The Day I Was Laid Off

Up until recently, I worked for a very large commercial bank. Early last year, the bank expressed that they were having some difficulties and suffered huge losses due to the bad economy. They also announced that they would be laying off a very large number of employees, to the tune of about 50,000. Well fearing the worst, my husband and I began to prepare for the worst, just in case I did get laid off.

We discussed our options and decided it was time to take aggressive action. Gone were the days of frivolous spending, eating out several nights a week and weekend getaways. We also began to save like crazy, just in case.

Meanwhile, at work just about everyone was feeling nervous to the point that productivity was extremely low. All people could think about was whether or not they would be laid off, and whether or not the company would survive. People also became very competitive and aggressive in an effort to make themselves stand out in an attempt to make themselves look better than the next guy.

The media made things even worse. It seemed that the bank was in the news just about every single day. The bank's stock price dropped dramatically and again, this caused people to become even more distracted at work. Instead of working, most people were busy checking the stock price all day, watching their stock options and 401k's deteriorate into nothing.

I survived to the end of the year and kind of became complacent. I thought I escaped the ax. But boy was I wrong!

Two weeks ago, I went to work like normal and about an hour after I arrived, I spotted my boss walking towards one of the conference rooms. I thought this was odd because (1) my boss and I do not work out of the same office, and (2) he NEVER comes to my office unless he's meeting with me. So when I saw him duck into an office with a woman that I did not recognize, I immediately became suspicious. I even jokingly said to my co-worker sitting in the next cubicle that maybe I was being laid off.

Well about five minutes later, my boss comes looking for me and states that he wanted me to join him for a short "meeting” and he directed me to the conference room. When I walked into the conference room, I was introduced to a woman from the human resources department and was then given the bad news that I was being laid off. "The bank is trying to cut costs and therefore they've decided to eliminate your position” he stated.

I was very calm at that point and actually felt relieved. It's hard to explain, but after going through the past year wondering and worrying if I would be laid off, actually getting laid off felt like a huge weight had been lifted off of my shoulders. I have now joined the ranks of the unemployed and am a statistic.

I received a generous severance package and since my husband and I had been saving every penny since last year, we amassed a nice sized emergency savings account and should be ok for awhile.

My plan now is to work on launching a home business. I have been doing internet marketing for the past year as a side hustle and now hope to pursue that full time. I worked like crazy for my former employer, so I figure if I work like crazy for myself, I will make it. Self-employment isn't for everyone, but the thought of going back to work for corporate America makes me sick to my stomach!