Thousands of people have lost their jobs following the total lockdowns and isolation centres put in place to deal with the COVID-19 outbreak. With many offices going on temporary hiatuses and others forcing employees to work from home, many shift workers have lost their jobs as they are incapable of providing any services out of their place of business. The rising death tolls of COVID-19 victims has raised a lot of panic on what the future holds, especially if you lack a source of income to pay your bills and food.
Learning how to cope with anxiety after a lay off not only helps you maintain good physical and mental health but also gives you hope for a better future. This article looks at some of the ways you can deal with anxiety during this time of layoffs caused by COVID-19.
Stay Positive and Optimistic
It is important to understand that being fired or temporarily laid off is nothing personal. For instance, if you were a leader in your team, then it means people believed you because they saw the value in your work. Layoffs affect both parties since your employer is not having a good time either. The more positive and optimistic you are in a situation like this, and the less of a victim you are, the more responsibility, power, and respect you gather from everyone that sees you. The key to getting this right is by acknowledging the emotions of despair and accept your current situation since your job doesn’t define who you are.
Find Someone To Talk To
Instead of bad-mouthing your boss or old company on social media and other online platforms, try to find someone to talk to as they can help you get over it. Being fired or laid off allows you to be more than your job or boss since you have another chance to start over again. Talking to your closest friend or a mentor about how you feel and what you can do about it helps to ease your mind from the unexpected outcome. A good mentor may open your mind to new possibilities that can help you meet both your financial and life goals.
Think About the Costs You Can Control
If you are worried about your finances in the short term, then look for ways to relieve yourself of financial burdens that you can handle. For instance, you can negotiate with your debtors whether they can lower your interest or if you can delay your instalments. Another way you can control your costs is by halting auto payments or reconsider your subscriptions. Limit yourself to what you can live without temporarily until you get another source of income.
Apply for Unemployment Benefits
Whether you are furloughed or laid off, you can apply for unemployment benefits and look for other similar programs that may be available in your area, state, city or county. For instance, some of the laid-off workers in the US may qualify for a pandemic relief program that can take your mind of the emotional and financial burden of losing your primary source of income. Regardless of your current situation, it is still worth checking into these programs to see if you qualify, not for free money, but getting some of your tax dollars back.
Know Your Cash Runway
A cash runway is essentially how long you can go before running out of money. If you do not want to wait until it is too late, consider selling off any unproductive assets. These are items that sucked up your time and money without giving you more money in return. Alternatively, you can downgrade your living situation which aims at cutting down your expenses to extend your cash runway.
Look Towards the Future
Lastly, you can now focus on the future by figuring out your goals and what you want your next move to be. If you didn’t get fulfillment in your previous job, then you should consider other dreams and ambitions that are slightly bigger than what you just left. You can take the skills you have been developing to the next industry or move to a different city where the cost of living works in your favor.
The key to getting out of the COVID-19 outbreak with a sound mind and good health is by using this time as an opportunity to get one step closer to your true destiny. Look for ways to build your skills while generating some income and extend your cash runway. Whatever your situation is, you need to take this situation seriously and force it into an opportunity to make you more self-reliant and independent.