Woke up on Tuesday morning to the front page news of 12,000 Google employees getting sacked. What was ironical was that the head of the mental wellness division at Google was one among them! She posted that now is the time Google employees needed mental wellness more than ever and asked her remaining work team to take good care of them. Google is definitely not the first company to do so and will not be the last one as well. During the recent times we have heard about many corporate giants and startups resorting to layoffs. The volatile market and an anticipated recession has prompted several companies to take preemptive action. Twitter had set unreasonable targets for their employees last month and many were laid off there as well. I’m sure many more MNC’s will be following suit. It’s not a great start to the year after all for many of us. In medical parlance we have certain life changing events which we call ‘vital events’- they can define your future life and have a great bearing upon health. Births, death, marriage, divorce, migration, adoption these are some of the few ‘vital events’ which decide the course of your family life. Unemployment or ‘losing your livelihood’ should certainly become one among them and to prepare well for a layoff should be an action plan to mitigate the issues.
Disappointment is ‘real’ and ‘raw’. When you feel let down by your organisation more than sadness what you will be faced with is anger. How did this happen! Why did my company let me down? What have I done to deserve such injustice? Why am I the scapegoat despite doing all that I could in the last few years? Firstly, to feel this way is natural and valid. But hang on, your company never promised you anything. When you were employed, the company just promised to provide you with compensation for the time you invested with them. There was never a promise of ‘in sickness and in health’ or ‘till death do us apart’. That’s a totally different institution all together.
If you keep your expectations from your organisation lowered your stress levels will also automatically be low. Be very clear what work means to you? Do you view your occupation as the ‘be all’ and ‘end all’? Do you have any identity besides your work? What are you as a person? Is the designation of ‘manager’, ‘team leader’, ‘data operator’ , ‘clerk’, ‘junior doctor’, ‘senior resident’ the definition of who you are?
On that thought I have a few points below about this attitude you have right now! The attitude of viewing ‘work as worship’, believing that the next promotion or salary hike is your god given right. Here are some common misconceptions people feel when it comes to their occupation:
1. You deserve to be ‘irreplaceable’- no one is indispensable, nothing is indispensable for that matter. Do you think you can be in your current place forever just because you performed phenomenally in the last quarter? You will be surprised how soon you can be forgotten once you leave your desk.
2. This is not ‘fair’- the world of business does not work on what is fair and what is right. Also, what seems unfair to you might be totally justifiable in the eyes of your employer. So do not complain about been given the shorter end of the stick.
3. I should have just ‘jumped when I had the opportunity’- yes, you probably should have! But maybe that change would not have worked out for you? Never dwell in the past cos it’s impossible to change it now.
4. The management is ‘out to get me’- very common to feel attacked and cornered in such a scenario. On most cases the management decides very objectively to identify who is not giving back their dimes worth. But if you have gone against your immediate manager and done something which displeases him/her there might be a chance you face this wrath. But hey, what can you do about it now?
So what can you do now? You are faced with this reality of suddenly losing your job? Or you are not getting promoted yet again this year! There is no point complaining about the above 4 points because honestly no one can help you and no one cares to listen (seems like?). So instead what can you do now? And why should you not worry? Worrying about something is only making your health poorer and your mind weaker. Stress and worry can result in many complications be it a sudden heart attack or stroke, raised blood pressure, diabetes mellitus, obesity and migraines. Mentally stress can mess with your sleep, sense of self-awareness, cause accidents and lead to feelings of intense sadness and anxiety.
Now is not the time to ponder on the ‘what ifs’ instead now is the time to act and act we must. Here are 10 steps to be prepared for it which all at work must follow for greater mental peace and success:
10 useful tips to prepare well for a layoff
1. Upskill yourself- even at your current job while things are going great always look towards upskilling yourself. Enroll for a new course, join a distance programme or just volunteer at a new team to learn new things. You never know when a new skill can come handy! For this explore plenty of free learning material available on Youtube and other platforms or get a subscription at any of the available websites like Coursera, Udemy or skillshare and get cracking. Upskilling probably is the most effective way to prepare well for a layoff.
