Moving On Requires Letting Go of Your Ex-Employer
In 2021 career management requires you to develop the ability to move on quickly. Actually, this has always been the case.
I don’t know anyone who hasn’t lost a job involuntarily. Most of my friends have lost several jobs. Everyone has a few “ex-employer.” Thanks to the government’s reaction to and handling the pandemic, millions of Canadians lost jobs considered reasonably safe.
The Covid-19 crisis is showing signs of losing steam. Fingers crossed, we’ll soon be in a position to resuscitate our economy. Job seekers will soon see an increase in employment opportunities.
Even with a buffet of employment opportunities to pick and choose from, many job seekers will still find themselves unable to secure employment? Why’s that? The reasons can be many ( poor communication skills, sense of entitlement, image not aligned with being professional). I have found among unsuccessful job seekers not letting go of their ex-employer, especially if they enjoyed working for their employer, to be common. ( Okay, “enjoyed” might be too strong a word here-”liked” is probably more appropriate.)
Holding onto the expectations built around our experience with your previous employer is a hindrance to you moving on.
There are 5 steps, with no hard timelines, to moving on after being let go.
- Allow yourself time to mourn.
- Accept that your job is over. (Odds are you’re not going to be called back.)
- Forgive. (Most likely, you being let go wasn’t personal.)
- Choose happiness. (Happiness really is a choice.)
- Stay open to possibilities.
Because it doesn’t fit the “I’m a victim” narrative many job seekers carry, I know many will disagree with the following statement: Rarely is being “let go” ever personal. While being shown the door may feel personal, it’s a business decision-for whatever reason, your services were no longer required.
Not completely letting go of your ex-employer can lead you to refuse to look outside the industry you’ve been associated with or scrolling past jobs because they don’t have the same work schedule, compensation structure or brand cache your previous employment had.
When fresh out of a romantic relationship, it’s not a good idea to compare your dates to your previous relationship. Scoring your dates against your ex-partner is a recipe to prolonging finding a good match. If the breakup wasn’t initiated by you, then comparing a potential future partner with your ex is having a closed mind. You’re trying to find a person who duplicates the person who was once a part of your life-good luck with that. The same can be said for an employer. No two employers are alike. Spending your job hunt searching trying to duplicate your ex-employer is counterproductive.
Job seekers who secure their next job quickly not only have put their previous employer behind them, they’ve adopted a mindset to be open to trying something new. We’ve all heard about those relationships that spawned from someone uttering, “He wasn’t even my type but-.” The word “but” tells us unexpectedly good things can come from places we wouldn’t normally look. When you apply “but” to the job market, you click on those job posts with an unfamiliar job title. You give the post a good read.
Here’s another statement that I know many will disagree with: Employers aren’t expecting an exact match to their job post. Superseding skills, experience and education, they’re looking for someone with initiative, character, and the right attitude. Yes, all those jobs you interviewed for but didn’t get, wasn’t because of your skills, experience or education-it was because the hiring manager didn’t see you as a fit. Being a fit is paramount to getting hired. It’s your job to show you’re a fit and not expect the hiring manager to simply assume you’ll fit into the new workplace.
For every person who scrolls past a job posting because they feel unqualified, another equally unqualified person will apply. They understand they’ll need to prove ( sell themselves) they have what it takes. If that doesn’t sound like the employment version of approaching someone out of your respective “dating league,” I’m unsure what does.
In our ever hyper-changing world, where you and I ( consumers) keep demanding cheaper, job loss is inevitable. You can’t predict when it’ll happen or why. All you can hope for is that you had a good run. ( In 2021, 5 years with the same employer is considered a “good run.”) Nobody ever planned for a worldwide pandemic to be the reason they’d be without a job.
Undeniably letting go of an employer, your job, colleagues, a steady paycheck is not easy. The goal is to move through these lapses in employment, which will be inevitable throughout your working life, with a bit of strategy and a lot of confidence.
Your next employer will:
- Look different.
- May take you out of your comfort zone.
- May not compensate you the same as your previous employer.
If you can accept these three above-mentioned and place your ex-employer in the past, then as a job seeker, you’ll be in a great frame of mind to take advantage of the many job opportunities reopening the economy will be creating.
Originally published at https://www.linkedin.com.
