Have you been laid off? Well you are not alone! Thousand of people have been laid off worldwide as almost every economy readjusts and restructures to the profound 2008 economic crisis. Now that policymakers have accessed the situation and everyone is working to rebound, you have to look toward the future. Perhaps you will find a job you love now that your old, painful job is gone. Remaining positive is the most important thing. The second most important thing is making a realistic plan about your current financial state and how you are going to execute your job search.

Finding a new job could takes weeks or months, so assess your bank account and contingency funds to see what kind of shape you are in. Look at your past 3-6 months of expenses and get an average number you are going to need per month/week that you are unemployed (Variable E).

Add up unemployment benefits, severance, and any other sources of income you have such as dividends (Variable I).

Your monthly spend rate is going to be E – I. The difference between your expenses and your income is what you will have to handle while unemployed. There are a few different ways of handling this issue while you seek a new job.

Option I: Dip into your savings. Hopefully you have a good amount of savings which can help you whether the storm as you seek new employment.

Option II: Work part-time or as a temp to keep income flowing until you can find a new full-time job. I am not aware of any resume reprocussions for this solution but it can’t hurt as everyone has to survive and it is continued experience in a new environment.

Option III: Reduce your expenses. Somethings that you considered necessities are now luxuries. You can live without a lot of the junk you were wasting money on in the past. Health, shelter, food, and your family are priorities. Everything else is negotiable.

Option IV: Sell that old baseball card collection, some clothes you don’t like anymore, or other tangible items. This will get you some money to help you make up for that deficit.

You will probably want to allocate 2-3 months for every $30k you make in salary as competition increases. This will serve as a good guideline for the present moment. I would even add a month just to be conservative.

Good luck.

DISCLAIMER: I am not a financial consultant and this does not constitute financial or legal advice of any kind. It is just my personal opinion and has no guarantee of financial/legal soundness.  AKA:  I’m just trying to help.