I was laid off. How to recover?

Recovering from a layoff can be a challenging time, but it also presents an opportunity for personal and professional growth. During this time, you may be faced with feelings of fear, uncertainty, and stress, but it’s important to remain positive and focus on the opportunities that may come from this situation.

One of the best ways to cope with a layoff is to focus on your physical and mental health. This can include engaging in regular exercise, eating well, and finding ways to reduce stress. The extra time at home with family can also be a positive opportunity to strengthen family bonds and create new memories.

It is also important to stay connected with others. Join a professional organization, attend networking events, and use social media to stay connected with colleagues, friends, and family. Seek support from friends, family, and professional resources, such as career counseling and job search services.

In addition, it is important to assess your skills and strengths, and look for ways to expand your knowledge and experience. Consider taking courses or obtaining certifications to expand your skill set and make yourself a more attractive candidate in the job market.

One effective strategy is to focus on the things that you can control, such as the effort you put into your job search and the steps you take to build your professional network. Make a list of your goals, both short-term and long-term, and take action towards achieving them. This can include volunteering, seeking out freelance or consulting opportunities, or starting your own business.

Ultimately, being laid off is not the end of the world. It is a chance to take stock of your life and career, and to explore new possibilities. By focusing on your health, staying connected, and taking action towards your goals, you can come out of this experience stronger and more resilient. And the time spent with your family can be a great opportunity to strengthen those relationships and create lasting memories.

Live in the NOW – you won’t regret it!

We here all to often to not worry about the future or to wallow in the past. For many of us it seems unlikely we can focus on the “now”, this present time and what we are doing.

We all know that we should live in the now, experience our kids growing, bonding and spending time with our spouses, yet we waste the now thinking about the future and or the past. We don’t enjoy the now as we should, instead attributing excitement and joy to some point in the future, a future that may never come.

I know it is easy to say “live in the now”, but doing it is quite different within our society. I am guilty of it as anyone else. I will be sitting there thinking about my work day ahead or what will need to happen to go to somewhere in the future instead of observing and engaging with my son, watching him as he develops language and eats his breakfast. Making funny faces and learning as he plays with his toys or even when I wish he could just talk instead of use the 30 or so works he has now and how adorable it is

I think back to when he was an infant and how I was impatient for when he was awake more or doing more things. Now I miss the time spent feeding him his bottle or figuring out how to use his hands and how to roll over. I miss those times because I was thinking about the future, and I am missing the now and feeling bad, because I am focusing too much on the past. I remember a line from Kung-Fu panda from the old Turtle master Oogway that sums this up.
“ Yesterday is history, tomorrow is a mystery, but today is a gift. That is why it is called a present.”

Enjoy the now because it is all you have and will give you memories in the future when you watch your family in different ways.
Be ever present in the present, get off your phone and enjoy your real life, in the now, because this is all you get.

AFD 1*

Pets and letting go.

Hey all – I know it has been a bit since our last blog article but had a lot of stuff going on and well, as the title gives away, its about our pets.

My wife and I have 3 cats, yes I know that is a lot. They are all close in age 11-12-13 yrs respective. One day last week our smallest boy ( and youngest cat) threw up and then became lethargic and very much not himself. A trip to the 24 hour emergency vet brought the finding of an abdominal mass and subsequent testing confirmed a highly aggressive, malignant tumor. He has months, not years, the Veterinary Oncologist informed my wife and I.

I knew the older cat would be going soon as She is getting up there in years. Never ever would I have expected this from the baby. He still acts like a kitten and looks it too.

We did his first round of Chemo today and he is doing well. 1 shot a month and then a pill every 2 weeks with steroids daily to hopefully get him in to remission.

Eventually though we will have to make the decision to say good bye when quality of life is no longer available to him. We do not want to make the decision, but we also do not want him to suffer. Losing a pet that you have know almost their whole life, who are like children to you, is a heartbreaking thing. Having to choose the hour of their last, makes it even worse.

My wife and I know we will have to do it sooner then we ever thought, and neither of us is emotionally ready to not have that little character here. He was the best cat – almost like a dog and great with our infant, now toddler, son.

I will miss him, as I miss all my other pets that have gone before. I truly hope that when they cross the rainbow bridge they play and have fun until its time for our spirits to reunite again.

I love you JoePaw. Let’s have a hell of a time together before its over. Then I will see you again one day. My best boy.

1*
AFD

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