6 When is redundancy a good thing?
by Una Hearne.
We talk about and act as if this current recession is a disaster. Of course, in many ways it absolutely is. It has created plenty of financial hardship through redundancy and cuts. However, it has also forced many people to stop and reassess their lives which is always a good thing. It has also created much opportunity for those who can see it.
There has been a huge number of redundancies and for the first time a large number of these people are highly experienced/qualified and never expected to be without a job.
There are many ways in which we deal with unexpected redundancy, for example:
- Retrain. This can lead us off on a new path. Or we can become training junkies, doing courses with no particular goal except to get out of the house regularly.
- Pick up internships and contracts, losing or gaining a little confidence each time, depending on your attitude.
- Panic and jump into the first job you can get, hanging onto it like grim death.
So far no right or wrong, any of these might work out, but they do depend a lot on luck. Another response is to get stuck in fear and depression and spend years in slow decline. Certainly understandable, but not to be desired.
There is another option which is far more likely to get you the results you want. Step back, assess where you are and figure out where you want to be. Create a really strong vision of the working life you want and then make a realistic plan to get you there. Turn obstacles into stepping stones and keep going. This process is at the heart of coaching and can be applied in every area of your life. Redundancy is not the only reason to do this, but it can be a great trigger.
There are plenty of coaching and other resources to help you with this process, you can get lots of ideas and tools on the web and in books which can be a lot less costly than hiring a coach. They may not be as effective or as quick but you can’t use lack of money as an excuse not to start!
Events are neutral, even redundancy. It is your response to events, it is what you do next that makes them a positive or negative influence in your life. The only failure in life is giving up on yourself. Everything else you do is a success.
