Career advice and information for the new millennium         Issue 2

Tips to Survive Downsizing

By Gailann Bruen

DO NOT...

1. blame yourself. It's not your Fault.
   
   
2. repeat the "If only I had" along with the "could of, should of" refrain unless you want to make yourself miserable.
   
   
3. stuff feeling rotten.
   
   
4. ignore what you learned on and loved about this job.

DO...

1. acknowledge there is nothing wrong with you or reason for shame.
   
   
2. talk to yourself like a loving parent. Say what you would love to hear. You did the best you could even if you did not see or act on the coming downsizing.
   
   
3. feel the roller coaster of emotions -- mad, sad, scared and glad -- that can surface all in the same hour. This is a normal reaction to the trauma of loss. So is feeling none of the above.
   
   
4. take the time to grieve a real loss -- of a job, a dream and a lifestyle.
   
   
5. talk repeatedly to someone you trust about the trauma.
   
   
6. make a list of things to avoid AND keep from the job you lost. Focus on the tasks, skills and environments that bring out or undo your personal best.
   
   
7. above all, be gentle with yourself and find small, creative and inexpensive ways to nurture yourself. Yes, yes, HAVE FUN!

Copyright © 2002 Gailann Bruen Associates.