In today’s world of high unemployment, keeping a job in a layoff heavy environment can be just as mentally/emotionally taxing as being given the ax. Add to that a general loathing for the job anyway and you have a recipe for disaster. Hold tight sister! Here are a few ways to hang on to your job as long as necessary and maintain your sanity.
Keep Doing a Good Job
You’ve managed to avoid a pink slip so far and there’s a reason for that. You are good at what you do. You are an asset to your employer. The ever-looming threat of getting booted is weighing on you though. It’s hard to do a bang up job on that presentation when every new e-mail/phone call/meeting request makes you jump and wonder if your time is up. Don’t phone it in and give folks a legitimate reason to give you the deuces. Think about it like this: Right now, you are creating the “wow” project that will get you hired for your next job. Be creative, take on extra work and focus on the fact that you are doing this work for yourself not for your know-nothing boss.
Stay Out of Office Gossip
Don’t you stand around at that water cooler. Hearing about other folks’ drama and who did what to who and which supervisor did somebody dirty, does nothing for you. In fact, it just adds to your on the job stress. Be cordial to people, but do not participate in conversations that are akin to a high school lunch room conversation.
Make a Plan
Avoid using any office time or office resources for your side projects and personal issues, but do take advantage of free time whenever possible. For your lunch break, instead of eating at your desk checking e-mail or spilling the tea in the break room, go outside or to a café. Use your laptop, handheld or plain old notebook to make a plan for yourself. Set tangible goals for your current job and for your path to your next job. Break up the goals into tasks that can be done everyday. If you want to get a new job, set a minimum number of jobs to apply to each week. If you want to finish that filing job at work, set aside time a few minutes each day to organize files. Keep track of your progress. You’ll be pleased at watching yourself march toward your goals. Don’t be afraid to literally give yourself a gold star or even a cookie.
Leave Work at Work
We all need to vent from time to time, but don’t let job woes take over your home life too. As much as possible, keep work at work. That means possibly staying in the office later some nights instead of bringing work home. Nothing worse than wanting to curl up on the couch for a little brainless television, but you have a stack of reports waiting to be read. Feel the pain now to feel the rewards later.
Reorganize or Redecorate Your Office Space
Whether you have a cubicle or a corner office, take some time to change it up a bit. A change of scenery, even if not geographical, can do a world of good. Renew your enthusiasm for work by livening up your space. Re-arrange some things, put up some different artwork and set your Pandora station to something new. You’ll feel like a new woman or least a woman with a new office space.
