Being Laid Off - 4 Steps to go From a Layoff to an Amazing Job - Part 3

As I mentioned in Part 1 of Being Laid Off - 4 Steps to go From a Layoff to an Amazing Job, I know first hand what being laid off feels like. In the months following 9/11 the economy was weak and many companies were cutting back. In 2002 I got word that I was going to be a part of those cutbacks.

Since most companies were cutting back at the same time there were a lot of well qualified people being laid off and since most companies were not hiring at that time there was not much work to be found. One corporate recruiter I was working with warned me that on average he would send a hiring manger 50 resumes for each available job opening. This was not exactly what I wanted to hear.

Given the crummy odds and the large number of people being laid off, I figured it was time to start using some of the survival mode strategies described earlier in this article. I painted houses, power washed decks, taught guitar lessons to neighborhood kids and I even tried buying overstocked shoes in bulk and reselling them on Ebay. No scheme was too hair-brained in my book as long as it was honest, had little or no financial risk and it brought in a few bucks. I also had tremendous support from my relatives. They gave very generously to us. They were a real God send and I am very grateful for all their help. I really hated being laid off at the time but now I can see that God used all these various sources as a means to sustain us until the economy began to turn.

As the environment improved I started aggressively using the attack mode strategies. I called on every recruiter I could find, I ran daily internet searches, I rewrote my resume, I went on every interview I could schedule and I had friends and family asking all around about possible openings. I was absolutely determined that being laid off would not be end a career but rather a transition to the next step.

In the beginning it did not seem to be working. For quite awhile I could not even get a return phone call from anyone. However, after a significant amount of perseverance these efforts began to pay off. I started getting first round interviews. Then I got some second round interviews. What happened next was an amazing example of God keeping me from going down the wrong path by opening up the right door just in time.

I had been interviewing for a six month consulting position writing some computer programs for a medium sized finance company. The interview went well and the recruiter indicated that I would most likely be getting an offer as soon as the required approvals were processed. Although this was by no means a permanent career move it would bring some decent income through the door for the next six months and after being laid off this was the kind of break I could really use so I was really excited about it.

A day or so after that interview I was invited for a preliminary telephone screening with a large investment bank. This phone screen was also for a consulting position but it was only a four month gig. I completed the phone interview but I did not really expect much to come from it because I was so close to an offer with the finance company.

After about a week, I got a call from the recruiter for the finance company saying that, as expected, the approvals had come through and they were interested in giving me the contract. All that remained was for me to meet with them to finalize a few details of the contract and then to sign it. Assuming we agreed on the terms the final papers could be filled out and signed right at the meeting and I would be all set to start work the following week. This sounded really good to me so we made an appointment for the upcoming Thursday.

That Thursday came and I got on a train into the city fully intending to agree to any reasonable terms and land that contract. The meeting was set for 10:30 AM, my train was right on time and everything looked like a go.

Then, about 20 minutes before the meeting was scheduled to begin my cell phone rang. It was the recruiter who represented the investment bank where I had the telephone screening. She told me that the project manager was impressed with me and wanted me to come in for a face-to-face interview. I thanked her for her interest and then politely explained that I was on a train headed for a meeting to sign up with another company. She asked me what time the meeting was. “In twenty minutes” I responded. She then indicated that she would call me right back and very abruptly hung up the phone.

I found the situation interesting but I really did not think too much about it because I had never met with anyone from the investment bank in person, I had not taken the type of rigorous technical screening that is customary with these types of positions and there was no way I would give up a sure-thing offer of a six month engagement for the mere possibility of landing a four month gig.

