So your alright with loosing your job – now what?
Posted on 24. Feb, 2009 by Scott.
Although panicking sounds tempting we’re not going to due that. Well not yet at least. Letting your family know, assessing finances and trimming any remaining fat from your budget are all pretty standard.
After that I’m still very hopeful and am left with more of a feeling of relief. The whole world is before me and I can do almost anything I put my mind to (and thanks to Virgin Galactic that even includes space travel if I so choose).
So I’ve added an ad for a charity, which the more I think about it I believe I’m going to continue to have a different charity monthly. Everyone deserves hope and a dream of a better tomorrow.
Without getting into to much naval gazing the much harder question is now what? Do you follow your dreams even if there’s no money in it? Or continue on a Machiavellian path that will allow you to glimpse the dream occasionally?
I’m going to try and live the dream. I haven’t quite figured out how to get there yet, but I’d love any suggestions or encouragement you might have.
-Scott
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How to loose your job and maintain some form of dignity
Posted on 23. Feb, 2009 by Scott.
Well it does help if you are hired as “the extra guy we don’t really need” (and yes that’s a direct quote), but it was my first job after finishing my degree and I could use the experience. It was for the same company that had helped put me through school, so I figured I owed them. That is even after I had applied for another job and was told I would have to quit by one of the heads of IT because the simply do not hire people without experience. Really??? But your paying me to go to school, for this even. But I digress…
This was by no means a shocker, we had missed some weeks budget by over 90%. You can’t keep the doors open for long at that rate. Something had to give. Hey new ‘extra’ guy can we see you over here?
Over the last couple months I had slowly and quietly prepared for this. Little things like not bringing in a new calendar in January. Removing personal items. Trying to document everything I was doing and keeping those needed informed. This was as much for me as it was for them.
On January 1st I registered this domain because I’m toying around with the idea of doing something different, there will be more on this later. For now just a quick thought on something I truly believe :
If opportunity only knocks once, give him more doors to knock on.
(I know it’s a little corny but I kinda like it)
Inevitably I got called in and was given my options. Back at my desk I simply turned off all of my computers. There was no need to say good bye (everyone was gone for lunch) or send any ‘Good bye and thanks for the fish’ emails (besides that’s melodramatic and desperate). When my boss asked if I needed a box I replied no thanks I’m good. Grabbed my coffee cup and left.
The three things I did that helped me:
- Slowly remove personal items. No one wants to see you sniveling.
- Prepare to do something new. Update a resume or start a new project.
- Don’t look back. What’s done is done. Whatever you have built up (experience, contacts, savings) is what you have to work with, move on.
Don’t get me wrong, it still scares the crap outta ya. But you what? It was getting to be time to do something different anyway.
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Dreams as a kid
Posted on 06. Feb, 2009 by Scott.
I’m starting to think that the dreams I had as a 17 year old were right on. At the time all I knew was I wanted to get out of town and see the world. It’s all my parents fault. You see for my fifth birthday I asked for and received a globe. Not just any globe though, it had it be a topographic globe. Oh the thrill! (No seriously I still have it) Anyway, even at the tender age of 5 my eyes were widened to the endless possibilities out there. With a quick spin (grabbing the Himalayas helps) you could off to another place trying to envision what it was like through your limited library of your grampas National Geographics (well the ones they’d let you see at least). That day an explorer was born.
Do you remember your aspirations as a kid? We all had grand dreams of life as we finished high school whether we went on to college or not. Taking the world on by the horns. We’re going to make our mark. If we just put our mind to it we can do anything. Although at some point did you ever notice that people eventually stopped telling you that? All while others around you are labeled a ‘go-getter’ or she’s going to go far or he’s a climber. The difference is they never stopped trying. I know when people stopped telling me that, it’s when I stopped giving them reason to.
A couple years ago I was a little restless in my job and decided to finally go back to school to finish my degree. I’d volunteer for a project or two partly just to do something different. It wasn’t long before I was the one at work that was going places, that my coworkers didn’t expect me to be around very long (Which I wasn’t, I took a promotion shortly after). But it wasn’t until I began to make an effort to improve my life that people began to tell me I could go far.
So I have some ground to make up and globetrotting to do. It may still be a little way off, but I’m trying.
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Quick thoughts
Posted on 02. Feb, 2009 by Scott.
