How did I get here?

by "Get it Done Girl" on March 5, 2014 · 4 comments

in Employee Leasing,Free Agency,How To:,Networking,small biz

I was working at a pretty steady job in West Des Moines supporting a group of international salesmen at a major international company. I knew there was some restructuring taking place and staff was being hired in the UK. What I didn’t know was that staff was being hired to replace me and a few of my colleagues. Better time zone, they said, in order to be able to service Asia and North America more easily. Great.

Have you ever been laid off? It stinks.

I spent the next three months looking for a job that was exactly like the one I had. Now, bear in mind that I was laid off on February 1, 2009…so I had quite a bit of competition.

This was a very depressing time for me, so I focused on what I could control. I began networking, trying to meet as many people as I could. At the time, I wasn’t even on LinkedIn, because I had a job, right? I attended every workshop/event/class that had to do with social media. It was interesting and new and I thought that I could acquire some skills that I could use in my next job.

The next job (five months after the layoff) would be providing sales support for a Des Moines-based company that was misrepresented by both the recruiter AND the employer. I was told that I would be supporting their marketing and sales efforts, when in reality, I was cold calling companies soliciting their business – for 8 hours a day. Ironically, I was laid off two months later because the company wasn’t financially sound and shouldn’t have hired me in the first place!

In my heart, I knew that this second layoff of 2009 was the last straw. By getting out into the community and meeting new people, I realized that I didn’t have to get a job in order to earn a living. On November 19th, 2009, I filed my business with the Iowa Secretary of State’s office and began networking as a business owner versus as a job seeker.

At the time, small businesses were very hesitant to hire marketing professionals (since they had just laid most of them off!), but they still had needs. That’s where I came in. I became their outsourced marketing department at a fraction of the cost. And in my opinion, I’d rather have 20 Clients than 1 job. There is no such thing as job security…

Four and a half years later, I’m still the Get It Done Girl, helping small businesses (and some extremely large ones) with everything from social media to event planning to marketing.

Being laid off was one of the best things that’s ever happened to me (in hindsight)!

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{ 4 comments… read them below or add one }

Joann April 1, 2014 at 7:00 am

Thank you for your story that captures what a lot of us have gone through too. You’re so right about no such thing as job security. The minute I started to think of myself as an entrepreneur instead of unemployed was a freeing moment for me. We all have many talents and gifts that may or may not fit in with the typical 8-5 job.

Douglas Pals April 1, 2014 at 8:58 am

Suzanne,

You nailed it. That is the exact feeling. As it would be, today is one of the official starting points of my company. April 1, 2003 is the date on 3 contracts that started my company.

I remember the feeling of getting laid off. Being a competitor, after the initial shock, I was angry and I said to myself…I’ll show them. That was my fuel – to get started and to have no fear. I found the process invigorating. I had time to read and grow and learn again. Something that I had not had time to do since college.

You further hit the nail on the head to say that having many clients/relationships is so much better on so many levels than having one job. Eggs in one basket vs. many baskets is the perfect object lesson.

Thanks for our story and for your on-going work. Keep Getting It Done!

"Get it Done Girl" April 1, 2014 at 9:55 am

Glad you enjoyed the post, Joann!

"Get it Done Girl" April 1, 2014 at 9:56 am

Thanks for your comments, Doug!!!

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