How to Recover from a Career Crisis

By:Sandy Siemens L.I.S.W.

If you have ever experienced any of the following, you have had a career crisis:

  • Losing your job
  • Being fired Burning out
  • Not wanting to do your job for one more day

A career crisis can be caused either by someone else (being laid off) or by your own feelings (burning out).

Common Causes of Career Crises

There are many reasons why people experience career crises. Here are a few:

  • Losing your job
  • Being fired
  • Burning out
  • Not wanting to do your job for one more day

Why a Career Crisis Is So Devastating

A career crisis is almost always devastating because it can impact your life in so many ways. Here are a few examples:

  1. Money: Losing your income with no warning can be financially devastating.

  2. Status: If your job gives you status or a professional identity, you may feel devastated without it.

  3. Surprise: If the job loss happens without warning, you will probably feel shocked.

  4. Self-esteem: You may feel embarrassed by what has happened.

  5. Feeling alone: You are likely to lose friends and companions when you no longer work in the same place.

  6. Feeling out of synch: Your regular routine may be disrupted.

  7. Confusion: If the crisis happens because of burnout or for reasons inside yourself, you may feel confused about what to do next.

  8. Effect on others: If people around you depend on your income and need you to be predictable, they may react negatively to your crisis.

Career Crisis: Who It Hurts the Most

A career crisis hurts you because it is devastating to your ego. The hurt tends to be greater when one gets a sense of identity and self-esteem from his or her job title, status, and income.  A crisis hurts your family because they must experience the emotional fallout that follows a crisis. Your family may also experience a feeling of lost self-esteem and status, especially if you were fired or laid off.

The Flashback Effect