A Guide to the First 30 Days after Being Fired or Laid Off

If you have recently been fired or laid off, you’re probably feeling pretty bad right now and chances are you’re panicking a little. Fortunately it is possible for you to piece your life back together one step at a time and make the most of the situation.

Here are a few tips that will help you deal with the first 30 days after being fired or laid off. The first 30 days are likely to be a difficult time as you try to get your head around what has happened. If you take these tips into consideration during your first month out of work, they will set you in good stead.

Find Out What You’re Entitled To

If you’ve just lost your job, you may be wondering where the next pay check is coming from. Before you panic and delve into your savings or take out a loan, find out what benefits you’re entitled to. If you are entitled to a few hundred or thousand dollars  benefit each month, Make sure you apply for it?

Also make sure your paper work is in order. You may want to make absolutely sure that you were fired and your records does not state that you resigned (there is a BIG difference). Some benefits may not pay out if you were the one to walk away from your job.

Paying your bills

If you have just been fired, chances are you will still have some money coming in for the next few weeks. Before your money runs out, you need to make sure you have enough to keep paying the bills. Talk to credit card companies and other people you owe money to, they may be sympathetic and offer you a discount for the next few months.

Talk to service providers, see if you can switch to a cheaper cell phone plan, internet service and TV service. Making cuts right now could save you a lot of money in the long-run.

If your partner is currently in employment, it might be worth asking them to do a little more overtime. An extra few hundred dollars a month could help you make payments on your house or car.

Update your resume

Now is the perfect time for you to update your resume and fill it with information future employers may find useful. Did you take part in any training courses? Did you go beyond what was expected of you? Undertaking this process may make you feel better about your current situation and help you to realize that losing your job does not necessarily mean you’ll be out of work for ever. Remember to spent some time and update your Master Resume also.

Think about your strengths and weaknesses, and use them to your advantage when you start your new job. If you were fired because you didn’t adhere to company rules, make sure you follow the rules in your next job, no matter how unnecessary they may seem.

Keep networking

When disaster strikes, it may be tempting to hide away, but it’s important to keep networking. Stay in touch with former colleagues and friends, tell people you’re looking for work, and then tell more people. The more people who know you’re looking for a new job, the more likely you are to hear of an opening.

Make looking for a job YOUR JOB!!

Upon losing their job, some people tend to get into a new routine of doing very little during the day, while occasionally fitting in the odd job hunt or two. You need to make looking for a job your job, let it occupy your day; start searching for work full time.

The more applications you make, the more likely you are to find work. There are thousands of jobs posted every single day online and in newspapers, make sure you look for them.

Making notes and keep track

Make a note of every job you have applied for, list the job details, when you applied and if you heard anything. This will help you to keep track of what you’ve applied for, where you have applied to work, and the responses you have received. I use Evernote which is available for most major smart phones, to keep track of all my notes and random thoughts, I highly recommend it.

Start to budget

Start to budget like you have never budgeted before: forget your weekly take-out, walk instead of taking the car so you can save money on gas. Cook only what you’re going to eat and make use of leftovers. This may seem dramatic, but if you’re going to be out of cash in a few months you need to start saving right now. You can track and budget your bills in a free service like Mint.

Think about getting your dream job

Now might be the right time for you to stop dreaming about painting for a living, and trying to sell your work. If you’ve always wanted to write, start looking for writing jobs. If you have dreamed of owning a café, perhaps now is the right time to think about doing just that. Getting your dream job may involve risks, but now could be the right time to take those risks.

Take temporary work

If you’re not sure about going for your dream job just yet, try looking for temporary work. There are usually a lot of temporary jobs out there that could help pay the bills until you find something more permanent. Look for any temporary work you can get your hands on, as long as the money’s coming in, even the worst job in the world will have its benefits and it could help to boost your self-esteem.

Think ahead and face reality

If you’re out of work for the next six months, will you need to sell your house? If you’ve living in a house that’s too big, you may want to consider selling up and moving to a smaller property. The extra cash may come in useful while you’re looking for work. What other major discussions will you need to make to survive? Think long and hard…

Thousands of people get fired or laid off every year, and most of those people get back to work within 6 months. Even if you feel devastated at losing your job, it’s not the end of the world and there may even be something bigger and better around the corner. Have confidence in your abilities, don’t be afraid to apply for jobs you don’t think you’ll get (Use it as an opportunity to perfect your interview techniques), and above all, keep searching for another job as you could be back to work sooner than you think.

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