Lost my job - Now what?

Being in the recruitment world, I constantly see messages from people that have lost their job and are looking for a new role, or for any tips on how to get it.

Because of this, I’ve decided to compile a small list of things to consider if you’ve lost your job. These ideas are a mix derived from various books, articles, as well as observing the employment market lately.

?1. Set the basics

Muhammad Yunus says that all human beings are entrepreneurs. When we lived in the caves, we were all self-employed…finding our food, feeding ourselves. That’s where human history began. As civilization came, we suppressed it. We became “labor” because they stamped us, “you are labor”. We forgot we are entrepreneurs.

Now more than ever, it is crucial to adopt this entrepreneurial mindset, especially when it comes to our own career.

With this in mind and for the rest of this article, imagine you are a startup. 

Your competitive advantage is formed by the interplay of 3 different, ever-changing forces: your assets, your aspirations/values, and the market realities (supply & demand for what you offer the marketplace relative to the competition). 

Since the market reality is that supply is larger than demand at the moment, and your aspirations are personal, we are going to elaborate on the assets.

Assets: 

1. Soft - Soft assets are things you can’t trade directly for money. They are intangible contributors to career success: the knowledge and information in your brain; professional connections and the trust you’ve built up with them; skills you’ve mastered; your reputation and personal brand; your strengths (things that come easy to you).
2. Hard - Hard assets are what you’d typically list on a balance sheet: the cash in your wallet, the stocks you own; physical possessions like your desk and laptop. These matter because when you have an economic cushion, you can more aggressively make moves that entail downside financial risk; for example, you could take 6 months off and pick up a new skill. Or you could shift to a lower-paying but more stimulating job opportunity.

The first action is to identify your average monthly spending (rent, food, etc) for at least the past 5 months. Once you have this number see what income you have at the moment. This is the key to peace of mind.

2. Scenario-based planning

Things are usually not as bad as our mind tricks us into believing, so, think of yourself as a business and use the following matrix to create potential scenarios:

Applying for 10 jobs/day might be doable at first, but then there might not be that many new roles open. So adjust to 5/day if needed, but it’s crucial to stick to this goal every day because this is what you can control and this is a sure way to make progress. My recommendation is to create another excel sheet or trello board, where you keep track of the companies and roles you applied for, and what you’ve discussed with each (responsibilities, salary, start date, etc). Read here how to apply so that you maximize your chances.

Additionally, consider setting milestones. If after 4 months I won't reach the final stage interview, then I will borrow x amount from friends/family. Do make a list in advance of who could you borrow from and how much.

If none of this seems to work even after let’s say 8 months, then maybe you consider moving back with your parents. This will probably not happen, but it’s important to put it on paper so that you gain peace of mind, otherwise worry will creep in no time.

If you’re considering developing a new skill in order to pivot your career, it’s important to develop more transferable skills, those skills and experiences that are broadly useful to potential other jobs. Writing, general management experience, technical/computer skills, or language skills are examples of skills with ‘high option value’ --   that is, they are transferable to a wide range of careers or can enhance your current role.

Has someone in your field pivoted to another career?  I suggest scheduling a coffee chat with someone who used to work in your niche who pivoted to a new career plan. How did he or she make the shift? What skills did they acquire? Why? Was it what they expected? What were the signs that “the time was right”? Can they refer you to other people that can expand your network?

Whether it’s learning a new skill or utilizing the wealth of information within your network, the most meaningful way to differentiate your startup (yourself) from your competition, is to do an outstanding job with information; how you gather, manage, and use information will determine your outcome. Most of the valuable info is not public, but also not secret either. Depends who and how you ask :)

And finally, remember that in order to keep our ancestors alive, Mother Nature evolved a brain that routinely tricked them into making 3 mistakes: overestimating threats, underestimating opportunities, and underestimating resources (for dealing with threats and fulfilling opportunities). You are never given a challenge you can’t overcome. You’ll get through this. You always did. You always will.