Wow, there is a lot of information on how to start a blog out there. I’ve been a little mired in it the last couple days. Which makes me think I may not be going about this correctly. So I’m going to make some mistakes. I just need to keep moving forward and keep trying. It’s to easy to get lost in the researching and analysis which leads to procrastination and avoidance.
Planning this week for next weeks posts:
Look for a volunteer opportunity next week to work at while I’m laid off. I’m looking forward to this, you’d think someone would need my help. We’ll see.
Look into getting a projector for film night.
See if we need anything for making maple syrup this spring.
Set up game day. This is something we’ve been trying for years….
This week:
I plan on finishing up the ‘About’ page which has started to look like a manifesto so I may have to redo it. Write about the items that are in process and what I have successfully completed. Make my own favicon. Schedule rockclimbing.
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The Parade Candy of Life
Posted on 31. Jan, 2009 by Scott.
If you think about it, it’s not whether you see the glass half full or half empty, it’s about parade candy. Yup the kind they throw at you.
When times get tough companies and families for that matter start to tighten their belts. They form teams to analyze processes and procedures to squeeze every possible cent of value out of everything they come in contact with. Suddenly there’s a new urgent need to cut expenses, which everyone that even perceives that their position has the remotest chance of being ‘evaluated’ throws all of their energy into and is quite loud about it. Everyone scurries around trying to find some unfound bright tasty morsel. When found they no doubt they hold it up in the air for all to see. They no doubt run back and show their parent boss for approval and a little public praise.
Families are always stretched and now even more so. Everyone probably knows someone at work whose spouse gives them an allowance and can’t even afford a soda. Most everyone at one time of another has gotten stuck in back of someone at the grocery store with a neatly stacked or even collated deck of coupons that must be gone through as they become more and more visibly hurried. Or someone that is always looking for a deal of some sort or another. They are the ones that are still searching long since the truck has passed and all of the parade candy is gone. Occasionally they do find a morsel or two, just stepped on a little bit. No one in the entire crowd receives more joy from the discovery.
As for me, I’m going after the damn truck!
Although some things and life you can’t avoid. Being a good parent for example. There is no rule that states you have to take what’s thrown at you.
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Saved time, money and weight!
Posted on 30. Jan, 2009 by Scott.
This year I decided not to make a New Years resolution list as many of us have done in the past. Instead I wanted to do something bigger. So I came up with the idea of trying 100 different things starting inauguration day. After all the country needs a new start and come to think of it I could too. So I have this list I’m working off of trying to get the 100 things done. I’m off to a good start.
First 10 days
Actual savings for the 10 days was $62! I’m breaking myself of this horrible habit I fell into of stopping for a coffee and a doughnut on my way to work every morning. Not gourmet coffee mind you, just plain old gas station coffee. This was cut out. As well as the $20 I’d pull out every week that only fed the vending machine. Cutting the fast food out has been easy with the economy as bad as it is. Normally I’d go once each day while working my part time job on the weekends.
Actual time savings for the 10 days: 30 Hours! A couple years ago I had tried an online challenge and had given up tv for a month. It was far easier then I had thought. I get all of the news I need online anyway. Think time I changed it a little and watch show I can download or record. The national average for watching TV is 142 hours a month! That’s just dumbfounding (pun intended). I thought that I didn’t watch that much tv, which turns out not to be the case if you think about it. I’d watch the news which I generally knew what it was about before I sat down. The big time waster that happens is, I’ll not want to do something and end up watching a zillion hour marathon of Deadliest Catch or something. Between the two I’m going to average it at 3 hours a day. Which puts me at 120 hours a month.
Actual weight loss 15 days: 10 pounds. The biggest and most surprising change is actually a whim I thought I’d try. I follow Tim Ferriss’s blog where he has this diet that sounds like it might be rough because you end up eating beans 2-3 times a day, but I thought I’d give it a try anyway. Initially I thought I’d have a problem with it since I’m a grazer/snacker. All day. But I thought I’d give it an honest effort and cut out everything (except the scoop of sugar in the free company coffee, a guys got his limits) Two things I found was – I’m never hungry. Gone is the need to snack all the time along with 10 pounds! [this ones 15 days because I experimented before starting everything else, hey it's a lot of beans! No worries though.]
I’m really encouraged by the early results. Let me know if you have any tips that I should try, I may give them a try too!
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