How to Cope With Job Loss

There is little that is more catastophic in life than dealing with job loss.

In the year 2005, more than 100,000 jobs were lost in the manufacturing arena alone. 2006 isn't looking much better.

Ford Motors announced in January that they would be laying off 25,000 workers around the world. Less and less trade jobs are available every year, so for those without college educations, the list of available jobs is shrinking rapidly.

Sure, you can probably still get a job at your local fast food franchise, but that's not much of a career move.

Losing a job is like losing a part of yourself, or at least a part of your identity, especially if you were in the job for very long.

Add to that the stress of losing your income, but still having the bills coming in every month. Rarely does unemployment make up the difference.

Depression, strained personal relationships, and a change in lifestyle are just a few of the resulting stresses you'll have to learn to deal with after a job loss.

So, What Do You Do?

As discussed above, losing your job is stressful, in many different ways. You need to get your head in order before you can focus on finding another job. Take time to work through the grieving process after a job loss. Most people go through the following stages, all of which are perfectly "normal":

1. Denial. This is the "I just can't believe this is happening to me..." stage. It's a necessary step on the way to acceptance. Give yourself time.

2. Anger. It's OK to be angry about a job loss. You're certainly entitled to vent some feelings of frustration and rage about not having any control over this situation. Just be sure you vent in healthy ways, such as talking it out or exercising. Don't turn to alcohol, drugs, or other unhealthy behaviors. They'll only make things worse. Try to acknowledge your anger to yourself and then move on in your coping as quickly as possible. You don't want to get stuck in this stage.

3. Bargaining. You may or may not experience this, but generally this stage takes the form of trying to bargain with a higher power to make this not have happened to you. Or, you might even resort to "begging" your former employer to take you back. Probably not a good idea, not very realistic. Move out of this stage as soon as you can.

4. Depression. It's normal to feel sad and maybe even despondent after a job loss. Depression is a perfectly acceptable stage of the grieving process. But, like anger, the best thing is to acknowledge your feelings about your loss and then try to move on. Some people need to get some professional help to cope. Or maybe an outreach group for downsized employees will be offered by your former employer. That can be real helpful too. The important thing is NOT to isolate yourself. Work on focusing on the positive and looking forward.

5. Acceptance. This is the final, and most welcome, stage of the grieving process after a job loss. When you get here, you have fully accepted the loss of your job and are ready to move on to the next phase of your life. This is a good place to be and where you can start to make the most progress.

The next step is to figure out "what you want to be" now that your first career path has gone by the wayside. Perhaps, there will still be opportunities in the original career path with a different employer. If so, great! Update your resume, write some killer cover letters, and polish your job interview skills.

How to Get Your Dream Job YOu can find lots of great free information on this site about putting the right career strategies in place for a career change, but I'd strongly urge you to consider getting my valuable e-manual, "How to Get Your Dream Job... In 30 Days or Less!", which coaches you through a complete step-by-step system that doesn't allow you to fail. "What would it be worth to you in money, lifestyle and happiness if you had your dream job within 30 days from now?" Get the manual NOW!

However, if—like a lot of downsized people—you realize that your best bet for long term career success is to strike off on a totally new career path, then here are the steps you'll need to follow:

Step 1. Figure out where your interests lie and what else you might be good at.

Career aptitude tests are sometimes helpful in this step. Click the link to read more about them and to find some free or inexpensive resources for such tests. Click here for another career test option I recommend.

Step 2. Put together a career change plan.

Before you can take action, you need to know where you are going. That's what a plan is for... to serve as a sort of roadmap to take you into your career future after a job loss. Visit this page to learn more about how to develop a plan that makes sense and that will guide you.

Step 3. Establish your career change goals.

A plan is great, but it needs to be oriented towards achieving specific and measurable career goals. And no, it's not enough to have a goal of "finding a job." That is way too vague and provides no guidance to your plan in what direction to head. You can read more about career goal setting here.

Step 4. Research the careers you're most interested in.

When you're trying to find the career that's going to yield that dream job you're looking for, it's essential to have the right tools. Do you know where to look for career information? Do you know how to find out about different careers? If not, you'll want to take time to read about some of the tools on this page, so that you can make the most informed career decision possible.

Step 5. Get the training and/or education you need to succeed in a new career.

In all probability, you're going to need some additional training, classroom learning, and/or experience to pursue a totally new career. But don't let that stop you! There are lots of ways to get training these days, both online and offline. Learn more about training on this page of our site.

Step 6. Consider hiring a career coach.

Sometimes, you just need a little help getting—and staying—on track in a career change after a job loss. A career coach can help. There are lots of places to find coaches, both offline in your community, as well as online. But I'd like to offer my own coaching services to you... in the form of my "How to Get Your Dream Job" multimedia package. It comes complete with a step-by-step manual, a supportive coaching e-course, and audiotaped coaching sessions. It's a great value and I highly recommend it to anyone coping with a job loss. You can read about it here:

Don't let your job loss define your life. You CAN — and WILL — recover from job loss. And you will likely emerge stronger and happier on the other side. Now, go get 'em!

Warmly,

"Coach Don"

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