I think we can all agree that 2020 has knocked us on our collective a$$es. I’m no exception. Despite being a top performer on my team (233% to goal in 2019) after 4+ years of dedicated service, I was shocked to be among the first furloughed from my company.
Now, after officially being laid off via mass conference call (eye roll) in June along with dozens of my mystified colleagues, I started a new job! Ironically, I’m now working for the biggest competitor and player in the category – a much better company than the one that laid me off.
That said, being kicked to the curb via mass conference call from a job I loved did hurt and being new again – when I had no intention of leaving my previous role, still sucks. I’ve gotta just own the suck and keep pushing forward. We all are going through a lot right now and the longer this drags out, the more I’m forced to simply OWN the suck and then focus on the blessings. Things could be better, but they can always be worse too.
So, this week, as I go through week 2 new hire orientation on my new job via Zoom webinar with 179 other brave souls who are tremously starting over, I’m working to do the following so that I can start over as best as possible – sharing the list in case it is helpful to someone else faced with starting over in this difficult time:
- Mourn the loss. Take a moment to write down everything you feel that you’ve lost this year – perhaps it is your job, a carefully planned trip, or even a loved one. Look at that list and own that sorrow. Cry if you feel like it. It is impossible to move forward in a healthy way without acknowledging the things that have sucked and hurt about this year.
- Release the anger. I felt a lot of anger towards my former company. I’d closed a $600k sale the day before I was furloughed and they denied me my commission because I was “on leave” when the comissions were paid out. Neither my team lead nor the leader of our entire group made any effort to speak to me personally before or after my furlough/layoff. I worked with these people for over 4 years and felt tossed away with no thought to my well-being or humanity. That shit hurt. That shit made me MAD. I’m sure things have happened in your life since COVID hit that make you mad too – own it. Scream at it. Curse it out and then let it go so that you can move on. For me, this involves mentally visualizing the people I feel have wronged me and while I stand on a lovely beach, I shove them off from shore with a long stick. I stick my middle finger up and perhaps flash my bare ass while they drift away into nothingness. Conjure a mental vision of release that works for you and perhaps even makes you chuckle and replay it in your head while breathing deeply until you find peace and no longer feel burning anger.
- Count Your Blessings. Make a list of everything that you’re grateful for – your health, your family, your friends, your home, your pet, your job…you get the idea! This list is different for all of us, but you’ll be shocked by how much longer your list of blessings is than the list of setbacks related to COVID-19.
Owning our sadness, releasing our anger, and focusing on the good things happening in our lives are the keys to moving forward during this sucky time. Eventually life will return to “normal” – it always does, and I’m guessing that we’ll look back on these moments somewhat nostalgically thinking “it was the best of times and it was the worst of times” but we made it through and we started over.
Freelennial 