Losing Your Job? Discover Strength and Resiliency to Persist

Fear Paralyzes

Downsizing and layoffs create fear and uncertainty throughout an organization. Even if you're one of the lucky ones still employed after the first cut you're left wondering 'who's next?'--If I'm laid off what will I do? Where will I find my next job?  

As one of the lucky ones who survived round after round of layoffs, you may find your own fear and anxiety rises daily as you stand in hallways or cubicles with fellow coworkers ruminating over the latest rumors about who is to stay and who is to go. And adding to your anxiety you come to work after a restless night's sleep too tired and drained to do a good job.

Perhaps you think about updating your resume, networking, and LinkedIn profile--but you lack the energy--and secretly fear if you put energy into updating your resume you'll 'manifest' your own demise.

Ultimately you vacillate between frenetically overworking yourself trying to save your job one minute and doing a lackluster job and feeling resigned to losing your job the next. 

It's easy to let fear paralyze you into retreating into inaction and indecisiveness leaving you in a constant state of anxiety about your future. So how do you overcome the fear immobilizing you and get on with your life?

Human Hardiness: Tap into Your Strength and Resiliency

"So, first of all, let me assert my firm belief that the only thing we have to fear is fear itself — nameless, unreasoning, unjustified terror which paralyzes needed efforts to convert retreat into advance."  FDR 1933

 84 years ago, in another time and another context, Franklin D Roosevelt spoke these words to a nation in need of honest, straightforward talk. Today these words ring just as true as we struggle to find our way in the ever-changing landscape of today's workplace.

To move on with strength and resiliency in times of fear we need to unload fear--that nameless, unreasoning, unjustified terror--so we can stop retreating into a frozen stance and start advancing and rebuilding the life we want.

When you're ready to give up the fear, get ready to tap into that deep well of human hardiness inside each one of us. In short--snap out of it! Stop wallowing and quivering, and pull yourself up by your bootstraps instead.

You'll discover your strength and resiliency with every step you take.  

Refresh your ability to step into the unknown by running experiments without being concerned with the outcomes. Stop thinking; start doing.

Suspend Judgment. Forget about success and failure, and forget about pre-judging the success of your actions. Simply take actions that allow you to explore options or possibilities you find interesting. Keep a journal of your daily experiments.

Be Brave. Always believe in your ability to take another action. Take one step into the unknown each day that allows you to explore your options and rediscover how to find that next job in today's marketplace. 

"This is preeminently the time to speak the truth, the whole truth, frankly and boldly. Nor need we shrink from honestly facing conditions in our country today. This great Nation will endure as it has endured, will revive and will prosper. So, first of all, let me assert my firm belief that the only thing we have to fear is fear itself — nameless, unreasoning, unjustified terror which paralyzes needed efforts to convert retreat into advance." Franklin D Roosevelt, First Inaugural Address March 1933

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For more than 35 years, Susan Meyerott has been helping people lighten up and step over invisible barriers to change one step at a time. She speaks to your heart, puts you at ease, and makes letting go and moving forward with life easier than ever before.

Do you know someone who could benefit from uplifting messages? Please share Lightarted Living with them. If you or someone you love is interested in learning more about closing the gap between where you are now and where you want to be, join the FREE Lightarted Living mailing list. 

Recovering from Disaster ~ A Journey of a Thousand Miles Begins with a Single Step ~ Lao Tzu

 No matter how hard the past, you can always begin again. The Buddha

When Disaster Hits

💧  Are you one of the lucky ones who feels you've dodged a bullet when you see what other people are dealing with but you're still fearful about how you and others will rebuild your lives?

💧  Or are you facing so many hardships and challenges you're left feeling hopeless and discouraged about ever finding your way back to a normal life?

💧  Are you tired of thinking about your current situation and just wish someone would do something about it?

How to Start Over and Treat Yourself Gently

When things get really tough—especially after experiencing a major disaster--it can be difficult to see your way out. 

