I got over losing my job in less than 48 hours. All I really cared about was being able to pay my bills. (I’ve had a long-standing motto: All I need is a check–not necessarily this check.) My biggest challenge was quelling the periodic waves of anxiety I experienced.
Inevitably, I knew I’d have to dip into my 401k, which I was not at all comfortable with. While I’d reasoned it’d be okay–as long as I was earnestly being productive–I dreaded the thought of touching it. So many who’ve lost their jobs have exhausted their savings and retirement funds, and subsequently their homes and other assets. That’s a scary proposition when you’re 40+.
I knew the uneasiness would eventually pass, but in the meantime, my plan was to keep as busy as possible. That being said, I began following through on my To-Do list.
In lieu of a job, I searched for volunteer opportunities that would enable me to do more of the types of things I enjoy. I also investigated opportunities to go to school full-time, preferably for free, so I sought to leverage anything I possibly could: female, black, STEM discipline–whatever.
As luck and/or devine intervention would have it (and believe me, I was willing to take either), I stumbled across a couple of very good opportunities, and met some fantastic people, who were very willing to help me, along the way.
Within a few weeks, I’d secured a volunteer position conducting job search workshops at a local library, and enrolled in school to complete my MBA. (I couldn’t pull it off for free, but decided to go for it nonetheless.) A couple of weeks later, a friend who knew of my interest in small business told me the local SCORE chapter was looking for volunteers, so I applied, and voila–I became a SCORE counselor in training.
Volunteering has been truly amazing. I get to learn and help people, simultaneously. And it’s SO rewarding–doing good feels good! I had a lot of support from friends and family, but volunteering made all the difference in the world, especially in terms of helping me see the world from new and interesting perspectives.
I learned something very important during the first 30 days: if you put forth the least bit of effort, people will assist you triple-fold. I made some of the best connections, simply because I dialed numbers of potential leads I found online or in local newspapers. An anonymous person on the other end of the phone referred me to someone, who referred me to someone, and before I knew it, I was networked with the “who’s who” of Delaware. I’ve lived in this state for the past six years, and didn’t even know 10 people. Go figure…
Keeping busy worked! I was too consumed with enjoying life to worry. And since things started falling into place, exactly when needed, I decided to trust it and run with it.
Monday Morning Margarita 