image courtesy of http://www.ourkitchensink.com/

Attention unemployed workers of America: I am searching for your tales of struggle, absurdity, and salvation. If you or someone you know has been spectacularly kicked in the nuts by an employer, and you’re willing to go on a recorded Skype video call, I want to hear from you!

I have started a new interview series called “The Pain Of It All,” where I will talk with displaced Americans about their job loss.  Fired? Laid off? Furloughed? Downsized? I want to hear from folks about the circumstances surrounding their job loss, how it made them feel immediately after it happened, how they coped with their feelings, and what they ended up doing about it. I will especially concentrate on the italicized!

I believe that folks looking for a job often tune up their résumé and think that’s the most important step towards securing employment. Unfortunately, you can have the most wonderful credentials, but if you’re not in the right mindset, you won’t come across well in an interview. And people often overlook that when a person loses their job, it can throw them into the wrong mindset! (understatement of the year). A traumatic event like a firing or layoff can really mess with your head, and how people deal with this fascinates me. You have to “get over it” before you can go after your next job.

My hope is that, if people hear about the struggles of others, and perhaps the positive (or negative) way they dealt with the blow, they’ll gain the inspiration they need to go after their dream.

Examples of what the interviews are like:

Kesha Facen – the first interview I did

Chris Cloud’s interview

If you think you’re a good fit for the video series and don’t mind sharing the painful details with me, email me at rizzotees [ at ] gmail [ dawt ] com and provide me with the following info:

1.  Tell me about your job and your job loss – from what employer, how long were you there, what was your job while there.

2. Tell me about “D-day” – how they fired you, and how it made you feel that day and in the days following.

3. Tell me about how you coped with your feelings as the weeks, months, or even years went on. How did you get in the right mindset to go on that first job interview?

4. Tell me if your story has a happy ending or not, and provide me details.

Write as much or as little as you like – I’m just trying to get a measure of your story. No need to write a novel – we’ll get into the fun details during the video interview. Frankly, the more interesting and shocking and spectacular the kick in the nuts was, the better. And finally, if you know someone that’s been laid off or fired, please pass this blog post on to them. My goal is to do 100 recorded interviews, and then turn the stories into a book.  Two down, 98 to go!

Let’s hear from you!