Difficult Seasons

Perspective is a big deal, no matter what we’re dealing with in our lives.

Tweet About WSJ Article

For example, we can have cancer, and our perspective may be, “I’m dying of cancer.”

Or, we can choose to have a different perspective:  ”I’m living with cancer until I pass.”

This example is from an article in today’s Wall Street Journal discussing a program for helping cancer patients deal with their illness.  While it’s dealing with cancer patients being able to find meaning for their lives in the face of their illness, it has a lot of value for those of us facing other challenges.  I highly recommend that you read it.

With cancer, nearly everyone’s biggest fear is dying.  But it’s usually unspoken, unsurfaced even.  Once it’s surfaced, the fear can be dealt with.  One can choose to adopt a perspective that gives life meaning and purpose, that takes control away from the fear.

But this principle is much more widely applicable.

Any chronic illness — heart disease, diabetes, arthritis, and any of so many others — generates fears.  What if I have another heart attack?  What if I have to live in a wheel chair?  What if I …?

Your fear may not be from a medical condition, but from a situational condition.  What if I lose my lose the ability to live at the standard of living I’ve become used to?  What if I lose my job?  What if I …?

So what fears are you, or those you love, living with that haven’t been dealt with?

How could you, or could they, benefit from a change of perspective?

Worth some thought!

It’s not news to anyone.  Lots of people are out of work, and it looks like there will be more before it all improves.

I talked to a friend last night and another this morning who are job hunting. Earlier in the week, I received an email from from a pastor in Wisconsin asking permission to use one of my articles on faith and job loss in his seminars for folks who had lost their jobs.  The article was written several years ago when I was leading a job seeker support group and doing career change coaching.  (Interestingly, it was on page 1 on Google.)

I’m finding myself sad that I need to have these conversations again, that people are digging up my stuff about career change.  Mostly, that sadness is for what families go through during seasons when they’re between jobs.  It’s a tough time, with lots of grieving.

But being between jobs is also a spiritual journey, and that can be a very healthy thing in the long term.  It’s just hard to go through at the time.

So I’ve downloaded a bunch of the blog posts I wrote a few years ago, and after editing, I’ll post the collection as an e book as a resource for folks caught between jobs and those who are sojourning with them.  And some of us are in discussions about starting a support group again.

In the meantime, I’ll share with you a couple of the most important things I learned from that season.

1. Get a copy (or dust off the one you have) of What Color is Your Parachute by Richard Bolles.  There’s good reason it’s been the best selling job finding book for over 40 years.  It’s practical, and it’s advice works.
2. Develop a good personal support group to help you on this journey.
3. Resolve to go beyond the ordinary in your job search. Unusual times call for unusual measures.
4. Discount the negativity from the news and the hallway conversations.