I was laid in 2003. It was devastating because I always work really hard and put in 110%. I felt diminished and bitter that I had been selected to leave even with a payout. But I didn't sit around moping about it for long.... After 2 days I started job hunting in earnest. I quite literarily took the very first thing that came along which was related to my skills. This happened to be a low paying contract position. But it did keep me out of the house and relatively busy during those dark times. The key for me was to quickly be able to see myself contributing to something and making myself useful. What else did I learn from this? Well, hold on to the other things in your life that make life complete. For me it was my family. Several of my colleagues had gotten divorced and lost their families as a result of the hours we were putting in at work and still lost their jobs. What we do is often an important part of who we are, but it shouldn't be ALL we are.

Posted Akin Banuso