In October, the Global Financial Crisis became personal. My “secure” government job was no more. My position was made redundant (Note that I said my POSITION was made redundant—not ME personally! It’s an important difference).
It was a huge shock.
When I arrived at work on that fateful Wednesday morning, there was a calendar booking from one of the Managers waiting in my inbox, along with the message that if I had anything else planned for that particular time, to re-schedule as this meeting was to be my priority.
My heart sank. I knew what this meant … only the week before, out of the blue, 5 members of another department had been “let go” without any warning.
In the meeting I sat in shock as I was told my position was now superfluous to the organisation’s requirements, and what this would mean to me personally. Like a broken record my mind repeated over and over again: This can’t be happening to me. Quickly followed by: Don’tcrydon’tcrydon’tcrydon’tcry … damn too late.
It wasn’t just the loss of income. To say I loved my job was probably a bit of an over-statement – does anybody REALLY love their job? But I definitely liked it. A lot. Ever since I’d first read the ad 7 years earlier, I’d known it was a perfect match for me: a blend of admin tasks, working with the community, and producing newsletters. What wasn’t to like?!
I enjoyed supporting the other members of my team and making sure that things in the office ran smoothly. I took pride in my ability to provide people with exactly the information they needed, in the newsletters and other bulletins I produced. I knew I provided good customer service; I had developed an excellent relationship and reputation with both internal and external stakeholders. I might have been “just an admin” but by golly I was the best darn admin I could be!
My redundancy made me feel that the powers-that-be did not value my work, my skills, my experience, my talents. I was devastated.
That was 5 months ago.
Since then, my life has COMPLETELY changed (but that’s a story for another time!).
The fact that I had absolutely no control over this event and it was not of my choosing, has made it more of a challenge.
I’ve had good days and bad days. Good days where I enjoy my new found freedom – especially on the looooong summer holidays when I was able to be around for my teenagers. I’ve also realised I was actually pretty bored in my job, and now each day there is something new and different.
Then there are the bad days. Moments when I wonder what on earth I am doing with my life. A few tears, as I long for things to be the way they used to be.
Fortunately as time goes by (and with the loving support of my hubster, family, and a good psychologist), the bad days are becoming more infrequent, and the good days are multiplying!
Is your job “safe”? Have you or your partner ever been made redundant? Do you have any tips to share?