I’m probably one of them. Back in 2003 I bought a house that I truthfully shouldn’t have even qualified for. I had no verifiable income, and my wife at the time was making just enough every month to make one mortgage payment.. Two years later, I got divorced and had to sell the house. I was able to sell it for way more than I paid for it, and actually made a profit on the deal.

Lucky me… 

Color me unsympathetic, but I’m really pissed off that everyone in government thinks we should save all these homeowners because they made some major bad decisions. I can’t blame anyone for trying to save their homes, I’d probably doing the same darn thing…. But its not the government’s job to bail out everyone who made a bad decision.

But I’m not really angry with people that stretched their budgets to try to get into more home than they could truly afford… What I’m extremely angry about is that the banks and mortgage companies ALLOWED it to happen. I’m also very angry at home speculators that drove prices up to begin with. These people DO NOT deserve to be saved from foreclosure. They took the gamble, and lost… Don’t use MY money to bail them out!

Now, we see that huge financial companies are failing, and declaring bankruptcy because of all the risky mortgages they gave out… They don’t deserve to be bailed out either. They took the gamble, and lost.

At the end of the day, if you bought a house, and are going to get kicked out because you can’t make the payments… I feel for you… I really do… It sucks.

Blame the mortgage company, blame the government, blame your realtor… But don’t forget to blame yourself…  You knew you were stretching, you knew that there was a potential that something bad would happen, but you had the thought of home ownership clouding your judgement and took the risk anyway.

At the end of the day, you only have yourself to blame for predicament you are in. Do what you can to save your home, but don’t expect to get bailed out… Start making plans to move to a cheaper place, or rent for awhile.

Its tough, but maybe next time you’ll know better.

When I started, it was predominately an e-mag/forum site… then I tried to monetize it by selling kites. I even opened a “brick and mortar” shop in Cocoa, FL, but had to close it when I got divorced.

Anyway, I was sitting at home one day and realized that it was a pretty dumb idea to not do something I really enjoyed, so I sat down to re-design the online shop for Kitestop.

I’m proud to announce that I’ve finally completed building out the shop and it is now available at : www.kitestop.com

I’ve added a subscription newsletter, a community forum, and have even been blogging. Please stop by and take a look (even better would be to buy something there). Kiteflying videos and an interactive game are in the works.

1.  Get thee to the unemployment office.
   Many people feel ashamed of getting unemployment compensation. When you step into that office, you feel like a failure. Like somehow it was your fault for getting laid off. But the truth is, you are entitled to that compensation. It generally does not even come close to making up for your lost salary, but its atleast something. As soon as you get those walking papers from your employer, make a bee-line to the Unemployment Office and file your claim. It usually takes a week or two before you start getting compensated, so it would be in your best interested to file as soon as possible. For example, the last time I got laid off, I was able to file all my forms online, and never even had to go down to the unemployment office. Of course, I was lucky, and got offered a job before the payments started coming in, but it certainly was easy.
2. Keep in contact with your co-workers.
   If you are being escorted off the premises, this might be difficult to do, but if you are lucky you’ll have a chance to exchange good-byes with your co-workers. Make sure they know how to contact you. You would be suprised on how many job opportunities get passed on by former co-workers and friends.
3. Take a few days off before getting into the job search.
   If you are lucky enough to have received a severance package, take a few days off to recharge your batteries. This is a stressful time, and it will take a few days to adjust to your new situation. Yes, the mortage and car payments are due, but taking a day or two to reassess your situation will make things easier down the road. 
4. View your layoff as an opportunity.
   Think of your layoff as an opportunity to get a better, higher paying job. In today’s job market, you have to jump jobs in order to move up. Look at this as an opportunity to search for a job upgrade. Either pay wise or responsibility wise. If you are desperate for a paycheck, feel free to take a job to make ends meet, but continue your job search.
5. Don’t forget temp agencies.
   You’d be surprised by how many temp agencies there are for just about every field imaginable. Sometimes a very lucrative, fulfilling job can be found if you get your foot in the door with a temp agency. The majority of temp agencies get paid from contracts they get from employers, so you shouldn’t have to pay anyone to find  you a job. 

