Blogging Away Debt

Panic Mode to Inspiration – Future Planning (Part 3 of 3)

This morning I rose at 6:00 am, early for a 9am start girl, and made my way to a local Job Transition group. And that is where I will start. This group is faith based and was very welcoming.

I don’t know what I will do at this juncture…do I try to return to corporate, do I continue with my current consultant structure and resume marketing in the same manner, do I try something new, do I just get any job I can, or do I take the time and really do something out of the box???

I LOVED what they focused on today….essentially they said, that for any of your skill sets that you are considering pursuing as a job…make a 30 second commercial or spiel. Not that you film yourself but that you have a card with a couple of bullet points that at any given time, you can “sell” yourself. It’s alot harder than you think.

I think I am going to look for a few other networking opportunities that I can jump in on while I am transitioning to whatever comes next.

I am working really hard to not let panic mode take over and instead focus on the positives….

At this point, I will get to really focus on my kids wholeheartedly right around the holiday season, how cool is that!?
I do have several resources I can sell…my car being the big one that comes to mind. And the inspiration for slowing down before I make any quick decisions I might come to regret.
My ex husband is to be starting a new job within a week or two and has committed to stepping up to help me.
While we are still living pretty frugally there are a few places I can cut back…
- Cancelled Netflix (we don’t have cable) as we can use Amazon Prime which is paid for the year for entertainment – $9 month savings
- Cleaning out storage which I should be able to cancel by the end of the month – $70 month savings
- Changed the animals food to a cheaper brand which I can get even cheaper on Amazon – $60 month savings
- I’m sure there are more that I will come up as I move forward.
This gives me the chance to really start over if that is what I should do as far as jobs go without really letting anyone down.

I will end with this and it’s probably the most important part right now….

I have really struggled over the past year or so in trusting myself and my decisions. My prayers have been that if I was not on the right path, I needed that made CRYSTAL CLEAR. This might just be that CRYSTAL CLEAR sign that I needed to push me in a different direction. I can’t say that for sure, but I am totally and completely open to whatever God may have in store for me/us next. He has a plan and I will put my faith in Him as I certainly cannot do it myself.

Panic Mode to Inspiration – The Nuts and Bolts (Part 2 of 3)

by Hope

So yesterday I woke up with a vengeance, time to look at the reality this job loss puts us in. The first thing I did was get to work. I completed my tasks for the existing clients and put some work into a new website I am working on, sent out bills and THEN I sent a thank you note/reference request to these clients:

Thank you for the advance notice of your downsizing. I cannot express how sad I am about this for you both and XXXXXX but also for myself as I have been truly gifted by working for and with you both for these last 7 or so years! I certainly would love to be kept in mind for further projects or on-going work if the need should arise again.
In the meantime, would you mind doing me a favor….would you please write a reference for me on LinkedIn as a consultant under my EPOH business and also provide a letter of reference I can include in job applications (or take blurbs from for website presence.) I would greatly appreciate it.
I full intend to continue work as normal through the end of the month, please let me know if there are specific tasks you want me to complete….on my list are: ….

They responded in the affirmative that they would be happy to do this for me. For that I am truly grateful.

Then I started looking at the money. THANK GOD for MY EMERGENCY FUND!!! Based on a cut throat budget and estimated income from all existing clients and projects, I figure we are good through the end of the year, maybe a bit longer depending on what we do with holidays and the twins’ birthday this month. I can BREATHE!

And then I exhaled for the first time since the call on Monday. And I started poking around on the internet looking at local jobs…just a tiny bit. And then I started making lists. I made a list of:

Things I could sell
What are my passions in rank order
What are my priority in rank order
What are needs I see around me that my skill set could meet
What other resources can I reach out to for temporary assistance

And I decided to give myself a small break from panic mode. I need to process and decide what the next step is without rushing into a wrong decision. Not that I am going to sit back and twiddle my thumbs.