Never again say I lost my job. Instead, say this

Never again say I lost my job. Instead, say this A few years ago I was inspired to write a post suggesting we dont talk about or refer to job security.  The idea was that there is no such thing as job security of course.  I proposed that we replace the phrase with INCOME security.  That is, I am working on securing my income, which might come from multiple sources (not a single employer), might come sporadically (when I make a sale, or through quarterly royalties, or monthly rent payments, etc.). Doesnt that make sense?  Shouldnt we be working towards securing our INCOME, instead of chasing the 1900s romantic idea of JOB security? I thought it was brilliant, and wished I could come up with more of those ideas. Last week I did.  I was thinking of a friend of mine who lost his job as a programmer.  My wife was concerned for him and his family (the sting of our unemployment can come right back when a loved-one starts their journey) but I told her I wasnt worried about him at all.  As a programmer of some hot languages, I was sure his job search would be very quick and easy.  And it was.  He has since landed and really has nothing to worry about. As I was thinking about him, and his very short journey, I was thinking about the scariness, and stigma, of being unemployed. Or, of losing your job.  Especially now, with the holidays near, where well have to spend time with family and loved ones, and we all talk about whats going on in our life no one wants to be that one person who is unemployed.  The token loser.  Something must be wrong with you.  Right?  I know how it feels.  I was there, for many months. I was thinking, what if we go away from those stigmas (and assumptions) of I lost my job, and shift the mindset (or, have a paradigm shift)?  What phrase would change the meaning and take away the sting?  I came up with this: My contract ended. Think about it a lot of people have contracts that end.  And when the contract ends, you move on to the next contract.  Its not a horrible surprise (contracts are meant to end, whereas in some fantasy universe we tend to think that jobs arent supposed to end).  Okay, sometimes the contract ends early, but not contractor believes their contracts will end when they are ready to retire. Contractors should always prepare for the ending.  They do this with: fiscal responsibility (spend less than you make, save money for the bouts between contracts, etc.) filling the pipeline (networking, putting bids out, etc.) marketing themselves (know how to talk about your products/services, know when to talk about them, know who you want to talk to about them, etc.) An employed person, though, who fears losing their job, doesnt do these things the same way a contractor does.  The employed person fears losing, the contractor prepares for the loss. This phrase, when said out loud, changes the course of the conversation.  Instead of oh, you poor person who must have caused too much friction at work!, it is more of a Oh, sorry to hear that, whats your next contract? Right? This phrase, when you INTERNALIZE it, empowers you to be more in control of your career.  You really do become the CEO of Me, Inc.  You are no longer a victim of a bad boss, of HR, of the market, etc.  You are empowered to prepare for the end of the contract. Isnt this awesome? Many years ago I started working at a janitorial firm.  In the first month or so of that job we lost a $5M contract.  I went to work the next day a little nervous, wondering what kinds of cuts they might make at the corporate office.  The CFO seemed happier than usual, and I somehow remember him whistling in the hallways as he went about his duties.  Later I asked him to explain how they could lose such a big contract and still be happy, or not be overly worried. He replied that the company had been in business for a long time, and that they had won and lost many contracts.  It was no big deal, and there would be more contracts they would win.  And in fact, they did win many more, and the company grew a lot while I was there. That mentality is the same mentality that we, as CEO of Me, Inc., need to have. What do you think? Never again say I lost my job. Instead, say this A few years ago I was inspired to write a post suggesting we dont talk about or refer to job security.  The idea was that there is no such thing as job security of course.  I proposed that we replace the phrase with INCOME security.  That is, I am working on securing my income, which might come from multiple sources (not a single employer), might come sporadically (when I make a sale, or through quarterly royalties, or monthly rent payments, etc.). Doesnt that make sense?  Shouldnt we be working towards securing our INCOME, instead of chasing the 1900s romantic idea of JOB security? I thought it was brilliant, and wished I could come up with more of those ideas. Last week I did.  I was thinking of a friend of mine who lost his job as a programmer.  My wife was concerned for him and his family (the sting of our unemployment can come right back when a loved-one starts their journey) but I told her I wasnt worried about him at all.  As a programmer of some hot languages, I was sure his job search would be very quick and easy.  And it was.  He has since landed and really has nothing to worry about. As I was thinking about him, and his very short journey, I was thinking about the scariness, and stigma, of being unemployed. Or, of losing your job.  Especially now, with the holidays near, where well have to spend time with family and loved ones, and we all talk about whats going on in our life no one wants to be that one person who is unemployed.  The token loser.  Something must be wrong with you.  Right?  I know how it feels.  I was there, for many months. I was thinking, what if we go away from those stigmas (and assumptions) of I lost my job, and shift the mindset (or, have a paradigm shift)?  What phrase would change the meaning and take away the sting?  I came up with this: My contract ended. Think about it a lot of people have contracts that end.  And when the contract ends, you move on to the next contract.  