These 3 timeless keys show you the way forward to starting over after your life is disrupted by economic and environmental hardship or personal crises.

1. Take the First Step 

Not much has changed in the thousands of years humans have been facing and recovering from the hardships of life. As Lao Tzu stated so long ago, 'a journey of a thousand miles must begin with a single step'. 

We fuel our inner strength and sense of resiliency by taking action. 


But sometimes when faced with 'a journey of a thousand miles' we can be overwhelmed with the daunting task of where to begin. What is the first step?

The good news is any first step will do. Your hope, resiliency, and personal strength will grow stronger with every step you take. 

It doesn't matter what the first step is. As you experience yourself being pro-active and physically taking action, your ability to cope and hope will improve. 

So start with a single step--any step-- and then another.

2. Take Small Steps

An old Chinese Proverb says, 'The man who moved a mountain is the one who started taking away the small stones'. When you're in total overwhelm mode, start 'taking away the small stones'--one small step, then another. 

If you are in a position to help other people recovering from disaster, consider your best options for helping--and then take one small step followed by another. 

Don't wait for the perfect step. Do something.

3. Build a Nest in the Eye of the Storm

Anthropologist, Margaret Mead, traveled on her life adventure, with change and uncertainty her constant companions. Her grandmother, a major influence in Margaret's life, sent her on her journey with the sage advice to 'Always build a nest in the eye of the storm'.

This grandmotherly wisdom has had a strong influence in my own life. Whenever major life events cause upheaval in my life, my mind returns to this saying, and I think how important it is to apply in my own life to get things moving and balanced again. 

One thing I know--when you're in the middle of a crisis, the hardest thing to do is to think of taking care of yourself. 

You can forget to nourish your body, push your body to the limits with lack of sleep, and remain in a constant state of emotional overload. 

But if you focus on 'building a nest in the eye of the storm', you will begin to create a cushion to rest and a space for thinking.

What does it mean to build a nest in the eye of the storm? 

When life is swirling around you like a hurricane--you find a way to create a home-base of comfort--or nest--from which you can rebuild your daily existence.

💓💓Start with the basics to nourish your body and rest your nerves. Your body likes a regular rhythm that includes regular heart beats, breaths, sleep patterns, eating times, moving times, and rest time.

💓💓The small steps include beginning by getting your natural rhythms back in place.

💙Eat regular, well-balanced meals that nourish you.

💚Pace yourself--put a time limit on dealing with your difficulties--and take regular rest breaks.

💛Go to bed early.

💜Choose to have daily contact with uplifting, supportive people who can listen and encourage you in your strength.

💓If you're caring for others, take care of yourself first, so you have the strength and endurance to continue to help others.

Create a Place of Safety and Security

We all do our best thinking and acting when we do it in a place of safety and security. The key is to find a way to create your nest---no matter what storm is brewing. It may not be easy, but it is essential.

Life is a cycle, always in motion; if good times have moved on, so will times of trouble!   Indian Proverb

Update September 12, 2020: I am one of the lucky ones in Ashland, Oregon whose house was spared from the devastating Alameda fire that destroyed hundreds of homes and businesses in neighboring towns. I'm reaching out to those of you who are in a position to help financially to seek out gofundme pages for individuals and families to contribute to, or to contribute to our local Red Cross for victims of the Alemeda Fire. Please be as generous as you are able.

If you are unable to help financially, please consider helping by passing this message on to others who many be in a position to help. Also, if you are in an area where the fires have hit your local area, please find ways to help your neighbors. We are all in this together. Now is the time to reach out and be part of the greater community.

Here are a few Gofundme pages for individuals and families that lost everything in the fire to get you started:

https://gf.me/u/yxncz7  Rachel Kalb and babies

https://gf.me/u/yxpfrs   Jesse Lopez

https://gf.me/u/yxstct     Grandma Stella Cruz

https://gf.me/u/yxu6c6    Molly Erwin, RN

https://gf.me/u/yxpng6    Tejada-Ingrams family with 2 children

Also in great need the Northwest Seasonal Workers Association (see below). An estimated 500 workers and their families lost their homes.

