They should be here in 15 min or so to take my car and computer.

How do I explain this to Nancy.

Shit.

Dude, so sorry. That blows.

Start contacting head hunters, and don't loose faith.

Zach

Wow. very sorry to hear this.

, that sucks.

Maybe we should have a little mini-LinkedIn forum so people can leverage their contacts here.

Thats terrible.

The best thing you can do is immediately update your resume and contacts and start looking and getting a feel for the job market, as your new job will be job hunting.

I can only imagine how you're feeling, but keep your head up. A new year lies ahead, which is a clean slate to some. Good luck!

Put the computer in the car, pretend you didn't get the memo and go home.

Big suck. Anything we can do?

That really sucks. Keep a positive attitude and network with everyone.

Good luck

Dave

Word. I know how you feel. You are certainly not alone. Look at the bright side:
You have one of the best cars on this board in the best color.

I know this wont make you feel any better but my son got fired Friday via phone and he has the company car, computer and phone.

Merry Christmas to his boss too!

Keep the positive attitude as these things are usually for the best, even though we don't relize it at the moment!

9 months ago the laid off 30 % of us at work, 3 months ago another 30% from what was left. We expect more next year.
The way they did it was brutal. Relatively newly hired kids of upper level managers stayed and 30 year employees were let go.
They got people 1 year before full retirement benefits.
Nancy may not like the news but I am sure she will be understanding.
Its the trend, gota pay for the CEO's bonus.
Hopefully bigger and better things will come from it.
Good luck.

I got laid off in December 2008. I used the same phrase, "Merry Christmas." It really sucks, and I am sorry to hear it.

For what it's worth though, it turned out to be the best thing that could have happened to my career. I was topped out where I was and not really happy. Finding a new job in a bad economy is no fun, but I got by freelancing for three months until I landed where I am now - in a WAY better place than I was before. I hope the same happens for you.

I am sorry to hear that. I hope that you land a better job soon.

I am very sorry to hear this.
Your wife will understand, and you will land in a better place.

It may help to tell us all what you do for work.
Might be someone here that can offer you a lead to a new opportunity.

Rich

I was "Separated" on my 50th birthday. They went through an organization efficiency process. This after 30 years and 12 relocations!

First it's not the end of the world.
Second - Be bigger than them! When I left we were advised if you take anything they will just withold from your final check or separation pay. Also, as I landed in a similar position it was nice having contacts in the industry.

Third if you have options or pension, vacation pay etc. they are taking from you-consider asking the advice of a lawyer.
Understand that you have certain time periods under state and federal laws to file if you need to. If you have a big lump sum coming you may want to consider consulting with a tax professional.

Finally- Stay calm!

Looking back, it was the best thing that ever happened to me. My health got significantly better, I spend more time with family, I have had time to work out in my mind my personal shortcomings.

You probably don't want to hear this right now, but look at it as an opportunity because that's exactly what it is.

Btw. tell us what you do for a living, maybe someone here can help out.

When one door closes, another opens. I am extremely sorry this happen especially at Christmas. Hang in there!

Dude, that does suck and blow at the same time. If you can see through the shock, please hear what I have to say, for I am going through it too.

I have been OOW for 5 months, from this I have learned a lot on how to turn this around.

1) Tell your wife ASAP, first and foremost, I don't know what her employment status is, but she needs to know. Remember "For better, or worse - richer, or poorer" like ripping off a bandaid the faster the better. You 2 are in this together, be a team she can and will help you be another set of eyes and ears. You would do this for her if this happened to her.

2) Get on unemployment ASAP, you and your former employer paid into, now use it. Set your ego aside as it is not a hand out, just like a crank pulley it is not used regulary but it's there when you need it. Cash flow will now be more of a focus than before, more on that later.

3) If not done so already, get the resume wired, if there is a severance package, spend a little to have it reviewed and needed tweaked. The more time you get it done right, the better you will look. Like it or not, you are in sales, the product is you and the resume is your brochure you send out or leave.

