You Didn't See It Coming, But You Should Have Known It Could Come

 Typical now is this kind of posting on professional anonymous networks (PANs) Reddit, Fishbowl, Glassdoor and Blind. This one is from Blind and it's by a laid-off employee at Amazon:

"This morning I opened my inbox and found out my role had been eliminated. There was reorgs but really no other warning from my manager. Also, no feeling that my team was in danger. Just an email."

Forget the regrets about not seeing it coming. Businesses have become more opaque. Managers, more protective about their own jobs, have becoming less willing to alert their reports about possible reductions-in-force. Intersecting factors such as AI, cost-efficiency, offshoring, upstart competition, geopolitics are triggering exponential change.

The issue is: Know it could be coming. 

Preparation goes way beyond the financial matters such living below your income, building a financial reserve, not taking on new debt and rapidly paying off current debt including student loans.

As responders on these PANs hammer, the major takeaway, given layoffs as the new usual, is a total paradigm shift about your relationship to work. That's broad territory. 

To begin with, it no longer can be an identity. Or a love affair. Over and over again PAN talk is about how much the work is loved. So? I have to assume that as the Model-T was dominating roads, the town's blacksmiths continued to love their work - that was disappearing. 

In terms of hands-on functioning, an anachronism is giving your all. Sure, take on the protective coloring of being 120%. But make less of an investment in all facets of the strategy and tasks. That could free you up to experiment with starting an enterprise on the side. 

Most importantly, keep scanning the horizon for opportunities for your next. This doesn't mean the update of a resume and the network. Rather it's a creative mindset of openness. When Steve Jobs was studying briefly at Reed College he took a calligraphy course. That introduced him to the essence of design. It was that aspect of Apple products which made them unique. 

In coaching, I prepare clients to give up on the concept of job security. 

Career Paths? So Over. It’s about Earning a Good Living. No matter what.

Complimentary consultation. No Pressure. Street-smart Guidance. Contact Jane Genova janegenova374@gmail.com.


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