Back on Track 2013

Well the new year has begun and I am committed to doing a daily blog. I like this avenue to post things that I find enjoyable or humorous, etc. Those of you that know me know I became a Christian a long time ago but I fell away from that in the past few years. NOT because I believe any less in the salvation fofered by Christ but because to the religiousness of churches and one churches that just asked for more and more of me while spiritually feeding me less and less. So I took time off from church.

I have started back to a very fun church in Bolingbrook and I am enjoying this time of renewal. I was sitting in church this past week as they announced the man running the video and tech group is leaving to become a full time pastor at a church in Joliet. My first incling was to tell the pastor that I can help in that department but then I decided that I am going to enjoy this time of humility and receive from the Lord.

I have also set a number of other goals/resolutions for the year. I am posting them hear so you will ask me about them periodically and keep me on track.

So hear goes....

Self-Development - I am going to focus on self development and peace of mind this year, this will include 30mins of reading the bible a day, 10-15 minutes of meditation daily and  30 minutes of reading a self help book. I am currently reading @ryanblair's "Nothing to Lose, Everything to Gain", I am about a third of the way through it and enjoying Ryan's commonsense take on things.

Visalus - I am going to do what it takes to become a Visalus Ambassador this year, in order to do that I need to help 100 - 120 people make an additional $300 - 500/month. I will start this by re-qualifying as a director in January, followed by qualifying as a Regional Director in March, then as a National Director in June, then as a Presidential Director in September, then finally an Ambassador in November. I will reward myself for this hard work by taking my children to Disney World for the Christmas Holiday 2013.

Health - On top of continuing the 90 day challenges I am going to ramp up my exercise program and start the P90X exercise program on 1-5-13. I am starting on a Saturday to I can gauge if doing this first thing in the morning will be the wisest choice.I will post my progress via this blog and on my bodybyvi challenge site.

Relationships with my children - I am getting back on track and taking my children out on 1 on 1 days to reconnect with them. I will do this every other week. I will also take my children at least once a week during the week in addition to the weekend I have done.

Gov Rod Blago surprise you??? REALLY?

I was not a fan of Gov Rod nor did I vote for him but I never envisioned he could pull something like this. Not even my thoughts on term limits would have been able to avoid this.

I think all politicians should be limited 2 terms. Government is supposed to be be by the people and for the people. Unfortunately, ours has turned into "by the people, for themselves". Don't get me wrong, I think all politicians do some good but there is always a price.

Senator A will voted for Senator B' bill if Senator B with add a little earmark for a pet project. Are politicians not buying our laws and each other on a daily basis? They call it governmental terms like ear marks or addendum but in reality it is nothing more than a quid pro quo. Lobbyists and pundits make millions trying to sway the vote their way, why does it not bother us?

Why is what Rod Blagojevich did so bad? I mean he was just trying to look after himself and his family right? Stuff like this goes on all the time.

I'll tell you the reason it is causing such an uproar, because it was caught on tape. There is no he said, he said, she said...etc. It is just flat out a weasel of a man trying to fleece other crooks for and got caught. Just wait until he and his chief of staff start naming names when push comes to shove.

Word is that Jesse Jackson, Jr was allegedly the one trying to buy the senate seat for a mere $1.5MM...Now Senators only make $169,300 a year. The gig is for 2 years so he is making a $1.5MM investment for less than $400K return? Really? NO! It is because he knows that if he get in there he has a good chance to keeping that senate seat and he will get cushy jobs for all of his family and cronies.

If I am reading and hearing all of the information correctly, it appears that our President Elect Obama was the only one with class and dignity in this. Of course, that is probably because he knew of the sting on Blago so he was keeping himself clear. Whether he knew about the sting or not I give him kudos for making the showing that he was sticking to his guns.

Ahh just another day in Illinois politics...I think I am going to run for office.

Being Downsized SUCKS! BUT You can rebound!!

If you have never gone through the confusion, frustration, embarrassment, concern, fear, heartache, trauma and anger of a lay off let me prepare you...IT SUCKS!

Don't let all of these people tell you it will be alright. Take time and go through your own process. I needed to. I was the recruiting manager for a major company in it's industry, I was aware of an impending lay off but was told I was not to be effected. So on go the meetings and after all of the other meetings I got called into my own personal meeting where I was given the news.

I felt like a complete idiot that I did not see this coming. I felt betrayed by my boss and others in Sr level roles within my business unit. They knew they HAD to know, I mean who makes broad strokes with a brush without knowing who is going to be impacted. Right? They claim they had no knowledge until the 5:30pm the day before I was laid off. OK if that is the case then why not give me a heads up phone call so I can be prepared? I had been a dutiful employee, I worked hard, out performed my peers in other business units so why didn't you have the guts to give me a call out of loyalty and let me know.

So after I got over the shock which took a couple of hours, I got on the phone. (It only took a couple of hours because I was getting a severance package.) I got on the phone because I NEED to work. I like work. I like what I do so here is what I did to rebound.

1. I got on the phone and started calling into my network and let people know I was looking
2. I updated my resume and highlighted my skills
3. I posted that resume on the job boards and of all places Craigslist (more on this)
   
4. I took a hard look at what I wanted to do with my career. I decided I wanted to stay in my chosen profession so I scoured the job boards, blogs, industry sites, Craigslist and LinkedIN for jobs
5. I ONLY applied for positions I was qualified for. (Don't waste your time throwing mud against the wall and applying for everything, but also don't be so selective as to not apply to those jobs at your pay grade and one lower)

A week passed and nothing. I continued to call into my network and farm leads, follow up on contacts. I was working the system. As a recruiter I knew how to do that and more. I kept my resume updated and continued to apply for roles within my scope of experience.

Then it happened, I got a call, then another, then another, then another, then another...I attribute this to my not just sitting on my pita couch crying "poor me" or just sitting around on my severance. Had I done that I would not have found my new jobs in less than 3 weeks of being laid off.

How did i get a job? Was it the many phone calls I made to my network? NO Well then it had to be the multiple resumes I sent to job advertisements? NO Well then it must have been a call I got from my resume on one of the major job boards? NOPE not that either.

The position I ultimately took is actually a better position with more potential in both personal growth and income than my last role. And it came from the place where I almost did not put my resume, Craigslist. I did not find this job it found me.

Bottom line is you need to take some time and process your lay off but do NOT look at it as a personal failure because you could not have done anything about a RIF (reduction in force). The guys with the pencils in corporate that do not know what you do on a daily basis make those decisions. Keep you chin up and trudge on.

If you need help with a resume lift or critique do not hesitate to respond to this blog with your resume. I have over 15 years in recruitment and I would be more than willing to help out all of those who ask.

Times are tough out there and it does not appear they are going to get much better, BUT there are still companies hiring so don't give up!!!!