REBOUND: A Proven Plan for Starting Over After Job Loss (a J!-ENT Book Review)

May 17, 2009 by Dennis Amith 

“For those who lost their job, one will run through many emotions.  But its that feeling of fear of what to do next that many people ask themselves.  Martha I. Finney does a tremendous job in breaking down chapters for those who have lost their job, worried about losing their job and eventually getting them prepared to get back into the work force and prepare the person for looking for a job.   Motivational, insiring and highly recommended!”

(c) Images courtesy Financial Times Press

TITLE: REBOUND: A Proven Plan for Starting Over After Job Loss

AUTHOR: Martha I. Finney

PUBLISHER: Financial Times Press

PAGE COUNT: 190 Pages

Been Laid off?  Fired?  Pushed out?  See it coming?  This book will help you get back on your feet, develop a plan of action and find your next great job!

REAL ANSWERS FROM REAL EXPERTS:  What to do first…and what never to do.  How to cope with the havoc, trauma and anger.  How to protect your professional reputation.  How to keep your options open.  Know your rights.  What to do while you’re out of work.  How to safeguard your finances.  What to tell your family.  How to keep it from happening again.

How to come back stronger and better than ever!

For many people in today’s economy, with massive layoffs all over the country, many employees – longtime, shorttime, managerial and those who have sacrificed for their company have had to face the reality that they will, are or now have lost their job.  Their main source of income.

I remember the time around the dot com burst, as a manager who was receiving high marks and promotion after promotion in the corporate world, right after Christmas, returning to work and being told that the corporation were cutting costs and they had to let me go.

So, many emotions just came to mind and I asked myself, “how can this be?”.  I sacrificed for the company, went beyond my job description of focusing on one regional area and eventually doing work in other areas to even the corporation itself.  I’ve received so many commendations and I was being laid off?

There was a lot of pain months after the layoff, perhaps even a year after, I was still reeling but I manage to use the frustration and eventually moved on to better things.

Now, many people in the country, some who have had their jobs for decades and knew the skills to work their office, some who know that the high pay they made then, many corporations are not willing to pay for now.  Some with mortgages, a family to feed and support and people who are experiencing so many emotions  in their personal life and not knowing what to do now.

“REBOUND: A Proven Plan for Starting Over After Job Loss” is written by Martha I. Finney, President and CEO of Engagement Journeys, LLC and a respected expert in employee engagement and leadership communications.  An author and co-author for more than 13 books, each chapter is broken down with a caring, witty and also enjoyable way of getting a person to face their fears but getting them out into the workforce again.

Chapter breakdowns are as follows:

PART I: The Inner Game of Getting Laid Off

- What to Expect When You’re No Longer Expected

- New Career Realities and New Career Rules

- You’re Still in Control

PART II: Preparing for a Lay Off

- Are You on the Layoff List?

- Financial: What to Do Before You Get Laid Off

- Set the Tone for How You Leave

- Plan Your Exit

PART IV: Know Your Rights

- What You Can Expect from a Severance Package

- Stop! Just Say No

- Ask for Special Treatment

- A Word About Noncompete Agreements

- Not That it Matters to You, but It Hurts for Them, Too

PART IV: When You’ve Been Laid Off

- Financial: Control Your Spending

- What Do I Do With All This Rage?

- The Kids Can Handle the Truth

- Good Things to Remember

PART V:  Landing Your Next Job

- The Importance of Having a Plan

- Learn to Love Networking

- Using Social Networking for Your Job Search

- Build your “A” Player Status Even Though You Are Not

- Talking About Your Job Loss in Interviews

- How to Evaluate the Job You’ve Been Offered

- Should You Take A Job with a Company That’s Laying People Off?

- Go! Just Say Yes

- Start Your New Job with Confidence

- Never Be in This Situation Again

PART VI:  APPENDIXES

- Step Away from the Fridge! Reach for This Instead

“REBOUND: A Proven Plan for Starting Over After Job Loss” is well-written but the advice is just priceless.  I wish this book was written right after the dot com burst but considering today’s times, this is one of those books that will help people who feel they are off-course and get them back on course and on to better things in their life.

Finney utilizes letters from those who have been laid off to share their stories but also showing how one can arise from the situation. Having experience working with a variety of people from different type of work experiences, the way she helps people is well done but its written in a way that is not condescending or overly business like.  She writes with sympathy, humor and making you feel that you are important and overall, motivational and inspiring.

Overall, this book was impressive and right on target.  I highly recommend this book to anyone who is reeling from a job loss, in a job that is laying off and you fear your job may be eliminated and those who need that positive support in showing that you can still make it out in the job force and how to prepare for it.