20 of 100 – You’re Fired! Thank You

I've been "let go," "fired," "given the pink slip," "downsized," three three times since 1999.  It comes with these horrible feelings of inadequacy.  You feel out of control, depressed and hopeless.   My time between jobs was relatively short, but it was still horrible.  Ask any expert and they'll tell you, job loss one of life's most stressful and traumatic experiences.  It's the fifth most impactful life experience only behind the death of a loved one, divorce, moving, and major illness.  It's that tough.

As hard as it was for me (and it was really, really bad), I look back on it as a huge blessing for me.  It was only because of my job loss, that got support from a job hunter local ministry / non-profit called Back on Track Network (BOT).  I was so appreciative of what they did for me that I served there as a volunteer job coach and later as board member.

Why is that so significant?  In 2009, I used what I learned there to start a job hunter support website you'll still find at www.CareerJockey.org,   It was my effort to bring what Back on Track Network did for me to people who can't attend BOT's in person meetings in Miami.

That is a big deal for me.  Why?

First, it forced me to learn Wordpress.  I've been building websites since the 90's.  This moved me from site builder to site owner.  I got into the details of running my own site, doing some serious blogging and content marketing.  It stretched my knowledge of online marketing.

Second, it got me noticed by resume writers, career coaches and other business owners needing websites.  People saw my work and would ask me to build them one.  That is the beginning of what later became my current Larry Jacob Internet Marketing business.

Third, it led to me finding Infusionsoft.  It was first a tool I used to power my own online marketing.  Later I used the knowledge using Infusionsoft to service our customers.  I am now an Infusionsoft Certified Consultant and our primary service is to service that market.

I don't wish job loss on anyone.  It's a difficult challenge, but I'm grateful for having gone through it.  I have other sources of stress as a business owner today, but my fear of job loss is not one of them.

Note to self: Stay self-employed and make job loss a thing of the past.