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Pick up any fearmongering newspaper today and you will read about companies laying off hundreds, even thousands of workers.   It can be a frightening period especially for those of us who feel like our continued employment is contingent upon market forces and not individual performance.

Instead of worrying and waiting, what can you do now?

1.  Multi-task, multi-skill, multi-talent.    Sometimes it doesn’t matter if you are the best lefthanded XRay technician in the clinic, if XRay technicians are being laid off,  you are on the list.  Remember that old joke about the two guys on safari being chased by lion…”think we can really outrun him?” one says to the other.  “I don’t care about HIM, all I have to do is outrun YOU,” says the other.  Same for people going through a layoff, all you need to do is be just a little more valuable than the other guy.

2.  Do a great job.  In most cases, the layoffs happen first to the average or mediocre performers.  Get yourself out of that group NOW.  You can sit around and worry, maybe even bitchcomplain…but that won’t pay for groceries or cable.    Now is the time to work longer and harder.

3.  Get Yourself Ready.  This might mean save more of your current paycheck.  It might mean to update your resume or take night courses.  It might mean to start doing research on companies which are hiring in your space.  When and if you get laid off, you want to be ready to go on your new job hunt.  A favorite place to start is [tag]JOBDIG[/tag] at www.jobdig.com where we list current job openings that are available NOW.  Another site to look at is [tag]LINKUP.COM[/tag]…this is a site that [tag]aggregates jobs from company websites[/tag]…NOT jobboards.  Both are worth a look.

4.  Remember [tag]layoffs are most definitely NOT personal[/tag].  Most layoffs are institutional and not personal and you should not take it that way.  Most of the time, the reasons for layoffs are completely out of your control and jurisdiction.  Obviously, you will go through a period of grief-like attitudes.  Knowing that it is NOT you might help you.  Start thinking this way now.

5.   Get Busy.  Everyone can work harder at work.  This is a fact.  You should give yourself a bit of a pep talk.  If you ever played sports at any level—this is the workplace equivalent of the halftime or pregame speech.  I never had a single coach who played the [tag]“pity us, ain’t it awful” [/tag]game.  Give yourself one of those brutally honest talks today and bust your ass.   You might not avoid an upcoming layoff, but you won’t be playing what-if, or woulda-shoulda-coulda with yourself later.

Good luck.

[tags]recession planning, company layoffs, how to avoid layoffs, companies who lay off, what to do when you are laid off [/tags]