Its not a horrible surprise (contracts are meant to end, whereas in some fantasy universe we tend to think that jobs arent supposed to end).  Okay, sometimes the contract ends early, but not contractor believes their contracts will end when they are ready to retire. Contractors should always prepare for the ending.  They do this with: fiscal responsibility (spend less than you make, save money for the bouts between contracts, etc.) filling the pipeline (networking, putting bids out, etc.) marketing themselves (know how to talk about your products/services, know when to talk about them, know who you want to talk to about them, etc.) An employed person, though, who fears losing their job, doesnt do these things the same way a contractor does.  The employed person fears losing, the contractor prepares for the loss. This phrase, when said out loud, changes the course of the conversation.  Instead of oh, you poor person who must have caused too much friction at work!, it is more of a Oh, sorry to hear that, whats your next contract? Right? This phrase, when you INTERNALIZE it, empowers you to be more in control of your career.  You really do become the CEO of Me, Inc.  You are no longer a victim of a bad boss, of HR, of the market, etc.  You are empowered to prepare for the end of the contract. Isnt this awesome? Many years ago I started working at a janitorial firm.  In the first month or so of that job we lost a $5M contract.  I went to work the next day a little nervous, wondering what kinds of cuts they might make at the corporate office.  The CFO seemed happier than usual, and I somehow remember him whistling in the hallways as he went about his duties.  Later I asked him to explain how they could lose such a big contract and still be happy, or not be overly worried. He replied that the company had been in business for a long time, and that they had won and lost many contracts.  It was no big deal, and there would be more contracts they would win.  And in fact, they did win many more, and the company grew a lot while I was there. That mentality is the same mentality that we, as CEO of Me, Inc., need to have. What do you think? Never again say I lost my job. Instead, say this A few years ago I was inspired to write a post suggesting we dont talk about or refer to job security.  The idea was that there is no such thing as job security of course.  I proposed that we replace the phrase with INCOME security.  That is, I am working on securing my income, which might come from multiple sources (not a single employer), might come sporadically (when I make a sale, or through quarterly royalties, or monthly rent payments, etc.). Doesnt that make sense?  Shouldnt we be working towards securing our INCOME, instead of chasing the 1900s romantic idea of JOB security? I thought it was brilliant, and wished I could come up with more of those ideas. Last week I did.  I was thinking of a friend of mine who lost his job as a programmer.  My wife was concerned for him and his family (the sting of our unemployment can come right back when a loved-one starts their journey) but I told her I wasnt worried about him at all.  As a programmer of some hot languages, I was sure his job search would be very quick and easy.  And it was.  He has since landed and really has nothing to worry about. As I was thinking about him, and his very short journey, I was thinking about the scariness, and stigma, of being unemployed. Or, of losing your job.  Especially now, with the holidays near, where well have to spend time with family and loved ones, and we all talk about whats going on in our life no one wants to be that one person who is unemployed.  The token loser.  Something must be wrong with you.  Right?  I know how it feels.  I was there, for many months. I was thinking, what if we go away from those stigmas (and assumptions) of I lost my job, and shift the mindset (or, have a paradigm shift)?  What phrase would change the meaning and take away the sting?  I came up with this: My contract ended. Think about it a lot of people have contracts that end.  And when the contract ends, you move on to the next contract.  Its not a horrible surprise (contracts are meant to end, whereas in some fantasy universe we tend to think that jobs arent supposed to end).  Okay, sometimes the contract ends early, but not contractor believes their contracts will end when they are ready to retire. Contractors should always prepare for the ending.  They do this with: fiscal responsibility (spend less than you make, save money for the bouts between contracts, etc.) filling the pipeline (networking, putting bids out, etc.) marketing themselves (know how to talk about your products/services, know when to talk about them, know who you want to talk to about them, etc.) An employed person, though, who fears losing their job, doesnt do these things the same way a contractor does.  The employed person fears losing, the contractor prepares for the loss. This phrase, when said out loud, changes the course of the conversation.  Instead of oh, you poor person who must have caused too much friction at work!, it is more of a Oh, sorry to hear that, whats your next contract? Right? This phrase, when you INTERNALIZE it, empowers you to be more in control of your career.  You really do become the CEO of Me, Inc.  You are no longer a victim of a bad boss, of HR, of the market, etc.  You are empowered to prepare for the end of the contract. Isnt this awesome? Many years ago I started working at a janitorial firm.  In the first month or so of that job we lost a $5M contract.  I went to work the next day a little nervous, wondering what kinds of cuts they might make at the corporate office.  The CFO seemed happier than usual, and I somehow remember him whistling in the hallways as he went about his duties.  Later I asked him to explain how they could lose such a big contract and still be happy, or not be overly worried. He replied that the company had been in business for a long time, and that they had won and lost many contracts.  It was no big deal, and there would be more contracts they would win.  And in fact, they did win many more, and the company grew a lot while I was there. That mentality is the same mentality that we, as CEO of Me, Inc., need to have. What do you think?