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For more than 35 years, Susan Meyerott has been helping people lighten up and step over invisible barriers to change one step at a time. She speaks to your heart, puts you at ease, and makes letting go and moving forward with life easier than ever before.

Do you know someone who could benefit from uplifting messages? Please share Lightarted Living with them. If you or someone you love is interested in learning more about closing the gap between where you are now and where you want to be, join the FREE Lightarted Living mailing list. 

The Unease of Transition~Discover the Secret to Starting Over

'Flying is learning how to throw yourself at the ground and miss.' 

Douglas Adams

On the Brink of Transition?

Where are you at this very moment in your life? What are you trying to accomplish? Where are you starting over? What's making you anxious? 

💓 Are you looking for a suitable mate or breaking up with someone?

💙 Are you thinking of having a family or trying to get back into the workforce after having a baby?

💚 Are you searching for a new job, thinking of quitting your current job, or trying to break into a new field of work? 

💛 Did you finish college and now face transitioning into adulthood and a new life and career?

💜 Are you trying to decide when to retire or how to reinvent your life?

💓Are you buying a car, a home, or working on a home improvement project? 

 Maslow's Hierarchy of Needs

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

Why You Feel Anxious and Tense

No matter how good or bad you perceive a change to be, whenever you start over in some area of life--according to Abraham Maslow's Hierarchy of Needs--you're left feeling anxious and tense as you nose-dive from being your most confident, best self ('self-actualized') to someone who is now concerned with basic safety needs. 

"The most fundamental and basic four layers of the hierarchy of needs contain what Maslow called 'deficiency needs': esteem, friendship and love, security, and physical needs. If these 'deficiency needs' are not met the individual will feel anxious and tense."  Source: Wikipedia

It doesn't matter how big or small a life-changing event is that's forcing you to stop what you're currently doing to start over. Once you've moved into that uncomfortable place of feeling unsafe and insecure you have to deal with it before you can move on. 

And like it or not--before we're able to move on to the new with ease and joy--we must first get unstuck from feeling mired in the fear of the unknown.

Wake Up Calls (things that go bump in the night)

I hate it when something stresses me out and puts me on high alert creating 'things that go bump in the night' in my head and body. The anxious feeling in the pit of my stomach wakes me and robs me of a good night sleep. 

I shoot awake, heart pounding, and begin fretting about what's behind the anxiety--all the while trying to deny anything's wrong.

But the body knows better than the mind. At the very core of my anxiety is something is making me feel unsafe. This is my wake up call from the body reminding me I need to acknowledge what's bothering me and take action on it to calm my internal alarm system. 

 Times of transitions or change are unsettling and stressful for everyone. The fear of the unknown 'downshifts' us into our very primitive, but street-smart, reptilian brain putting us on high alert for 'fight or flight'--making it difficult to be our best problem-solving self. 

Stress: A perceived threat, unpredictability, a feeling of loss of control, hopelessness, helplessness.

The Get Started Cycle 

Discovering the Secrets to Starting Over

The secret to starting over after getting stuck is to examine what your stress is so you can offset the things keeping you stuck--then move into action.

What to do when stress is:

A Perceived Threat 👉 Take steps to identify and deal with that threat;

Unpredictability 👉 Take steps to make the unpredictable predictable;

A Feeling of Loss of Control, Helplessness and Hopelessness 👉 Take action.

Stress is dis-empowering--leaving you quivering in inaction. When you feel helpless or hopeless to control a situation that feeling is further fueled by inaction. This creates a 'get stuck and stay stuck' cycle in which you fail to think about, act on or evaluate your situation. The way out is through action.

Taking action--no matter how small--is empowering. Every time you take a step it empowers you to take another. Every step you take shows you have options and you are not helpless.