1. Keep calm.
   As hard as it is to do when your world comes crashing down. Remember to stay calm. Its easy to let anger and worry cloud your judgement at this time. The company will be telling you a bunch of stuff related to your unemployment and it is important that you hear what they are saying. Yes, this is extremely upsetting, and emotionally draining, but blowing up is not going to help the situation.
2. Be attentive.
   I’ve been there, when you get laid off, you’re mind starts to wander. “What the heck am I going to do now?” This is the time to block those kind of thoughts out. You need to pay special attention on what the company is offering you and make sure you take every advantage. Are they giving you a severance package? How is your vacation and sick leave handled? How about health insurance coverage? Pay special attention to the details, as these are easy to miss when you are thinking of other things.
3. Get out as soon as you can.
   This is my personal view. If you aren’t escorted out of the building, don’t linger around the office. Get what you absolutely need, and try to make arrangements to come back later to clear out your desk. You should make a point of getting all your ex-co-workers contact information and give them yours. But don’t stick around to reminisce about old times. You are going to be emotional, and there is no reason for anyone to see it. This might be a “macho” thing, but never let them see you sweat.
4. Watch for other laid-off co-workers.
   Ok, here is a phenomenon that may be particular to me. But the times I’ve been laid off, there is generally a gathering of everyone that was just laid-off either in the parking lot, or a bar near-by. Find it. This will be your opportunity to gather everyone’s contact information and get some potential job information. This is the time where everyone starts talking about what their preliminary plans are. Sometimes a potential job opportunity, freelance gig or business venture will form from this meeting.
5. Never burn your bridges.
   As tempting as it is to get angry and burst from the doors bad-mouthing every executive in the office, or anyone that has ever pissed you off… Don’t do it. Again, you never know what the future brings.. One of those people you are “flaming” might end up being able to offer you a job somewhere else, or know someone looking for someone like you.

Its important to remain positive. Once you receive that pink slip, don’t fall into the trap of feeling ashamed and negative about your layoff. See this as an opportunity to find a better employer, get a better salary, or change careers all-together.

You get a few people that are just absolutely stunned, they believe that they don’t deserve to be laid off, and that there are others that were somehow more deserving of a termination. There are others that look at it as “heck, I was unhappy anyway… good riddance.” And then there are even others that look at it like its an opportunity to make a change in their lives.

I originally started this series of posts thinking about how you can prepare yourself for a layoff. But what I ended up writing about was a more of a set of tips for dealing with the entire layoff process, from preparing yourself before the layoff to dealing with things after the layoff.

What I’ve come to realize is that there really isn’t anything you can do to prepare yourself mentally for a layoff. It will always come as a shock no matter if you are given a month’s notice or you are told to leave now. I guess there is always something in the back of your mind that says, “It won’t be me” regardless of how much evidence there is to the contrary.

As pessimistic as this may sound, the best way to prepare yourself for a layoff, is to be ready for one at all times. Even if you have no clue a layoff is coming (and some companies are really good at disguising their layoff plans), here are a few things you can do to make getting laid off a little easier on yourself: 

1.  Have a nest-egg.
   Your parents probably have been telling you this for most of your life, but nothing makes getting laid off easier than having a savings. Most financial advisors suggest having enough money in savings to last 3-6 months without a  job. Losing your job is the reason why. You don’t have to put away huge chunks of money every month, but dedicate yourself to saving a few dollars here and there. Believe me, when you are laid off, you will appreciate that you have some money put away for emergencies like this.
2. Make sure you have an email address outside of work.
   There are many free email providers out there, like Google and Microsoft, that will give you a permanent web-based email address. Take advantage of these services before you are laid off. I’ve known a few people that only used their work email addresses, and when they got laid off, there was no way people could contact them via email. You don’t want this to ever happen.
3. Keep your network of friends active.
   Sometimes its easy to let work and family take priority over friendships. But if you ever get laid off, it will be your network of friends that could potentially make things easier on you. You don’t have to have constant contact with your network, just make sure that people don’t feel like you only talk to them when you need something from them. This only takes a few hours a month at the least. You never know when one of your friends might need someone with your skills to help them out.
4. Update your resume.
   The longer you work at a job, the more out of date your resume becomes. Unless you have been actively looking for a job, or you’ve been through this before, chances are your resume is stale. It might not even have your latest contact information or employment information in it. Freshen up your job skills and accomplishments.
5. Backup your files.
   Make sure you back up your files to a CD/DVD while you can. Because when the axe falls, you probably won’t get a chance to gather your contact lists and other personal files off your computer.

Rarely do these layoffs come as a complete suprise. Unless you go to work with blinders on, you’ll see signs of a company struggling. Has the company lost a couple of big clients recently? Are there senior staff members resigning unexpectedly? Has the company stopped replacing people that quit? Have they stopped or limited ordering office supplies? If these things are happening around your company, it wouldn’t be a bad idea to start preparing yourself for a layoff.

Not that you should live in fear of being laid off, but it never hurts to do like the Boy Scouts, and ”Be Prepared”. 

So, I have provided 10 tips to creating a happy workplace.

