What to do when you lose your job?

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Losing a job is hard especially when it is not your choice, but for some reason this is the path you have come across. You will not see the big picture until this hard storm passes by.

As for you, you meant evil against me, but God meant it for good, to bring it about that many people should be kept alive, as they are today.- Genesis 50:20

I have come across many people who have lost their jobs, and I want to share this one uplifting story with you that happened to someone I knew! She told me this story when I was in a hard time for myself and my job was eliminated.

Please keep reading to give yourself hope during this difficult time —

This friend of mine who was a dedicated employee, always gave it their all, and was an employee their company relied on– she was let go. It was the hardest thing at the moment for my friend to gather and understand why she was let go. She prayed, prayed, and prayed more. She told me she found God during this time and grew a closer relationship with him. Then it happened, her mom needed her. Her mom had a serious health problem and needed her daughter to take care of her. At this time, her daughter, was the only one who had time to take care of her mom because she had lost her job. Her daughter took care of her for 6 months before her mom passed away. At this time, she was sad she had lost her mom, but thankful that she was the one who had time to take care of her and spend the last moments with her mom. After a little grieving and having peace that her mom was in a good spot now and not suffering, the daughter applied for a dream job and got it! Looking back on life, my friend was let go not because she was a horrible employee, but because God had a bigger plan. A path that we do not understand in the midst of it, but looking back made perfect sense. It was so her daughter could spend the last moments with her mom before her passing.

 For I know the plans I have for you, declares the LORD, plans for welfare and not for evil, to give you a future and a hope.- Jeremiah 29:11

What a blessing! So I tell you this story not to give you a worry that you are going to lose someone of importance, but of hope there is a bigger blessing in this storm and you will understand more when you can look back. But for now…

We want to share some tips with you on what to do when you lose your job:

• Breathe – It is stressful. You feel like your world is crashing down. You feel like a failure. You feel a bunch of emotions. It is hard — it is not easy. We understand. Sometimes people even think why is God doing this to me, but I promise you can get back up. You can bounce back 2X better than you were before. Sometimes we have to get kicked down to get back up even faster. Here are some of my favorite songs during a storm:
  • Praise you in this storm – Casting Crown
  • Just be held – casting crown
    • When answers seem so far away...You are not alone. Your world is not falling apart its falling into place…just be held.

• Hope for the best – Write daily. Be thankful find something to be thankful for. I know it is hard. You are an amazing person and I know you can find something to be hopeful for, something to be thankful for. Find strength. I remember when I did not have a job I wrote daily in my journal the smallest hope.
  • “I will find a job”
  • “God will provide all my needs”
  • “I am here for a purpose”
  • “Thank you for giving me a time to reflect and slow down.”
  • “Thank you for people around me to help me through this time.”

 And we know that for those who love God all things work together for good, for those who are called according to his purpose.- Romans 8:28

• Review your budget or spending plan – It can be on a scrap piece of paper found in the junk cabinet. Include just the necessities. Yes, you pry already read this. You pry already know this, but I cannot stress it enough. Call the companies if you are having a hard time paying your bills. See if the companies will lower your interest, lower your bill for a few months until you have a job. Negotiate. You got this! Even if you feel like you are the only one who is in the spot…you are NOT! Go and call now. You got this! I believe in you! You are not broken. You are building skills right now and will become strong on the back end. When you get done calling and maybe it did not cut as much as you needed, remember God will supply your need. Maybe a miracle will happen like someone will give you the need you are short — we had this happen to us! We budgeted and was short no joke $25 on our food budget and received $50 for food — it was a miracle and let us not be over our budget! I have so much hope for you!

 And my God will supply every need of yours according to his riches in glory in Christ Jesus.- Philippians 4:19

• File for unemployment – Contact your state’s unemployment program. If you do not know the website or the phone number…there is our friend Google…google it. Be patient when applying because it is a process, and some times a headache, but it will be a little bit to help you get by while you get another employment opportunity. Do not be afraid. You are not alone in applying for unemployment!

• Update your information – LinkedIn — update it. Your resume — update it. Google your name — make sure your grandma would not be embarrassed by what she saw. If so, delete it. Clean up your facebook, instagram, etc especially if it is not private.

• Start the job search – It is your life, but I recommend to go find a part time job for now and get some kind of income to pay your necessities. Dress professionally (no jeans — please!) and walk into a grocery store, more than likely they will interview you on the spot and hire you! If they do not, do not get discouraged. It was not meant to be, but keep trying! The choices you make now will help you and your family. Use job sites to find a job — Linkedin, indeed, Glassdoor, simplyhired, zip recruiter are just a few. Also search by companies in your area because sometimes jobs only get posted on their site.

• Sell things at home to make cash quick – I am a pro at this, but you might not be. Here are my little tips: have a good photo of it. If its still in the stores, use their photo too to make the ad. People buy off of a photo. Price it good by researching the items on the site to see what others are selling the item for, allow there to still be room for negotiating. Facebook marketplace is what we use. Craigslist is a little sketchy now, so we hardly use this.

• Insurance — you need it! The number one reason of bankruptcy is medical bills! If you do not have it because it was with your employer, apply for COBRA or another plan with an agent. It could be costly, but you only have 60 days to apply. You need health insurance whether you are healthy or not. It will save you if an accident happens. Please do not risk not having health insurance.

• Be courageous and network – This is probably the last thing you want to do which is why it is almost last thing I put here. Because who including me wants to say, “I do not have a job or I am unemployed.” Not me — not you! I know, but we have to get out of our comfort zone and reach out to people. It can be as easy as sending a message on linked in. “Hello, I saw you work for a X company and that X job was open. I would love to talk to you about why you love your job and why you like working at X company. Do you have a moment? Thank you! Look forward to hearing from you.” People love talking about themselves so it gives you an in before you break the I need a job sad story. Then once you’ve chatted about the company and what they do. You can relate and then ask them to put a good word in for you or if they know who you should contact to apply for the job.

• Put the past behind you. Lastly, do not go back and think about what you could have done differently. Just move forward. Get plenty of sleep and exercise. It will help you. Let your new light shine! You got this! It may not be perfect, and some days are harder than others, but I have no doubt you can get thru this storm. You got this — you have a talent to shine in another chapter of life!! Here is a song to give you some uplift — it does for me at least.
  • Here for a Reason – Ashes Remain

I hope this article has given you some fire and uplifted you to move forward. If you need anything, during this time please do not hesitate to reach out to a friend, family member or someone to just listen to you.

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