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When you get the news that you’ve been laid off, it can be devastating and rightly so.

Our work makes up one of the largest components of our lives (i.e. 40-50 hours on average). Our personal life gets about 40 when you count evenings and weekends. And sleep, assuming you get 7-8 hours a night, gets around 50 hours. The rest of the time in your week is spent getting ready for one of the above.

So when one of your major commitments suddenly disappears due to a layoff, there’s a massive crater in your week that goes unfilled. That hurts. Even if you didn’t like your job that much, it gave you some sense of accomplishment. Maybe it was a reason for getting out of bed (even if not a great one). For most of us, our jobs fund the other parts of the week (i.e., sleep and personal activities).

The Emotional Fallout of a Layoff

The emotions following a layoff are many and varied.

• You’re angry at the company for not valuing you and all you’ve done.
• You question whether you were ever even valued to begin with.
• You’re sad and even heartbroken because this is no different than a sudden breakup.
• You mourn because about most of your identity was tied up in your work.
• You feel embarrassed because you wonder if this was a reflection of your performance or if others will think it was.
• You’re terrified about your financial situation and how you’ll meet your obligations (i.e., rent, food, loans, etc.).
• And depending on your unique past, there are a slew of other feelings you might be experiencing in a moment like this when you’re laid off.

I was there twice. Three times if you count the one where the company turned off my email and all my accounts without telling me and never sent me my final paycheck.

The most recent was in 2020 and I felt all of the above. And that was considering I had been seriously thinking about quitting for some time. Doesn’t matter, a layoff still hits you like a bag of bricks that you never saw coming.

Immediate Actions After Being Laid Off

Instinctively, the first thing we think to do after being laid off is damage control (i.e. survival mode). We start to look at job postings, update our resumes, and apply for jobs like it’s going out of style. According to one study, 70% of laid-off people get a job within 3 months. There are many factors that can determine whether you are in the 70% or the 30%, such as age, skillset, experience, and mindset.

The Importance of Mindset

Vicki Salemi, a career expert at Monster, says that your mindset can make all the difference in whether you find a job sooner or later after a layoff. She advises people who’ve been laid off to take a moment after the layoff to grieve and heal so that they can stand a better chance of securing a job more quickly.

Vicki recalls two people she helped during a layoff. One was excited and motivated to get on the job hunt and found a job in 6 weeks. The other was shellshocked and still hurting and took 6 months. While these are just two examples, the point is that your mindset and emotional state will play a significant role in getting back to work sooner rather than later after being laid off.

The evening of the day I got my layoff call, I had a conversation with a dear mentor. The advice she gave me shifted my mindset quicker than anything I could have ever imagined. I distinctly remember trying to go back to being angry and sad, but it was hard because my mindset had shifted so far into the positive that I felt too good to feel angry again after the layoff.

Turning a Layoff into Opportunity

She said, “I want you to use your coaching skills to help the other people who’ve been laid off with you. They are going to need your help, and it will mean a lot more because you are in the same boat.”

Essentially, she said that because I had the ability to help, I had the responsibility to help those impacted by the layoff. So I did. In our final 30 days at the company, I tracked down as many people as I could (~700) and hosted career reinvention mastermind calls for the majority of our final month at the company after the layoff.

How Helping Others Can Help You Heal

That effort quickly got me out of my own head and focused on helping others who were also experiencing a layoff. I was too busy trying to figure out ways to serve that I had no time to think about my problems. By the time I came back to my own problems with a refreshed and reset perspective, I had an idea for a business I wanted to start, which meant I wouldn’t be looking for work. Instead, I invested my severance, unused holiday pay, and other layoff benefits into reinventing my career.

This lesson doesn’t just apply to layoffs; it can apply to any major setback or bad news you receive.

I once heard a priest say the following…

If you look at the world, you’ll be distressed

If you look within, you’ll be depressed

If you look at God, you’ll be at rest.

I think when I shifted my focus to help others, in essence, I was looking to God. By doing that, I quickly went from distressed and depressed to at rest.

The first time I was laid off, I didn’t have the gift of this advice. Instead, I quickly went on a downward spiral of emotions and fears, to the point where I nearly lost all hope. I couldn’t get a job or create any opportunities. Most of my attempts were out of desperation and with dwindling hope. I went delinquent on all of my students loans and some credit cards. It was one of my darkest moments, and it felt like it just wouldn’t end. I thank God for my girlfriend at the time who was there to keep me from completely losing hope after that first layoff.

I had allowed myself to get so deep into my head that I struggled to find a way out. If I had known this advice, I would bet that I could have avoided going so far down the spiral.

This is why I say that this is the VERY FIRST thing you should do if you’ve been laid off.

7-Step Guide To Get Back on Track after a Layoff

1. Acknowledge and Process Emotions: Allow yourself to feel the anger, sadness, fear, and other emotions that come with a layoff. Grieving the loss is important.
2. Shift Your Mindset: Recognize that your mindset impacts your job search. Do something to get out of your own head.
3. Help Others: Focus on helping other people in any capacity needed. Consider friends, family, or strangers who would benefit from your focused attention. This can be a powerful way to shift your perspective and heal.
4. Seek Perspective and Advice: Talk to mentors or trusted advisors who can offer guidance and support. This is a great way to reignite your network, especially if you haven’t activated it in some time.
5. Take Practical Action: Once you feel you’re starting to heal, allocate time to update your resume, look at job postings, and apply for jobs. Remember, this doesn’t require 8 hours a day. The law of diminishing returns applies here.
6. Reinvent and Explore: Use some of this time to explore new career paths or experiment with a business idea. A layoff can be a great opportunity for reinvention.
7. Maintain Hope and Faith: Even during difficult times, maintain hope and faith. Remember that this is a temporary situation, and you have everything inside of you necessary to write and make your next chapter great!

Related Articles in The Journey to Reinvention Blog

• https://rogerosorio.com/thejourneytoreinvention/transforming-adversity-into-opportunity-after-layoff/
• https://rogerosorio.com/thejourneytoreinvention/the-power-of-career-cushioning-protect-yourself-from-layoffs/

Sources Referenced for this Article

• https://www.cnbc.com/2024/02/02/laid-off-heres-how-to-find-new-work-faster.html
• https://allthingstalent.org/heres-how-you-can-find-your-next-perfect-job-after-a-lay-off/2024/03/08/
• https://www.recruiter.com/recruiting/how-to-survive-and-thrive-after-a-layoff/
• https://www.linkedin.com/pulse/insights-hiring-timeline-how-long-does-take-get-hired-scott-swan/