Start using the 'get started' cycle. To start over or create new beginnings methodically move through the 'get started' cycle to think and plan, take action, and evaluate your actions.

Show yourself you have options through taking action and evaluating the results of your actions, and then base your next steps on what you learned. 

Never stop taking action. The more pro-active you are, the more predictable the unpredictable becomes. 

Sit in it. Accept the anxiety and tension you feel as your body's safety valve helping you figure things out off-line. Until you get to the truth of naming what's making you feel unsafe and vulnerable the anxiety will remain. 

It is only after you name 'it' and take action that your anxiety will lessen.

You don't have to like facing what is bothering you but until you name it and face it you'll keep getting wake up calls from your body.

'Make peace with your today to improve your future... It may sound odd, but the fastest way to get to a new-and-improved situation is to make peace with your current situation. If you rail against the injustices of your current situation, you hold yourself in alignment with what you do not want, and you cannot then move in the direction of improvement. It defies Law. In every particle of the Universe, there is that which is wanted - and the lack of it.'       

Abraham 

Trust Yourself

Even when bad things happen, trust yourself to get through the troubled time. Know that all things seemingly good or bad ultimately work in your favor. Sometimes it is the seemingly bad things that drive you to do really great things with your life. 

'The moment where you doubt whether you can fly, you cease forever being able to do it.'  

Peter Pan

'You have brains in your head. You have feet in your shoes. You can steer yourself any direction you choose. You're on your own. And you know what you know. And you are the one who'll decide where to go.' 

Dr Seuss

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For more than 35 years, Susan Meyerott has been helping people lighten up and step over invisible barriers to change one step at a time. She speaks to your heart, puts you at ease, and makes letting go and moving forward with life easier than ever before.

Do you know someone who could benefit from uplifting messages? Please share Lightarted Living with them. If you or someone you love is interested in learning more about closing the gap between where you are now and where you want to be, join the FREE Lightarted Living mailing list. 

Don't Worry~Be Happy

Don't Worry~Be Happy

...every little thing's going to be alright.

Find Your Happy Place

...and your happy beings to make you smile.

Put on a Happy Face

...if you have good thoughts they'll shine out of your face like sunbeams

'A person who has good thoughts cannot ever be ugly. You can have a wonky nose and a crooked mouth and a double chin and stick-out teeth, but if you have good thoughts they will shine out of your face like sunbeams and you will always look lovely.'

Roald Dahl

Wishing you happiness and good thoughts

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For more than 35 years, Susan Meyerott has been helping people lighten up and step over invisible barriers to change one step at a time. She speaks to your heart, puts you at ease, and makes letting go and moving forward with life easier than ever before.

Do you know someone who could benefit from uplifting messages? Please share Lightarted Living with them. If you or someone you love is interested in learning more about closing the gap between where you are now and where you want to be, join the FREE Lightarted Living mailing list. 

Ease Your Way thru Life~Cultivate a Flexible Mind

A man is born gentle and weak.

At death, he is hard and stiff.

Green plants are tender and filled with sap.

At death, they are withered and dry.

Therefore, the stiff and unbending is the disciple of death,

and the gentle and yielding is the disciple of life.

 ~ Lao Tzu

A rigid mind is very sure,

but often wrong.

A flexible mind is generally unsure,

but often right.

~ Vanda Scaravelli

A flexible mind is more resilient

to change than those who know everything already.

Unknown

Peace is a stranger to the rigid mind.

Peace is a guest of the flexible heart.

Unknown

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For more than 35 years, Susan Meyerott has been helping people lighten up and step over invisible barriers to change one step at a time. She speaks to your heart, puts you at ease, and makes letting go and moving forward with life easier than ever before.


Do you know someone who could benefit from uplifting messages? Please share Lightarted Living with them. If you or someone you love is interested in learning more about closing the gap between where you are now and where you want to be, join the FREE Lightarted Living mailing list.