What Losing My Job Taught Me and Other Updates

Hellloooo everyone.  How are you? It's been like.... 9 months.  No I did not disappear to have a baby {snort}, but I did take a break to focus on my mental health and find a better balance to my life.  In fact, I took so much of a break that my Facebook Page needed to be "made private" until I could gather myself enough to start posting regularly again. 

So what's been going on with me you ask? Let's see...

1. Started a new job April 2018

2. Found out my contract was ending in "the new year".

3. Started a new job in January of this year (thank the LORD)

4. Oh and I went to Austin, TX twice in the last year 

When I write it out, it does not seem like a whole lot of activity does it? But to me that was a crazy, crazy, crazy whirlwind of a year.  When I left my job April 2018 I was super excited to go onto bigger and better things and try something different.  I was working from home 99.9% of the time, learning the ins and outs of Compliance and growing professionally.  In my head, this new job afforded me all kinds of opportunities that I never would have had at my last job.  However, the rug was quickly pulled out from under my feet and I found myself scrambling to figure out what I would be doing next.  When I found out that my job was not, in fact, a long-term contract it knocked the wind right out of my sails.  

To be blunt, I felt extremely defeated and started questioning if I made the right decision to leave my old company, questioning if I was "good enough" and questioning what in the WORLD would be happening next in my life.  And of COURSE, I was upset because we were on this epic plan to pay off all of our credit card debt in 18 months and all I could focus on was the fact that we weren't going to be able to do that...  weird right? Thankfully, the universe had a plan for me and provided me with a new opportunity in the same department as before just under a different team.  And I honestly have been much happier than I ever imagined I could be while working a job.  Imagine that.

So why am I telling you this? Well because while this whole experience stunk, I actually learned a few things and I thought I might come to share them with you all.

Things I Learned When I Lost My Job

1. Being stressed is 100% okay and 100% normal.  Throughout this whole process I was extremely stressed out.  I knew that my job would be coming to an end and that I would need to find more work.  And we ALL know that you are more employable when you're already employed so I was scrambling to get any interviews I could on the calendar the week before Christmas... which was a total of 1 interview.  I also was applying for 10+ potential jobs every day just to get as many applications as I could out into the world.  But throughout this whole stressful adventure, I was constantly reminded by family and friends that being stressed was okay and to just do what I could and trust that it will work out.  

2. Saying "no thank you" to an interview is not a bad thing.  Because I had gone from driving 45+ miles into the office daily to hardly ever going into an office, I knew that I would not feel comfortable going back to a long commute again.  When searching for new jobs I only applied for positions that were within a comfortable driving distance.  And when a company contacted me for a position that was not within that radius, I politely declined and asked them to reach out in the future if they have any opportunities that do not require long commute.  To some, rejecting an interview due to long commute might be silly, but I knew my limit and would not pursue a job with a long commute unless absolutely necessary.

3. Don't be afraid to ask for more (within reason).  When my first job offer came through I was so excited.  Not only would it be a simple transition, I would not be unemployed at any point.  This meant I would not have a gap in pay or miss out on any benefits.  The only bad thing about the offer... was slightly less than my current salary.  Of course, I was a bit disappointed that it was less, but then I realized that it is completely acceptable for me to ask for them to make up the difference.  Bargaining is part of the process, is it not? What harm could it do? So of course I talked with HR and told them that I would really like for them to match my previous salary (especially since it was not much more to get there).  She informed me that the salary could not be increased, but they could look at possibly doing a signing bonus and low and behold, the signing bonus made up for majority of the difference and I only ended up losing $500 a year which wasn't a big deal when the benefits package was so exceptional.

4. Give yourself grace.  Changing jobs once in a year is hard.  Changing jobs twice in 12 months is even more challenging.  They say it takes at least 6 months to get a really good understanding about your new job.  I had finally felt like I had found my groove and was ready to really dig my hands into my work and start expanding then I found out my contract was ending.  When I started my current position, I found myself constantly frustrated that I was lost or making mistakes.  I knew it was part of the process and that it would take time, but I just wanted to feel good at my job again.  That's when my mother, who is very wise I might add, reminded me to give myself grace.  "It takes time to adjust" she said.  And I knew she was right.  Since then, I've been able to give grace in moments which I previously would not.

So that is the four things I learned from losing my job.  I'm sure that more will come to move over time, but these are what I have so far.  

What's Next?

Over the past few months I have been brainstorming topics I'd like to cover with you all on the blog and over the next month or so I am planning/hoping to start posting at least once a week.  That way I am still engaging with you all, but I am NOT overwhelming myself.  The last thing I want to do is give you crummy content while simultaneously stretching myself too thin.

  

Question of the Day:
What advise would you give to someone that lost their job?

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