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So after 15 years with the firm, and the 2nd "restructuring" in 12 months, I'm getting made redundant at the end of Jan 2014.
The only job i applied for, was basically my current job combined with my boss's, unsuprisingly he got it and i didnt. I am getting a very good payout and in reality i was thinking about leaving anyway..... but suddenly there is a lot to think about not least life insurance, updating the CV, etc etc
I am single, no kids, no mortgage and share a nice flat in Edinburgh and looking forward to riding the bike and enjoying life a bit more... but am also slightly paranoid i may never get a senior job again... but also quite excited about that and thinking about doing an MSc.
I know i can get contract auditing work quite easily, so i wont starve but am looking for some advice as to what to focus on over the next few months??
Should i focus on stealing as many paper clips as i can from the office over the next weeks?
If i go self-employed where can i get advice on how to get started??
If i take a gap year - will anyone ever employ me again?
Does any of this matter??
Does any of this matter??
No...
Go to Thailand buy your own island and become king of your land
new jobs are often about making contacts, butter up teh right people, join linkdin add friends colleagues anyone who useful
use the redundancy to go travelling for a few months
If you can pick up the odd freelancing job then its a good way to fill the time. Very easy to set yourself up as a sole trader, then it's up to you to get a few clients. You can work a few days here and there to pay the bills, get some riding in, take a long holiday, do some part time education, decide if freelancing is for you. At the end of it your CV is still intact and possibly enhanced.
You are in a good position to do whatever you want (no kids, no mortgage, a pocket full of cash) so go and do whatever you want!
RBS?
[i]I know i can get contract auditing work quite easily[/i]
You know this, for a fact?
Horrible feeling being made redundant, best of luck moving forwards!
Serious question here...
a lot to think about not least life insurance
I am single, no kids, no mortgage and share a nice flat in Edinburgh
Why is life insurance a concern?
travel, travel, travel, travel. travel.
Start networking, if you haven't already.
How are you feeling? becuase if you were going to go back to Uni a reference might not be concern and if you've got a good employee sick pay scheme you could have a terrible bout of something every week, who knew?! *cough*
Don't look at it as a negative.
In reality you're being giving a nice wedge to go and do something else.
What that might be is entirely up to you.
I was made redundant at the end of October, so I know what you are going through. Luckily I was given PILON until the end of January because the job market in my field is very quiet at this time of year. This also means that freelance and contract work is quiet.
Mrs CD is on a much lower wage so luckily we have mortgage payment protection should I not find something in time.
As others have said get networking, senior roles often aren't advertised and don't come along so often so it's important to get and keep your name out there. This includes networking with acquaintances who may not even be in a relevant industry - for instance I'm waiting to hear about a 1 month contract at a company my friend works for, not something I would have ever looked for but he vouched that I could do it.
Having said that if you can afford it travel, you are unlikely to get the chance again.
Good luck
You've already shown a good attitude in your post. that's important. You are certainly not alone so don't take it too personally (its hard not to do this at least initially)
See it as an opportunity, which it is.
One query, why with no kids, mortgage etc do you need any life insurance ? I would say that money is best spent on extra pension or other investments outside pension, such as building a rainy day pot.
You should use the next few weeks/months to gain as much knowledge as you can from your current job, what's in your head/experience is fine to take with you, trade secrets/client info etc is not.
Make sure you leave on good terms, even if that means being insincere, you never know when you might come across these folks again.
Update the CV, have a few different versions depending on what sort of jobs you might be interested in. Don't tie yourself down, think about different things you could do, things you might like to try now you are free.
Make a plan. Have a bucket-list of nice things you'd like to do but didn't have the time for.
You should think about money obviously - how long it will last, way you really want to spend money on, what you need to spend money on. This means thinking about when you'll be working again.
I assume you'll be offered some outplacement sessions, make the most of those, in fact see if you can get more than the standard package they are offering.
If you care about Job Seekers allowance (it of course has strings attached which may not suit) research that
Have you seen the 10 things a mountain biker needs to do video that went up today, over on PB? 😀
An old manager of mine told me to always have a 'plan B' ready in case of redundancy. I was made redundant in September and knowing it was coming gave me the chance to set some money aside to bolster my redundancy pay off and to start work on my plan B.
After taking it easy for a couple of weeks I got stuck into looking for other work whilst working on my idea to set up my own business. My advice would be if you get offered transition support by your employer you should take it as having a discussion with somebody who will be totally objective about your plans (whatever they end up being)is really useful.
If you decide to go for job seekers allowance be aware that you'll be set weekly job application targets by the job centre. Its a faff and takes up time you could be spending on a more focussed approach to finding a new job as the job centre staff are more used to dealing with work shy chavs. Of course it does help you keep busy.
Thanks for all the comments - my thinking about life insurance, was around some kind of critical illness cover, that i could use if i had an accident or something similar.
Travelling is defintely on the list - though i did a lot in this job, ive never really been to SE Asia or Central America.
One of the jobs that looks interesting is a short term contract in the Solomon Islands...
I am starting on a plan - of people to contact and avenues to explore, plus places to ride, mountains to climb etc 🙂
Travelling is defintely on the list - though i did a lot in this job, ive never really been to SE Asia or Central America.
Do that. Seriously. 6-12 months travelling there can't fail to feed the soul (at the very very least). Most people would kill to be in a position to take off at this stage in their life. You may not get as good an opportunity again.
If you're 100% confident that finding work won't be an issue then live it up for as long as the money lasts!
If i take a gap year - will anyone ever employ me again?
Yes. Would be seen as a positive by some employers, though perhaps don't call it a 'gap year'.