Finding the Magic when you’ve Been Downsized
Lately I’ve been working with a lot of executives who have either been downsized or fear that they will be. It’s a scary place:
“I’ve been a highly paid senior executive for most of my career. How can I find a new job at the same salary level? What if I can’t find a job before the severance pay runs out? Or, I have no severance package and I have little savings. How will I take care of my family? How can I find a good job in this economy?”
Having been there more than once, I know the fear all too well. It is agonizing. But, I also know that senior executive or junior manager, you can create your next great career opportunity. Even in this economy!
How?
Dr. Susan Lord, a gifted physician and spiritual healer, specializing in complementary and alternative medicine, spoke to my Results 2009! teleclass on Tuesday. (Read about her work on www.MyFoodMyHealth.com)
What advice could a physician give to senior executives and professionals looking to create their next great career opportunity?
Plenty!
In fact, too much to say in this blog so I’ll focus on one aspect of Dr. Lord’s guidance:
The importance of “being present; being in the moment.”
Those words have become so overused that they border on being cliché. Besides, what do they really mean, how we do we get there, and how can this “state” be helpful to an executive who is out of work or thinks he/she will be? Here’s a quick summary of Dr. Lord’s explanation:
If you are out of work or anticipate being downsized there is an emotional/spiritual process that you will work through. If you embrace it as part of your journey, a path that will lead to your next great career opportunity or ideal work situation, you are likely to heal more quickly and, consequently, regain your energy to focus on getting what you want.
Most people:
- Experience depression, grief, sadness, anger, loss of initiative, and even shame, at the beginning of the journey. Most people fight these feelings and berate themselves for not leaping out of bed everyday and joyfully beginning the job search. However, remember that “what you resist, persists.” Meaning? These feelings of anger and sadness, etc. will only grow.
Dr. Lord’s approach:
- Get conscious. Get very conscious. Allow yourself to grieve, to do those things that you need to do to release the emotion. However, become an “observer” of your feelings and actions as you go through the process. Let one part of you watch what you are doing. Starting to watch more TV? Increasing the after dinner drinks? Staying in bed? Not answering the phone? Losing contact with the outside world? Be aware of your actions without passing judgment. I would add that you might even give yourself a deadline…”Okay, I’m going to allow myself to grieve for ____ (you fill in the blank).” Go at it, grieve with gusto!
Most people:
- Run from their feelings and, fearing that they will not succeed in securing a new job or creating their ideal work situation, immediately hit the pavement running. You may send out tons of resumes and may even secure some interviews. Perfectly understandable. It feels better to be in action, right? Yet, nothing happens.
You may send out tons of resumes and may even secure some interviews. Perfectly understandable. It feels better to be in action, right? Yet, nothing happens. Why? There is a difference between taking “action” and “ taking inspired action.” Chances are, you are acting from a place of desperation. That sense of fear colors your every thought, the words that go into your cover letters and resumes, and even your body language that you display during interviews. Employers sense it and often back away.
What’s the alternative?
Dr. Lord’s approach:
- As you observe yourself working through the first stage of losing a job, begin to ask: what can I do to nourish myself? The answer may not be to begin interviewing for jobs. It may be to take some time doing something that you absolutely love, that brings you great joy and peace of mind.
Maybe you love gardening, reading, playing with your child, cooking a special dinner with your mate. Find the thing that feeds your soul. You will begin to heal. You will begin to feel great appreciation for your life, your family, your environment, and, most importantly, for yourself.
Dr. Lord says that as we begin to do those things that nourish our psyches and our souls, we regain a sense of hope. Suddenly, the energy that was “tied up” in feelings of negativity (fear, anger, shame, embarrassment, etc) is unleashed. Now you can use it to see new possibilities that may have existed for you all along but you were unable to see them. Now you can take “inspired action,” and that is where the “magic” is.
And, that’s the real meaning of “being in the moment,” or “being present.” You are no longer preoccupied with thoughts of how to get back at your company for downsizing you or without hope of never regaining employment. All of your energy is right here, right now, and you control how you wish to channel it. Happy channeling!
