Keeping Your "Plan B" Alive
by Beth Banks Cohn
Before the latest round of layoffs, you knew your head might soon be on the chopping block. For self-preservation you created a Plan B.
But now the layoffs are over and you're still standing. As daily life at your organization calms down, your instinct is to breathe a big sigh of relief and attempt to get back to the way things were before the downsizing occurred.
While that may feel like the natural response from a purely emotional standpoint — after all, the strain of not knowing if you would still have a job took a toll on you — it's better to resist the impulse to stash that Plan B in a drawer and forget about it. After all, you went through the trouble to create a moving-on strategy, including how to weather a layoff financially. Your Plan B can now become a valuable component of your career-development plan.
Here are some guidelines on keeping your Plan B working for you:
Keep your new network thriving. You refreshed several old connections and created several new ones. Keep that network going. The key to a working network is to nurture it when you don't need it. Now is the time to give rather than to receive, racking up your "bank account" for when you might seek help in the future. Make introductions. Email useful links and articles. Give people feedback on their blogs. Stay involved in their careers.
Keep your financial plan growing. You may have stashed away quite a bit of money to cushion the blow of unemployment, or you may have created a financial plan but haven't yet implemented it. Go ahead and put that plan into motion, or continue to build up your existing savings. Too many people wait for crises before taking action. This time you were lucky and got a pass. Be grateful that you can start building a healthy financial future for yourself while the pressure's off.
Keep developing your skills. For many of us, the threat of an imminent job change is a bit like becoming single again. It motivates us to improve ourselves. You may have embarked on a skill-development path, such as boosting social media or IT skills, in preparation for entering the job market again. Keep it up! It will help you now in your current position, as well as in the future.
Keep showing the value you bring. Just because immediate threats to your job might be off the table doesn't mean you should stop showing your boss and others the value you add to the organization. One way to do this is to think of this moment in time as your second chance. Treat your job as if it's brand new. Make yourself reliable. Build your reputation for timeliness, competency, and creativity. Be a problem solver and a mentor.
The Plan B you developed in the event of a layoff may have been a safety net then. But now, with a little stretching, that net can become a trampoline — a jumping-off platform you can use to propel your career forward.
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