Jobloss – is one of the tough phases of life. It scares us. On a scale of 1 to 10 we would rate jobloss somewhere between 8-9. It’s a major issue of one’s life especially if you have been working tirelessly in high stress jobs for over years which is earning you both money and respect. We feel attached to our work.
I have been a pretty good student from my primary school – from class 5 onwards i used to usually score well. At major transition phases like from school to pre University college or from pre University College to graduation or even after post graduation to senior residency – i have done well. There was no point till then where I experienced difficulties to get into next level. It was a continuous streak. I am a doctor and i funded myself. And i can say with confidence that I was independent and self reliant and didn’t need much monetary help from parents or boyfriend from age 23 to 29. It’s a feeling of satisfaction and pride for me to be independent and not ask my parents or boyfriend to spend for me.
Suddenly, after completion of my senior residency i landed up a job in a medical college. It paid me well. But my job description was- literally nothing. No seeing patients and no operating at all! That’s a major setback in life of a person who has been working and for almost 6 years. For a person who has been so much attached to her job and to the feeling of pride, the ego had built up and money was saved and built up. I sensed an eerie discomfort and purposelessness in my life which is now being soo extremely free of work. I am just earning by doing nothing. That’s when i started to contemplate what’s the purpose of my life?
Then I resigned from this medical college and sought out for better opportunities which could really give me some work to do. I did land a very good consultant job at a hospital. Then i lost the job even before I could join cuz of health issues. No where in the town where I live has any openings. That’s when it hit me the most.
Sitting in home day long. Binge watching series. Over eating. Loss of confidence cuz of sharp fall of ego and dwindling savings. Being dependent on parents. Nothing productive 24*7. I don’t even know the hobbies that I like. I don’t have a side hustle despite being 29. Comparison of myself with others. Thinking of how my life turned. Purposelessness. One of the biggest “lows” of my life. I wallowed in self pity. A biggest blow to my ego and my finances.
This went on for like 2-3 weeks. Then I realised.
Though I don’t have a job, i am extremely fortunate to have a
roof above me ,
food to eat and
Parents who support me.
This job loss is a blessing in disguise to me.
It made me see in what ways I can be grateful.
People who I can be grateful for.
It made me see what are the stuff that I like. Life’s purpose.
Self healing.
Reading books
Break and rest from stressful job.
To know ways to support myself financially and emotionally.
How to navigate, if ever I land up in a difficult situation like this.
Time for Self discovery and prespective on what i really want in life.I have not figured it out completely.
But yes there are certain activities which helped me navigate through this ( i ll be listing ways help us navigate through job loss in future post).
In short
Rest/break is a KIND OF INVESTMENT with a benefit of healing.
Some people take a planned break from careers ( which is definitely good for mental health) and some are forced into inevitable breaks from jobs. The difference is we are not prepared for “the break” in the latter situation. So we find it difficult to navigate through it. And many a times get stuck within in and find it difficult to get up.
Though times in life is not meant to cripple us but help us realise our potential and appreciate the positive things in life and learn to move ahead.
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