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A new review from Foreword Magazine, to be run in the
January issue:
“Contingency planning is a must for every business, but rarely
do workers have their own individual backup plan in the event
they lose their jobs. This book is intended to help readers to
proactively create a contingency plan to help them cope with
possible job loss. It addresses common employee concerns and
answers some questions that one might not even think to ask until
it is too late. The underlying theme is that loss of a job is
survivable and that prior planning makes it easier. “When you’re
told to pack up your office and be out in thirty minutes is not
the time to be trying to negotiate your exit package.”
“In addition to giving advice
about severance benefits, the author describes ways of dealing
with the financial implications
of sudden unemployment. He mentions some less obvious options
such as requesting accelerated vesting of stock options, extended
health insurance coverage, or additional severance if the payments
are distributed monthly rather than in a lump sum. He includes
a handy table for calculating how long savings will last based
on various withdrawal rates, and gives ideas for creating a layoff
budget.
“On a personal note, Arnold offers various coping strategies
to counteract self-pity and help recover from the setback. Citing
other experts as well as his own personal experience, he stresses
the importance of self-esteem building, communication, maintaining
professional contacts, and reflecting on “the gifts gained from
the last job.” Arnold, an expert on leadership, management, and
financial subjects, has thirty years of experience in the public
and private sector. The survivor of a job loss himself, he handles
the subject matter in a straightforward, positive, and encouraging
manner.
“One approach he suggests is to create a top ten list of “what’s
important to me” as a means of prioritizing one’s values, and
then to create a list of “things I want to do” if one were retired
or didn’t have to work. After a job loss, one can explore alternative
career paths, perhaps finding an opportunity to do something
on the list that otherwise may not have even been considered.
“The motivational approach of Fallback Position makes
it an easy read despite its tough subject. Like the example of
the young Winston Churchill who, although once fired at the age
of twenty-six, went on to become one of the world’s greatest
Prime Ministers, this book reassures readers that recovery is
within their control.”
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