The upside to being downsized<\/h3>\n
How to get on the fast track to \u201cWhy didn\u2019t I do this sooner?\u201d<\/p>\n
Anne had mixed feelings as she stared at a box containing the contents of her office, representing nearly a decade of her career. She had anticipated her role would be eliminated and thought she was emotionally prepared but found herself nonetheless stunned\u2026 and inspired. This was the push she needed to finally start her own business. \u201cIt\u2019s a big leap!\u201d exclaimed Anne. \u201cI think if someone offered me a job at that moment, I would have jumped on it, but I\u2019m glad that didn\u2019t happen.\u201d<\/p>\n
Some people, like Anne, see change coming, but many find themselves in similar situations without warning. If you\u2019re not prepared, a loss of income may mean taking on more debt or depleting your retirement savings.<\/p><\/blockquote>\n
Like many Canadians, Anne traded her daily commute for a home-based business. The freedom to set her own hours and be her own boss was a long-time dream. Anne couldn\u2019t control the timing of her employer\u2019s downsizing but it worked out well. She had saved enough money to ease the financial stress while focusing on starting her business.<\/p>\n
Those savings, along with severance pay and employment insurance (EI) benefits, kept her financially afloat until it was profitable. Through the federal government-funded Self Employment (SE) program, Anne received EI benefits in addition to income generated by her start-up, plus business skills training (eligibility requirements for the SE program may differ by province).<\/p>\n
Some people, like Anne, see change coming, but many find themselves in similar situations without warning. If you\u2019re not prepared, a loss of income may mean taking on more debt or depleting your retirement savings. Both scenarios can have long-term consequences.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/section>\n<\/div>\n
\n\n \n
\n<\/div>\n<\/section>\n<\/div>\n\n\n \n\n\nIs it time to ditch the suit and commute?<\/h3>\n
Here\u2019s what a survey of more than 650 working parents revealed about flexible work, like working from home, having a flexible schedule or working part-time:<\/p>\n
90%: Absolutely certain or very confident that a job with work flexibility would decrease stress levels<\/p>\n
89%: Having a job with work flexibility would help them be a more attentive spouse\/partner\/ significant other<\/p>\n
84%: Children are the reason for wanting a job with flexible options<\/p>\n
52%: Flexible work options would increase the amount of time for date nights<\/p>\n
9%: Current work-life balance is great<\/p>\n
Source: 3rd Annual Work-Life-Relationship Survey by FlexJobs<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/section>\n<\/div>\n
\n\n \n
\n<\/div>\n<\/section>\n<\/div>\n\n\n \n\n\nThree proactive bounce-back tips<\/h3>\n
The key to quickly moving on after a job loss is proactive planning. It may actually be the best thing that\u2019s happened to your career. \u201cAfter decades of rush-hour traffic and office politics, I was ready for a change \u2013 I just couldn\u2019t initiate the first step,\u201d said Anne, adding that her only regret is not starting her business sooner.<\/p>\n
1. Consider your options now<\/p>\n
Would you retire early, go back to school, look for another job or maybe start a business?<\/p>\n
2. Research government programs<\/p>\n
Determining your next step may be easier if you qualify for educational or financial assistance.<\/p>\n
3. Put money aside<\/p>\n
Even if you never use it to replace income, an emergency reserve will help you more easily manage any major life change.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n
Sources: Self Employment Program \u2013 http:\/\/tinyurl.com\/z2wa8pk<\/a> and http:\/\/tinyurl.com\/jfwf67l<\/a>
\nThe Impact of Flexible Work on Love, Relationships, Sex and Health \u2013 http:\/\/tinyurl.com\/j36ftte<\/a><\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/section>\n<\/div>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"If you have been recently downsized, it is not all doom an gloom.\u00a0 There are things you can do to help and since you being let go is likely outside of your control, just embrace the change and look at this as an opportunity as a way to try something…<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":26,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-201870","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry"],"aioseo_notices":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/metroactive.org\/wordpress\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/201870","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/metroactive.org\/wordpress\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/metroactive.org\/wordpress\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/metroactive.org\/wordpress\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/26"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/metroactive.org\/wordpress\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=201870"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/metroactive.org\/wordpress\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/201870\/revisions"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/metroactive.org\/wordpress\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=201870"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/metroactive.org\/wordpress\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=201870"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/metroactive.org\/wordpress\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=201870"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}