4) If you have a home office, consider this as your base camp. If you lost your cell, get a cheap IPhone (easier to get updates and to contacts than Blackberry) and a cheap lap/desk top if you don't have one. Get on LinkedIn as soon as you can, it is very easy to set up, and is a socket wrench set of opportunities. Get on "The Ladder" as well. Your commute is now much shorter, consider that as a blessing = less stress to start your day. Looking for work is much more different that it was 5 years ago, learn to ride the new wave. Use your Microsoft Office skills to set up day to day activities (especially Outlook), you are now a self employed entity for the time being, have to think that way until something better comes along.

5) Get involved with your local career services at your church (if you go to one). They will have a garage full of assistance, everything from leads to budgeting services and in some cases healthcare and nutritional services. If they don't there are plenty of those who do. Don't need to swallow your pride, a man is considered stronger when he asks for help that when he tried to go it alone. WE ALL HAVE BEEN THERE!! With unemployment they will have services to consider using, USE THEM, you paid for it.

6) As with any job today, 80% come from networking, say that you are looking for new opportunities/challanges. Think how George Clooney would say it (technically he is 4 -6 months out of the year), be smooth about it, don't have to be on Barbara Walters or Oprah when telling what is going on in your life when someone asks. Granted we are in an economical funk, so everyone is hurting, be open but candid about what is going on.

7) As for cash flow, having both of you on the same page with help, severance, UB benefits will soften things. Go over any and all expenses and see what can be delayed, denied or eliminated. You might be surprise to find some "pork" here and there (examples packaging phone, cable and cell expenses, eliminating home phone line) Mortgage/rent, food, electricity/gas, phone service, and any costs looking for a job - first. Any expenses looking for a job are tax deductable, just document it. When good things happen in the search, celebrate (with in reason) with the spouse, it will keep her morale up as well. Let her be the CFO while you look.

8) Mental, VERY IMPORTANT, it drives everything. You will go through all the stages of emotions (number 2 or 3 of all time stress situations). Take it easy on yourself, do not beat yourself up, a healthy attitude is critical to making the change, it shows up in your body language, voice, diction, everything that a HR person can pick up on. Can not hammer away on job sites 8-10 hours a day and be productive, need to balance the search, having the car to work on is good, so is exercising, meditation/yoga. Be honest with your self and see what I could have done better and incorporate it into your current state of being.

Remember, YOU ARE NOT ALONE IN THIS BATTLE, hit the ground running, be patient with yourself but set expectations and goals as well.

Bigger and better things are coming your way, it just the book for it.

God Speed and Good Luck, remember still standing means still going.

Justin

Sorry to hear this David.
Wipe a big magnet across your hard drive.

LOL....dont do that.....you might go to jail.

Per the "Pearl Harbor Thread" last week, doesn't have OT in it, doesn't it belong in the sandbox? These are the "rules" correct?

Sorry to hear it-LinkedIn is a great resource if you're not using it already. Good luck!

Sorry to hear it bud. So many people going through this. Keep your chin up & it will all work out. Been there & hope to not be again anytime soon. Still in our economic environment it is a real possibility. I'm trying to be prepared should things go that way. Still recovering from my last stint but I'm pretty much there. While it is always a tough thing to be let go. Such is life unless you are your own boss.

Best of luck & get right out there looking for something else

Really this is your input

Back on topic, Sorry to hear, things will work out.

That plain ol sucks, dude. Best wishes. And like Andy said, what do you do? Maybe one of us can help???? Many of us are self employed. Let us know. May God bless.

I put a password on the 'puter and didn't tell them. They called and wanted to know what it was. Told them I didn't remember.

Fridays and near Holidays is when the axe men do their best work. They just love making someones' life miserable.

Get out and hit it ... it's out there waiting for you.

Dave, Sorry about your TEMPORARY situation. I went through this in 08' & again 2 Months ago (at least I knew that one was coming). This last time, it was the Best Thing possible. I landed a real good gig for a lot more $$

The Wife will understand and I'm sure in the Long Run you will be fine.

T.C.

Sorry to hear this. Use your network. Best of luck and try to have a merry Christmas anyway.

He just lost his job in this crappy economy and your bringing up stuff from last week? Really?


Sorry to hear this Dave. It will work out eventually but in the mean time get your networking skills out, dusted off and get to it! Keep the faith!

Just following "SirAndy's" rules:

Per his post last week:
"- It isn't 914 or even car related and as such should have been, at a minimum, titled OT. But it wasn't.

Simple as that. Off topic stuff should go in the off topic forum (Sandbox) or at a minimum be clearly labeled as such.