2. Network your way up- the hard truth is that your physical presence at work matters. Though the pandemic allowed many of us the liberty to work from the comforts of our home it’s always good to show up at work. Show up so that your managers take note of your presence. Show up so that they don’t ‘forget’ you! Many opportunities come to those who are just there in the right place at the right time, not because they are more capable or more efficient than you. Just because they showed up when you didn’t!
3. Keep in contact with your old friends and bosses- a lot of new jobs are available out there and many of them are given to known candidates. So keep in touch with your old managers and enquire periodically if anything interesting pops up. It’s very difficult to get called for an interview out of the blue from among the 1000’s of eligible candidates unless you have someone who knows you. Sad but that’s the harsh reality of life.
4. Learn a foreign language- people who know languages like German, Japanese and Chinese are highly sought after in the business world. Being a polyglot myself, I often felt that knowing multiple languages has helped me immensely to connect with my patients. I feel their pain and share in their happiness when they express gratitude. Who knows the next job you are seeking wants someone proficient in a foreign language? Get yourself subscribed to apps like Duolingo or babble and brush up on that Spanish my dear amigos!
5. Get a side hustle- don’t rely solely on your current job to earn your living. If you have a skill that you can monetise, by all means do so. Work on it. The world is changing and so should you. Were you an amateur painter in childhood? Time to take out the canvas and have a blast. Do you bake when you feel low? Why not do it for a side hustle? In the age of Instagram and Facebook it’s very easy to get someone who wants what you have to offer them.
6. Invest for a rainy day- many of the youngsters now are neck deep in debt- car loan, housing loan, EMIs for the next iPhone and what not. If that’s what gives you joy by all means go ahead. But always invest a portion of your earnings for a rainy day. The financial experts call it an emergency fund. In the event of you suddenly losing your job you should have at-least 6 months of your basic living expenses saved somewhere for quick recovery. It’s believed that this savings will help you tide over any immediate crisis like losing your job and will provide you with a cushion till you get your next job and help you to prepare well for a layoff.
7. Handle people with care- no matter how hard the going at work gets, gossiping at the workplace never gets you anywhere. Particularly now when the situation is tricky. Keep your frenemies at bay and do not add fodder for the afternoon luncheon by talking back against the hands that feed you. You will be surprised how fast word spreads around and this unprofessional behaviour could just be the reason you get the ‘boot’ at work.
8. Relax and enjoy the journey- take every hurdle you face at work as a learning opportunity. The final goal/destination will not be rewarding if you did not enjoy the journey along the way. So chin up and look ahead, times will get better. Learn from the past and move on. This professional set back is just another opportunity for you to get better and learn new things. Click here to read about my blog on ways to manage workplace stress.
9. Learn to say ‘no’- it might just be that the credit for your hard work helped your manager to get promoted. The very ‘niche’ programming that you were focused upon has now become redundant technology. So be very careful what you commit yourself to. Look at what gets people promoted. No matter how highly you regard of your work, what matters is what the management views your contribution to be. So lighten your burden, don’t do the ‘silent work’ which is hidden from view and learn to say ‘no’ confidently.
10. Believe in yourself- I don’t want to be cliched but ultimately for your own good view yourself as a success. You are ‘enough’, you matter and you ‘rock’. No one can take what is rightfully yours and life is a great leveller. Hang in there champ your time to shine is just a little delayed.This is a very effective way to prepare well for a layoff.
While stuck in this mind boggling rat race often we tend to forget what matters most. Your sadness and anxiety at work has a negative effect upon your family back home. So relax, leave work at work and concentrate on your family. Remember you are also a ‘doting father’, an awesome ‘mother’, a caring ‘child’, a ‘fantastic home cook’, an ‘afternoon napper’ and a ‘healthy eater’, ‘hearty laugher’, ‘occasional dancer’, ‘clean freak’, a ‘messy eater’ and so much more than your designations. As the wise saying goes ‘the best things happen in life when your not really looking for it’. You will invariably find another job and jump right back into the 9-5 bandwagon and rat race. Or you might find new opportunities knocking at your door- a new business calling, a hobby you like to focus upon or just escape to take a well deserved break and travel. Whatever it might be, don’t hold this minor set back to define your life.