Well, five minutes went by and my cell phone rang again. Sure enough the investment bank’s recruiter called back just as she promised and what she said absolutely floored me. Her first words were “Congratulations, you got the job!” I responded with a resounding “Huh…..?” followed by “How is that even possible? Are you aware that I have not gone for an interview?” “Yup” she replied. “And are you aware that I have not had a technical screening?” “Yup, we know that too” she said. To this I replied “OK, that leaves me with just two questions. First, why would the project manager act so hastily and second, why would I turn down a six month contract in order to accept a four month contract?” Without a moment’s hesitation she went on explain that the answer to my first question is that the project manager is under a very tight deadline to get the project staffed and there is not enough time to find another candidate. As for my second question, because of the time pressure, the investment bank was willing to pay a rate that was above the going market rate for that type of work. Plus the recruiter was willing to pass 100% of that above market rate along to me rather than taking the customary percentage off the top.

This, of course, led to a third question. Why would the recruiter be willing to do something like that? The answer turned out to be the recruiting agency was angling for another much more lucrative project with this same bank, however, in order to get it they needed to first prove that they could deliver on this contract.

This whole situation just seemed so unbelievable that I began to think it had to be God arranging an extraordinary opportunity for me. It was even more amazing when you consider the timing. If that call had come just 20 minutes later it would have been too late. I would have already been at my meeting committing myself to the finance company. I paused for a minute to think it over and then replied “OK, you’ve got a deal.”

At this point I was really impressed with the way God orchestrated the timing and the circumstances in order to get me an unheard of deal. Little did I know that I hadn’t seen anything yet! I believe the scripture that says God “sees the end from the beginning”. In other words he does not take your life one step at a time the way we often do. He is much more strategic. If we trust Him and ask for His will to be done He will look ahead four and five moves to see what needs to happen right now in order for something else really great to happen later.

This is exactly what I experienced with this consulting position. About a month into the project Al, the project manager abruptly resigned to take another job with one of the most prestigious investment banks on Wall St. We all wished him well and senior management quickly hired Ed to replace him as the new project manager. Ed was very impressed with my work and we got along great for the rest of the project.

Roughly a month before this project was scheduled to end I was starting to become concerned.  I had not yet found a new position to move into once this contract ended and I was not too crazy about the idea of being laid off again.

Then I got a very unexpected email from Al. It seems that the new job he took a few months back involved building a new application development team from the ground up. He had hired most of the programmers already but he was in need of a manager to supervise them. He was inquiring if I would be interested in the job. It sounded like a great way to avoid being laid off so I was

This was another outstanding break because, up to this point, I had never been a manager before. It is almost unheard of for a hands-on programmer in a consulting position to be invited to take a full time management position at such a prestigious firm so I jumped at the chance.

Now I was really blown away. Not only had the consulting contract come just minutes before I would have committed to a dead end assignment but now it turns out that it came just in time for me to meet Al before he changed jobs. The result was I would get a secure job with a great firm! Not to mention that I no longer had to worry about being laid off.

If the story ended right there it would be impressive, however, it actually gets even better. About a year and a half into my new job the conditions at the firm began to deteriorate. I began to sense it would be wise to start looking for another position. After a brief search I found a position advertised on the web site of another very prominent Wall St. firm so I submitted an application.

Bob, the hiring manager at the new firm, had a lot of resumes to sift through so he asked another manager to help screen them. You will not believe who that second manager was. It was none other than Ed. Ed instantly recognized my name on the resume and strongly urged the hiring manager to discontinue the search and hire me.

Naturally, Bob wanted to interview me first but the interview turned out to be a mere formality. Bob and I hit it off right away and that combined with Ed’s endorsement was all it took to seal the deal. I was now hired to a fantastic management spot at a higher salary and higher bonus with an absolutely super team.

Things with Bob continued to go quite well and about 9 months later I was promoted to run a major portion of the department. This turned out to be a real dream job and it all came about because the first manager at that consulting project a year and a half earlier brought me into management and the second manager at that same short-term assignment later moved to the new firm and was in the right place at the right time to recommend hiring me to my second management position.

This is what I meant earlier when I said that God can strategically place people and events at the right place and time in such a way as to bring about astounding results in the future. I strongly recommend anyone else who is being laid off to persevere and have faith that things will turn around. Just keep diligently taking care of everything that is in your control and God will handle the rest.

Stumble it!

Tags: career, Christian, job, laid off, work