Has nothing to do with the personal topic of the thread (losing his job is terrible to say the least), just the clearly stated rules that seem to bend when the admins want.

Check out "LocalJobs" by zip code-can be found in the WSJ with a daily update on jobs in your area.

If no profile built, create a profile and invite friends in LinkedIn and start making connections and invite those you may have something in common with for an informational and make connections. Good luck again on the job search!

OttoX914,

You're getting a lot of good advice. Since I've been there too many times, can only advise to keep the faith, it WILL GET BETTER!

Other thoughts:
-- Given the holiday season, do not expect ANY responses on positions until the new year.
--In spite of all the "management education" the FLAKIEST process in every company is the HIRING FUNCTION. The hiring authority is always thinking of his most current problem first and getting an new employee last. Sucks, but this is the pattern. Don't be discouraged if things take a long time...curse them!
--80% of job placements occur WITHOUT head hunters, so networking is vital.
--Get your resume out on the internet!! More and more companies are looking at employment sites to help find good candidates WITHOUT paying a headhunter $30k.
--Surf the job sites daily and respond, but expect the company to take weeks in gather all comers before setting up the first phone interviews.
--If you find a recruiter with an opportunity, WORK WITH HIM! He's a SALES GUY who only gets paid when finds a peg to fit the open hole. He wants to get someone hired almost as much as they do. Unfortunately, he will go with the easiest fit, so you need to SELL him why you are his best candidate. He will also be a good resource as to what the job pays, vacation, health care and if he has met the hiring authority, what your new boss is looking for.
--Updating your resume with WHAT YOU HAVE ACHIEVED, CREATED or DID to Reduce Cost & Increase Profits is vital. Know it or not, you are a SALESMAN selling YOURSELF!
--Practice how you will answer questions that you will be asked in the interview! Giving positive answer wins big points.

Best of luck,
Terry

I was laid off the day I got back from my honeymoon.

It sucks - nuttin "merry" about it. I know the feeling - like you just got punched in the stomach & your pants dropped to the floor in front of everybody, but that will pass.

Your wife will understand - it's not you, but the economy which continues to suck!

As others have said above, it will eventually turn out for the better. Getting laid off in 1983 led me to start my own company & never looked back, while others in that mass lay-off found better positions. Either way, it will work out for you.

Also I'll chime in that Linked-in seems to be pretty good for networking oneline - & a helluva sight better than spaced-book/tweeterly!

Howvere, don't overlook that old school face-to-face or at least voice-to-voice networking with others in your field & those who have contacts in it.

Consulting or freelancing on your own not only fills the finanacial gap some, but gives you a legit "self-employment" status in the interim while you search for another gig, but make some biz cards etc. to be/look official (assuming you don't want to be your own boss full time now).

Good Luck!

I've been checking in here every hour or so since this morning (busy day at work, no pun intended to the OP) just to see how long it would take for someone to start bitching about the evil admins.

4 hours and 28 minutes. Not bad.


Now, i already added OT to the thread title. And yes, i'll be moving this to the sandbox.

And just so you can bitch a bit more, that probably won't happen until tonight.

Keep me away from guns and sharp objects, close to al-cahol.

No bright ideas out there- its NOT FOR SALE.

Hit it? Gumby got some to share?

You win. That sucks more.

I have bounced back pretty quickly, Nan is a bundle tonight. She'll have to work thru being sad, angry, PISSED, scared, unhappy, in denial, and eventually will get focused again.

SirAndy, thanks for watching my back on the "OT" bit. Last thing I need is to be excommunicated from my favorite site today...

The rest of the story-

-Graduated college, UMD (Go Bulldogs!) 1985, BA degree in Communications with minors in Business Admin and Psychology.

-From about 1987 to 1989 I worked at a credit union, moving up from being a CSR to a Loan officer.

-From 1989 to 2003 worked for GAB Robins, at the time, the largest independent adjusting firm for property claims. In 2003, with me billing well over 200% of my salary, I was "bean counted". The company had been bought and sold several times, and was in decline. To "save" money the Rice Lake office was closed, the thought process was that Duluth, MN and Eau Claire, WI would cover the territory with out the expense of an office, clerical, or me. It was a good plan for GAB for about a year, during such time the business dried up in the area, going to other independents, as apparently the companies were more loyal to me and the service I provided than the name on the invoice they received. Was "let go" on July 3 with no prior notice. Mgr showed up and wanted the keys to the front door and all my open files. Nice. With family and friends coming over for the 4th of July weekend.

