken power structure, push people and, in general, a show of ego. This will continue to exist as long as people continue to be driven and ambitious. So, it is important to chart out who's who and invest the time to build a robust network supported by fine understanding of people at the basic level. The "gut" instincts, forged from learning, will help guide through the maze, and serve as guiding light providing clues as to whom to embrace and whom to avoid. But then there will be time when one finds herself (or himself) being forced into a corner because of powerful bully whom no one is courageous enough to stand up to. In those cases, there are two choice (1) fight or (2) walk. Walking away means freedom from a toxic environment, improvement of general well being, reduced conflicts, and diminished stress levels. Fighting will require courage and stamina, and that could be stressful in itself. In the end, whether to fight or leave, is a call that needs to be made by the individual based on the conviction, situation and context. This is something an individual has partial control.

M&A, PE Buy Out, Divestiture (Thank you @Raman Trikkur)

If not economic blues, change some times resutls in M&A, Private Equity Buy Out, Management Buy Out or Divestiture. Any of these can potentially cause a role (or roles) to be eliminated. This is a pure play economic activity and sometimes human capital may not primary consideration, and so could end up hurting anyone who position becomes redundant (synergy benefits in case of M&A). This is something that an individual have no control over, and no reason to fret about. Just have to pull the sock up, and keep running.

Economic Downturn

There is always an event, like the subprime mortgage crisis from credit default swaps hedging gone wrong to sars-cov2-19 spreading to the every nook and corner of the planet, that throws in a monkey wrench into what was just "perfect". All such event invariably comes with some sort of economic implication which without government support means job loss. If one loses employment, there is really no need to beat oneself up, as these are completely out of one’s control. Most importantly, it is important to know that, eventually, the dust will settle down, curves will flatten out, home prices will go up. So, it is important to keep an eye on the horizon rather than get bogged down by a tripping twig. While riding out the storm, it also important to note that the future is *not* secure. Since no one can predict what tomorrow will be (except climate change which for certain is coming if behavior doesn’t change) one must prepare for the rainy day and not get caught flatfooted. I also know it is easier to preach from the pedestal of comfort and safety, when, even in the US, one of the richest nations in the planet, inequality is still present and widespread. The economic uncertainty affects the poor disproportionately who just dont have the luxury of "riding out". To that, I really hope the efforts of the greats - Joseph Stiglitz, Jeffery Sachs, Amartya Sen, Abhijit Banerjee, Ester Duflo and others - bear fruit bringing right policy, laws and regulations that eventually stamp out inequality and poverty once and for all.

In summary, past is something that has gone by. Future is yet to materialize, and present is the reality that are now consciously aware of. It is important to use the time that we now have, not getting bogged down by things over which we have no control of but use it wisely on things that we do have. The happiness stemming from spending time with family and friends, should be prioritized over worrying about the future. Investing the time in building memories and learning matters more than ever. Life always finds a way to go on, and there is no reason to get mired in. Everything will be all right....