Why losing your job might be a good thing

Losing your job sounds bad, and at first it may feel bad. You start to picture yourself: first jobless, then homeless, then friendless – losing friend after friend in a series of unrelated but somehow intrinsically-connected incidents. How did your life get so bad?

In fact, it’s really not that bad. It’s better than bad, losing your job is a good thing. Now you can put your life and your career into perspective, and while it may not feel like this at first (try to put the friendless analogy out of your head), you will soon see that we are right. We are always right when it comes to job stuff.

Time to stop

First of all, losing your job gives you time to stop working. You’ve spent the last however many years of your life working, and working hard (we assume), but now you can relax for a bit. You never get to do that! You don’t have to think about work straight away, you can sleep in, eat better, go to the gym. You can still apply for jobs while you lead the lifestyle of a freelance writer. It’s not the end of the world. It’s good for you!

Make some decisions

During this time you can think about what you really want from your job. Maybe it’s not about getting more money and working more hours? Maybe its about job satisfaction and rewards. I may sound like a dreamer, but being without a job makes you really think about what you would prefer to do with your life.

Meet people

It’s strange, but as soon as you are jobless you don’t lose friends you actually start making more. You start to reach out to anyone you’ve ever worked with to see if they have work for you and as a result rekindle old friendships and connections. Even if you just end up with a great conversation, it’s still one great conversation you wouldn’t have had if you were at your old job!

You become stronger!

Remember that Kanye line: “That doesn’t kill you, makes you stronger” – and while Kanye can’t take credit for this life-affirming phrase, I think that was Nietzsche, he can high-five himself for keeping the message alive for today’s impressionable young folk. And it’s true! After you’ve lost your job and find new ways to survive you’ve learnt a valuable life lesson, and if it ever happens again you know you won’t end up homeless and alone. Phew.

You become your own person

Finally, just because you had a title at your old job, it doesn’t mean it defined you. Now, when you are asked about your job, you can say anything you like. Before, you could only say what you were, which was something you were definitely not… It’s ridiculous when people introduce themselves and one of the first things they tell you is what they do, who cares?! We don’t! Everyone works in one form of another and maybe the people who have to tell strangers what they do all the time are actually insecure about themselves… Ouch!

So, pick yourself up from underneath the pizza boxes, relax, and meet up with some great peeps from your previous lives. Make this job losing thing the BEST thing that’s ever happened to you!

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