As I had been with this company for many years, albeit in various locations and roles, I received a very nice severance package. I took this workplace exit as an opportunity to reinvent myself. As I had been a manager with the company, I was given the services of an executive outplacement firm. I did all of the recommended “homework,” read “What Color Is Your Parachute,” and prepared for a new life. I was actually excited.

At the time, our kids were aged four and eight. While I thought about my future, I spent the next few months taking care of my kids and going on daily adventures with them. It was one of the best time periods of my life. My wife Helen had previously left the corporate grind to take care of our young children, and had then gone into real estate (as had virtually every other Floridian). I too had gotten a real estate license, so Helen and I decided to form a sales team. I specialized in the analytical / technical side of things (website creation, tracking metrics, etc.) while Helen was the primary mouthpiece. We both went on sales calls, but Helen clearly was a better schmoozer than I was.

We actually did quite well for a few months, and earned several large listings. Florida real estate was absolutely booming at the time, and it was obvious (to me) that Northerners were over-valuing properties and buying them site-unseen. Inevitably, the proverbial bubble burst. Realtors were dropping like flies, and the company that held our licenses went out of business. I was back to looking for a “real job,” but the market in Florida is not the greatest for manufacturing professionals. I started to think that a move was in order for the family, but soon thereafter I received two job offers on the same day. I accepted one of them, and had a good ten year run with the company.

My second experience with a RIF (Reduction In Force) was in 2016. This time, the oil industry downturn was the culprit. Oil has always been an extremely volatile industry, but during 2016, the price per barrel had plummeted and the companies involved in sub-sea exploration and extraction were heavily impacted. Many companies went belly-up. My company at the time started the RIFs, and after many of my fellow-project managers were cut, I was hit in the 6th wave. I knew it was coming, and I understood. I found a new job very quickly, before my severance ran out, and it was higher-paying than my previous gig. The down side was that it was on the other side of Orlando, and the daily commute totaled between 2-1/2 and 3 hours. In larger cities, this is commonplace, but in the greater Daytona area, long commutes are a virtual death sentence. I endured 10 months of life-threatening and exhausting driving, until my old company called and offered to re-hire me. It took me about one minute to say yes, and after re-starting it was like I had never left.

In early 2020, Saudi Arabia and Russia started an oil price / production war, which resulted in a surplus of oil and rock-bottom prices. I dreaded that the end was near. The Covid-19 pandemic sealed the deal, and I was let go in May. This third time made me bitter, if not numb. I vowed that I would no longer be held captive by a cold corporate world which valued the bottom line over the welfare of their employees. Of course I understand the economics of the situation, but that doesn’t make it any easier. Freelancing, here I come!

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