Ways to control emotions while laid off

Losing a job through layoff, downsizing, outsourcing, or the closing of a company can lead to downsizing one’s financial worth and cripple one’s sense of emotional worth.

Depression, desperation, anger, grief, helplessness, and feeling out of control are all the emotional side effects of a job loss.

There are several ways to fight those emotions and garner self-confidence to begin searching for a new job.

Job Loss Emotions

One of the best defenses of depression, anger, and grief associated with losing a job is to share the emotions. Sharing involves talking or writing those feelings out by:

• Start a blog and write about frustrations. Most blogs are free on the Internet and users can post to a blog from any computer that has Internet access including those at the local libraries.
• Seek out and talk with trusted loved ones or friends.
• Listen to others who have lost their jobs. Find other blogs about job loss and read other’s postings and make comments.

Taking Control of Layoff

As a layoff continues, anxiousness escalates. Feeling out of control during a job loss can lead to helplessness and desperation. To battle these heightened emotions:

• Create a job search plan. Set goals. Follow the plan.
• Search the newspaper and Internet job boards every other day versus every day. This can help soften the frustration when looking for jobs in a hard hit industry.
• Join or start a job club. Check at the local library or employment office to find a list of local job clubs. Also check the Internet for support groups that may have blogs or chat rooms.
• Get involved with community organizations. Volunteering one’s time for good causes can help keep social and working skills sharp, give a sense of purpose, and gives a person somewhere to go. Plus, staying involved can help find organizations and companies that are hiring.
• Take a class or workshop. There are many colleges, libraries, and employment services that are offering free or minimal charge workshops for all kinds of job skills.
• Make a financial plan and stick to it. Find ways to better manage credit card payments; look realistically at how long the mortgage can be maintained, cut back or cut off mall shopping trips.