Always take time for yourself after losing your job

---

There’s no secret here. I am looking for work.

I was laid off from my social media/communications position May 13, 2016 after working there for more than 2.5 years. And I get it. Working for a health-based charity in Alberta’s current economic climate, the writing was pretty much on the wall for my termination. 

However, I would be lying if I said I wasn’t bitter about it. It’s a job loss and after I found out about the decision by my employer, I felt like I was punched in the stomach. 

I know my employer’s decision was out of my control and I get that it has no reflection of my skills or on-the-job performance, but I was always of the opinion that I should always work hard to get to a position within my organization where I am too valuable to lose my job — even when it goes through times or challenges. I guess I’m a little old school by that way. 

Since I found out about my dismissal — when my manager wept as she gave me the bad news notifying me that I would lose my job in two weeks — I had troubles sleeping until my final day at work. 

It was tough. I was laying in bed each night trying to figure out what’s next, my financial situation, my future, etc., etc., etc.. However, once I was finished at my position, I never slept so well. I was in bed for most of the morning, every morning.

I also spent some time working on this website in hopes to get a new job, along with looking for new opportunities. I have had a couple of interviews followed by a couple of rejections, followed by me beating myself up for not landing those jobs.

It’s been a roller-coaster ride to say the least, but the biggest thing I have learned through all of this — and this search to land a new job — is to take time for yourself. Put the job search aside for one day, or a week, even — along with the need to give your social media job portfolios endless facelifts.  

Recharge by doing something you enjoy like a hobby, go on a camping trip, visit your out-of-town family. Don’t let your frustrations about losing your job — or being jobless — overwhelm you. 

Taking time away from the search may actually help you refocus on landing a new opportunity to your liking. This blog is one way to help me recharge.

Going forward, I hope to update this blog once a week to share my successes and failures in my job search. I hope I can help others who are in the same boat as I am, or at the very least, have those who are jobless share their successes with me.