In July of 2001, my husband, a professional in the information technology consulting industry, lost his job. Despite my experience as a career counselor who had counseled hundreds of people about career changes, when the bad news finally arrived, we were both caught unprepared. Unprepared to tell our children, unprepared for the mix of emotions and most dramatically, unprepared for the sudden loss of routine in our lives. The reality was that thought we both knew well how to find jobs, we had never been in this awkward unemployment situation together before. I remember watching my husband sitting in our office as he patted his forehead and muttered to himself, “ Now what am I supposed to do?”
Being laid-off created a whole new set of questions and challenge. We turned to the bookstore for assistance and found lots of books about job search, but not a single book on the day-to-day challenges you face when you get laid-off.
Over time we learned what to do. We discovered terrific resources, identified shortcuts, and learned from others going through the same process. I spoke with my colleagues and clients and collected their best tips. Before we knew it, we had gathered enough interesting material for a book on career transitions –the book we needed but couldn’t find last July
Now we want to share this goldmine of information with you.
For Reference
1. She had experience as a career counselor who had counseled hundreds of people about career changes. But when her husband’s lost job, they both were caught unprepared.
2. They were unprepared to tell our children, unprepared for the mix of emotions and most dramatically, unprepared for the sudden loss of routine in our lives.
3. She saw her husband sitting in our office as he patted his forehead and muttered to himself, “Now what am I supposed to do?”
4. In the bookstore they found lots of books about job search, but not a single book on the day-to-day challenges people face when they get laid-off.
5. They had gathered enough interesting material for a book on career transitions –the book we needed but couldn’t find last July