1. Show appreciation for your employees.
This is a key ingredient to creating a happy workplace. Employees need to feel like they have value within the organization. Create programs that recognize the employees for their contributions to the company. But try not to over do it. Its one thing to have an “employee of the quarter”, its another thing to have “cleanest cubicle” and “best haircut” awards. Another thing you can do is to provide free lunches, happy hours, or donuts/bagels to celebrate good work. Everyone likes free food, and nothing says that you appreciate your employees more than filling their bellies. This also provides an avenue for socializing between co-workers, which in turn fosters a feeling of esprit de corps between your employees. Yes, this is your company, but without the hard work that your people put into it, you would not be successful.

2. Provide career advancement opportunities.
Nothing is worse than working in a position that seems like a dead-end. Make sure that if you hire an employee there is a clear avenue for their advancement. You don’t have to go too formal and have job descriptions and such, but atleast make it so that your employees feel like their career is moving forward. Allow for cross-training, where employees can learn different positions within your organization. Its quite possible that there is a budding dynamo in your organization, but you never would have known about it because they were stuck in a job that wasn’t utilizing their skills appropriately.

3. Don’t hog the perks.
Make sure that if you recieve any “freebies” or party invitiations, that you share them with your employees. Use your company’s “purchasing power” to offer discounts and buying opportunities for your employees. Wether this is free sporting/concert tickets or discounts on computer equipment, make sure that you offer these to your employees. I understand it is your company and you should benefit from it, but nothing will cause resentment better than taking all the benefits of ownership without sharing it with the rest of the people in your company.

4. Provide educational opportunities.
This goes hand in hand with number 2. You need to provide an opportunity to educate your employees. Try doing a “brown bag session”, in which a someone from your company teaches an informal class on their specialty during a lunch break. Not only do your empoyees feel like they are learning and growing, but the company will benefit from the increased group knowledge. Also keep an eye out for free or low-cost seminars that your empoyees can attend. Many trade organizations provide educational opportunities, why not encourage your employees attend? This allows for the employee to network with other professionals and inevitably they will bring back some new knowledge to your organization.

5. Communicate with your staff.
Everyone always says that communication is important, but you would be suprised how many companies fail to communicate what is happening within their organization. Some employers follow the old “need to know” policy, where only a select few need to know whats really happening, and the employees should only be included if they “need to know”. I believe this is a major mistake. Its better for the staff to hear the news from the owners/managers than to have them come to conclusions based on rumors and speculation. Try meeting with the staff on a quarterly or monthly basis, just to keep them updated and motivated by the plans you have. If your organization is too large to allow for a company wide meeting, you can try producing a monthly email newsletter.

6. Lead by example.
If you make up a “company policy”, you need to be willing to accept that you cannot be “above the law” just because you are the owner or manager. If you expect your employees to follow your policies, such as being on time for meetings, you need to provide the example and make sure that you are on time for every meeting you attend. You will have a terrible time trying to enforce a policy if employees see that YOU won’t even follow your own policy.

7. Have an “open-door” policy.
This might sound “cliche” but every employer should have a policy where empoyees can openly come to their managment for advice or to communicate a problem/idea. Some of the best ideas/solutions come from the people “in the trenches” and providing an opportunity for your employees to communicate those ideas/solutions to management will create a sense of ownership and pride with your employees. One caveat to this is that if you do have an “open door” policy, you need to be willing to hear some crack-pot ideas, and possibly some issues that are uncomfortable. Nobody said management was easy.

8. Don’t bring negativity to the workplace.
I’ve been in companies where the owners/management will openly complain about a client or worker. This will surely drag down morale. Negativity is contagious, and while it might feel good to vent your frustrations to everyone, it has a tremendous effect on the morale of your employees. If you have a problem with an underperforming worker, or a mistake has been made, address it in private.

9. Socialize.
Throw a party every once in awhile. Its important to provide an avenue for socializing within your organization. The best companies I’ve worked for have had a definate “family” feeling to them, where people were free to get to know each other outside of their regular work environment. People tend to be more communicative when they have a personal relationship with their fellow employees. This doesn’t have to be a huge affair, perhaps everyone meets after work for bowling, or you throw a pot-luck picnic at a local park.

10. Remember that there is life outside of the workplace.
Sometimes employers forget that there is life outside of the workplace. Just because you spend every waking moment thinking about your business, doesn’t mean your employees need to. You must recognize that most employees have family and outside activities that help balance their lives. Do not expect your employees to constantly work on the weekends or work excessive hours. If you do need your employees to put in some extra time, make sure they are compensated either finacially or with flex-time.

While this is by no means a comprehensive plan, it is a good start for any employer that wants to keep their employees happy, motivated and loyal. The key to all of these tips is to create a sense of pride and ownership within your organization. You want to have your employees feel as though they are an essential part of the the company. Employees that feel this, will work harder and more productively, and in the end your company will reap the rewards.