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Coping with layoff stress
My company announced in advance that there will be layoffs in a few weeks due to budget cuts. How do you deal with pending layoff stress?!
Re: Coping with layoff stress
Our little Irish rose came to us on March 5, 2010
Don't drink the water.
Disclaimer: I am not an MD. Please don't PM me with pregnancy-related questions. Ask your doctor.
In a similar situation what helped me is getting my resume updated, setting appointments with recruiters, reconnecting with networking contacts/former coworkers. It sounds hokey but taking control of the situation goes a long way to relieving stress.
The other thing I do is try to avoid as much 'toxic' talk as possible- you know the coworkers who just sit around and 'woe is me' "management sux' etc. As much as it could be true, focusing on it isn't good for anyone. While it does help to vent, we try to keep it limited and then move on to do our work.
Ditto this. At my last employer, they were constantly "re-organizing", so we were always in a mode of preparing for layoffs, having layoffs, and recovering from layoffs (communication was not the best)...then as soon as you figured out the new structure, there was talk of the next round. I got tired of always being fearful of planning things becuase I might be laid off. I started sending my resume out, talking to recruiters, talking to friends in the industry. About a year ago, I got a random call from a good company for a position that was a great fit. I took the position and am much happier now. For me, being proactive and taking charge really helped. Luckily I still had a job, so I was in a position to be picky. A few things came along that I didn't accept becuase they were not good fits.
THIS!
You have 2 options: you can continue to work for your employer & fear that they will lay you off and/or wait for it. OR, you can do something about it.
Even if they lay you off & you weren't able to find a new job in time, at least you will be a few paces ahead of the game.
I'm going through this for a second time right now. The first time, they announced them weeks in advance - which sounds like your situation. My coworkers and I spent the following weeks gathered up in each others' offices, crying, freaking out, etc. In the end, I was the only one affected, and even at that I was only moved into a different department (I still left the company a few months after that).
I'm back at the same company now and the layoff rumors are swrilling like crazy, and we know that a lot of them are true. My boss actually just got impacted. This time around, I'm choosing to lock myself up in my office and avoid all the speculation and rumors. It's hard to ignore it all and to not get sucked up into it, but it was harder when I let it get the best of me. I know it seems impossible, but I'd suggest that you segregate yourself from the drama around it as much as possible - if it happens, it'll happen and you'll figure it out. If not, you had no reason to worry yourself to death anyway.
ETA: I wanted to add that it's probably not a bad idea to send out resumes/applications/etc, just to at least get the ball rolling...who knows, you may land something better!
.: Diary of a Recovering Runner :.
This.
In the event that you do lose your job (I just lost mine recently) - remember that it's not necessarily any fault of your own, it was a layoff. And that this is not an indicator of your worth as a person or your performance. Taking control of what you can - your words, your actions - will get you through it.
Just remember that it's not anything you did. Don't doubt your worth.