Don’t let retrenchment rob you of your confidence — treat it as a learning experience.
Losing a job can be a traumatic experience. But it can serve as a springboard to new and exciting learning experiences.
For the 50-year-old, it could be a “golden handshake” or a fatal loss of identity. For the 40-year-old, it could be a new lease of life or a shocking realisation that life is over. For the 30-year-old, it could be time to give up on climbing the corporate ladder and become an entrepreneur. For the 20-year-old, it could be time for an extended vacation, or a loss of confidence that crushes one’s future plans.
No matter what your age, if you are retrenched, you will have to deal with some harsh realities of losing a job: The household cash-flow may get very tight, re-entering the job market at the pre-retrenched salary and seniority level may be “impossible” and family security can be shaken.
Despite the setbacks, it is important that you refrain from destroying your personal identity. The most shattering personal damage occurs when you internalise the job loss, shut down the learning process and, in the process, lose your identity.
I’ve seen both sides of the coin. As the deputy general manager of a large foreign financial institution in Japan, I had to retrench a number of senior Japanese managers in the mid-1990s. And recently, I was on the receiving side myself, retrenched from a financial institution in Singapore.
In dealing with the retrenchment process, here are some steps to follow that will allow you to reframe the experience from one of fear and despair to one of growth, learning and “upsizing your life”.
• Take an inventory
The biggest post-retrenchment challenge for you is to acknowledge that you are more than your job, especially if you have spent 10 or more years with one company.
Given that most of your social and professional networks are exclusively in one company, the thought of starting new relationships and a new job can be terrifying.
An exercise that I used with particular success in Japan was to have the retrenched employee list 10 different roles that he currently played in his life.
With some prodding, he wrote: husband, father, grandfather, uncle, friend, tennis player, tennis coordinator, day trader, mahjong player, electrician and handyman.
The exercise helped him to move from despair to optimism about his future.
• Conduct a financial check
It is imperative to get an accurate picture of the family financial situation.
Changing your lifestyle can be a big help, especially if it forces you to achieve better control of your cash flow and your financial balance sheet.
Cash outflows include rent or mortgage, food, transportation, tuition, clothing, dining out, entertainment and investments.
Cash inflows include salary, rental income, dividend income, part-time employment, business ownership and royalties.
Understanding your financial situation and taking some steps, such as selling a car or moving to smaller living premises, are all part of the re-learning experience.
Depending on whether you urgently require a full-time or part-time job, take the appropriate steps to study and learn to manage your household cash flow.
• Nurture your identity
Continue to learn, think and create. Enrol in government-sponsored retraining programs for computer or technical skills development.
Most of the training that I recommend is a combination of technical skills and some essential management or “soft skills” training such as interview skills, public speaking and rapport building workshops.
• Start networking
Join professional organisations that give you the chance to make more contacts.
For some of the finest training in public speaking, check out non-profit organisation Toastmasters International.
Don’t be afraid to take the first step to break out of your comfort zone. It will expand your identity and the possibilities that will create your future.
Losing a job can be a traumatic experience. But it can serve as a springboard to new and exciting learning experiences.
For the 50-year-old, it could be a “golden handshake” or a fatal loss of identity. For the 40-year-old, it could be a new lease of life or a shocking realisation that life is over. For the 30-year-old, it could be time to give up on climbing the corporate ladder and become an entrepreneur. For the 20-year-old, it could be time for an extended vacation, or a loss of confidence that crushes one’s future plans.
No matter what your age, if you are retrenched, you will have to deal with some harsh realities of losing a job: The household cash-flow may get very tight, re-entering the job market at the pre-retrenched salary and seniority level may be “impossible” and family security can be shaken.
Despite the setbacks, it is important that you refrain from destroying your personal identity. The most shattering personal damage occurs when you internalise the job loss, shut down the learning process and, in the process, lose your identity.
I’ve seen both sides of the coin. As the deputy general manager of a large foreign financial institution in Japan, I had to retrench a number of senior Japanese managers in the mid-1990s. And recently, I was on the receiving side myself, retrenched from a financial institution in Singapore.
In dealing with the retrenchment process, here are some steps to follow that will allow you to reframe the experience from one of fear and despair to one of growth, learning and “upsizing your life”.
• Take an inventory
The biggest post-retrenchment challenge for you is to acknowledge that you are more than your job, especially if you have spent 10 or more years with one company.
Given that most of your social and professional networks are exclusively in one company, the thought of starting new relationships and a new job can be terrifying.
An exercise that I used with particular success in Japan was to have the retrenched employee list 10 different roles that he currently played in his life.
With some prodding, he wrote: husband, father, grandfather, uncle, friend, tennis player, tennis coordinator, day trader, mahjong player, electrician and handyman.
The exercise helped him to move from despair to optimism about his future.
• Conduct a financial check
It is imperative to get an accurate picture of the family financial situation.
Changing your lifestyle can be a big help, especially if it forces you to achieve better control of your cash flow and your financial balance sheet.
Cash outflows include rent or mortgage, food, transportation, tuition, clothing, dining out, entertainment and investments.
Cash inflows include salary, rental income, dividend income, part-time employment, business ownership and royalties.
Understanding your financial situation and taking some steps, such as selling a car or moving to smaller living premises, are all part of the re-learning experience.
Depending on whether you urgently require a full-time or part-time job, take the appropriate steps to study and learn to manage your household cash flow.
• Nurture your identity
Continue to learn, think and create. Enrol in government-sponsored retraining programs for computer or technical skills development.
Most of the training that I recommend is a combination of technical skills and some essential management or “soft skills” training such as interview skills, public speaking and rapport building workshops.
• Start networking
Join professional organisations that give you the chance to make more contacts.
For some of the finest training in public speaking, check out non-profit organisation Toastmasters International.
Don’t be afraid to take the first step to break out of your comfort zone. It will expand your identity and the possibilities that will create your future.
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