-September or so of 2003 was hired by Foremost Insurance Company, and for the next 8 yrs I was working claims on mobile homes in NW WI, and all across the country on storm duty. I transferred to my current former employer on 1-1-11 to work property claims. Of the files reviewed this year, exactly 1/2 of them scored 100%, one at 90%, and the rest from 95 to 98. I was let go for "performance" reasons that I have not yet figured out.

If any of you have done the "Strengths Finder 2.0" program, (and if you haven't, go to a book store and buy the book, do the test) my top 5 Strengths are: Empathy, Adaptability, (this will be tested in the days to come I expect) Harmony, Developer, Communication. These skills make me great with people in just about any capacity. Empathy is dealing with and being aware of the persons needs, Adaptability in working with the variety of priorities the person may have. Harmony is finding the common ground to progress from, Developer is almost more of an educator, in seeing the improvements in people however small and building on these. Communication is reaching out and making that "connection" that we need for mutual understanding.

With aging parents on both sides of the family living near by, Nancy's painting business, and a nice home about 1/2 paid for in a down market, we'd like to stay where we are at if possible. As much as I would prefer to stay home more often than not, something that involved travel to MN or beyond during the week would be fine depending on the opportunity.

Any tips on various electronic job hunting sites I should be checking out, or avoiding, please post them up.

Thanks for your thoughts and support. I suspect I'll be re-reading this thread for its hope and direction often.

Andy- how about a "for hire" forum to post up if you were booted, or if you are looking for some specific work, either as your main job, a side job, or just looking for a referral for some work you need done, like painting a car or some such thing. My autocross club site that I hang at has such a forum, and while not wildly posted to, it seems a good thing to have. Several members have been able to network off that thread to find work.

Good luck

We are allaround hoping for the best.

WORST Post EVER.

Reminder to self " if I'm ever in a Hiring position, put PBC at the bottom of the list"

you just made me spit out my water!

I got layed off or furloughed after Sept 11th, the airline industry isn't what is was. I had a job as an architectural products manager a a good sized firm, and my old boss pretty much told me to get lost as I couldn't commit to giving him 3 years.
So I opened my own doors, did well, got back with my airline, and started making 914 parts for us all, when the railing business picked up.

Some good will come of this, you just can't see it yet.

Keep you chin up, and explore your new opportunities.

Maybe he fired somebody today, just for the rush.

Hang in there, dude. I haven't been there, but I have been close. I had signed up for one of Dr. Evils clinics 3 years ago, and a couple of weeks later, I found out that I was going to be offered an extended vacation. I PMed the good Dr. to explain the situation and tell him that I would not be able to attend. He told me in no un-certain terms that I should attend, and I would owe him nothing. That is the kind of guy he is, as well as most folks on this board, PBC not withstanding. As it turned out, my nutty-ass boss couldn't let me go if there was another position within the company that I was qualified for, so I took a $20k haircut and Dr. Evil got paid.

Not long after that, a fantastic opportunity dropped right into my lap, and I am now self-employed and happier than I have ever been.

Good things tend to happen to good people, and I firmly believe that everything happens for a reason. Keep your chin up, and you WILL end up on top!

Well put and

Good luck getting through this minor speed bump. Try to spend some holiday time with family and friends and then gear up for the full court press after everyone gets focused back on work after the new years.

My response was twofold:
-The admins are inconsistent with content filtering.
-My post was empathetic to the gentlemen who lost his job, and I suggested a great resource and how to utilize it.

It is unfortunate that my post was misunderstood by a few.

Again, good luck to the gentleman who lost his job, good things happen at the moment of greatest pessimism.

That company sucked anyway. Way too much big brother. Contact me tomorrow. I'll pm you my phone number. I'm sure you had it in your company phone. Life outside the big company world is good.

Did you get pantsed a lot when you were a kid?

Click to view attachment

If you are handy with a welder, then I would pay you to come down and fix this!

There - now there is 914 content, and this thread can stay in the garage.

Damn! Sorry man.