Unemployment

Archive Spotlight: I thought it would be a good idea to start spotlighting a couple of posts that are buried in the archives. Some of you are fairly new to this site and others are lifelong followers (you are, aren’t you?). No matter what category you fall into, I’m sure there’s at least 1 article here you haven’t read. Enjoy!

3 Steps to Facing Difficulties on the Road to Success

Yesterday, I had lunch at Mc Donald’s and as I sat there, blackberry in one hand and a fry in the other, 3 people sat across from me and began to converse.  I can remember glancing up to take a sneak peak at the scenario and seeing two women, one wearing a Mc Donald’s management style shirt and the other in business casual wear. They sat directly across from a man who appeared to be in his mid thirties also dressed in a management style shirt. In my gut, I could sense that something bad was about to happen.

Being the retail veteran that I am I instantly tagged the woman dressed in Mc Donald’s management garments to be the restaurant manager and the other woman to be the district manager and the gentleman as a supervisor. Shoveling fries into my mouth and keeping a close ear towards their conversation I overheard the district manager say to the supervisor,

Well, it’s come to a point that we’re going to have to part ways. We’ve given you opportunity after opportunity to show us that you can handle such a high volume restaurant, but it’s not working out. You will be paid for a full day today however, we’re going to need you to turn in all company owned materials immediately.

I nearly choked on a fry when I heard it. Instantly I felt the warm satisfactory feeling you get from eating comfort foods and a growing discomfort from the situation all at the same time. I was shocked to actually hear someone getting fired from their job. I quickly lowered my eyes and sipped more of my sprite from my “gut buster” sized cup and tried not to pay them any attention.

The gentleman made very little attempt to “state his case,” gave a professional handshake to both ladies, and left his seat. I couldn’t help but wonder, “what do you do when your solid rock isn’t so solid anymore? What do you do when your foundation is washed away at sea by a storm of epic proportions?” You see, for that gentleman, Mc Donald’s was his solid rock, his foundation for wealth, his income. I don’t know if he has a second job or what his circumstances are, but if he’s like most Americans, he probably needed that job.

My point is, what do you do when you’re facing a difficult journey ahead on your road to success? Well, you can stop to cry and dwell in your sorrow and circumstances. Or, you can follow these 3 steps to getting things back on track.

1. Reposition Yourself – When you’re facing difficult times ahead you have to position yourself for success. That means maximizing every resource you have and minimizing every cost. In short, your expensive phone bill is going to have to be cut (you don’t need the internet and multimedia text messaging anyway!), you might have to cancel cable and read to entertain yourself for a while, and you  definitely might consider canceling your gym membership. Cutting unnecessary costs positions you for wealth building and creates helpful habits for your everyday living.

Update: For more on how to reposition yourself check out this video.

1. Reorganize Yourself – When you’re facing difficult times ahead you have to organize all of your resources. If getting yourself organized means tiding up that old resume, cleaning up that home office you now use for extra garage space, or simply organizing the files you’ll need to succeed on your computer, then get to it! Organizing your environment makes it easier for thoughts, creativity, and productivity to flow. If you’re organized you can see past the clutter and clear into your destiny!
2. React to your situation – And finally, when you’re facing difficult times you have to react . . . and quickly! If my boss were to tell me I was fired today, as soon as I got home I would be online looking for jobs. I would be making phone calls and networking with friends to see who’s hiring and where. When you’re falling and the safety net has been pulled from under you, your reaction will determine your outcome.

As I sat listening to their conversation, I desperately wanted to get up and tell the guy that everything’s going to be OK and that he was facing a difficult journey ahead but he could make it. All he had to do was reposition himself, reorganize, and react hastily to the situation.

What do you think? What else can he do as he faces a difficult journey ahead? What would you do? Let me know in the comments below.

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