How to Prepare For a Layoff

Liz, what comes up for me when I read this is that we all get trapped by living comfortably within what we perceive to be a safe place and so do not prepare for "the unexpected." It happens because of the particular culture of our workplace, homelife, personal network, spiritual support system, etc. We rarely challenge ourselves to step outside of our comfort zone on any kind of a regular basis and thus the muscle is not built to handle the load of change when something like layoff occurs. Doing some of what Larry suggests in hindsight is good, and, as a Career and Life Coach, I would say regularly challenge yourself to stretch your comfort zone. For example, assuming sales and marketing isn't your daytime gig, develop a hobby and try to make a few bucks on the side with it, or join a Toastmaster's club to learn public speaking, etc. Build muscles or strengths that can be marketed, but pick things that you enjoy and prefer to spend your time doing.

If we can learn that comfort is the illusion and the challenge of continuous learning is actually where comfort lies in the long run, we are prepared to receive (nay, create) anything we want in our lives. www.IgoeCoach.com

Kathy Igoe of MI 2:31PM May 19, 2009