I was asked for three quick, clear, and concise bits of advice for a person who just got word that she or he would be laid off. Here they are:
Take a mental and physical time out. Get away from your desk and your work space. Do something physical take a walk, do some stretching, go to the gym for an hour. You need to gain physical and emotional space.
Bargain. Take an inventory of your current projects and priorities. Calmly and objectively meet with your boss and let her or him know how important these tasks are and how qualified you are to do them. There is no downside but there could be an upside in terms of pushing out your actual termination date, potential consulting work, or working part time.
Vent. Keep your emotions in check until the day ends but as soon as it does, find someone to talk to. You badly need emotional support and the best kind is not someone with gratuitous advice, but simply someone who can engage in empathetic listing. This can be a spouse, a significant other, a friend, or a helping professional. Given the epidemic of layoffs you can intellectually understand what just happened, but you can’t get through the emotional impact without opening out to someone else. You don’t need to wallow in it, but you do need to find someone to lean on. This is something everyone should do.
