title: How to Land on the Right Side of Your Ass
author/editor: Michael B. Laskoff
reviewed by: Georgene
How to Land on the Right Side of Your Ass
Sherryl (Mar. '04) recommended a book that is really helping me. (Which reminds me, I need to share with her how I'm applying it.) It's called, How to Land on the Right Side of Your Ass by Michael B. Laskoff. It's a survival guide for the recently unemployed and I've found the humor and plain talk to be good medicine.
The author includes some mild profanity i.e. "Let's be clear: Some miserable bastard has done something unspeakable to you. He, she, or it screwed, robbed, mistreated, crapped upon, abused, gave the short end of the stick to, and laid unfair blame on you. You're the fall guy, the scapegoat, the patsy, the innocent at the low end of the totem pole who couldn't protect himself from the evil miscreant who used to employ you. You got screwed, and screwed, and will be screwed until you find another job. You are, in a word, dumped."
While this may sound a bit raw for the pages of Ninepatch, it fits perfectly into the angry and hurt world of the recently unemployed. I like the way the author validates the reader's present state of mind. He identifies two kinds of dumpings -- the corporate one where your boss hates to lose you but must due to business circumstances, and the personal dumping that occurs because your boss is evil or incompetent and needs a sacrifice to protect himself or a core of favorites.
I've followed the recommendations in the book and have found a faster track to healing, plus an energy and optimism for my job search. I was happy to see that much of my own common sense action steps dovetailed with the author's suggestions, but there are also plenty of new thoughts that moved me through the bitching and grieving into a better state of mind. I know my husband and friends benefited from this book because without it, I think I would still be belly-aching about how my employer "done me wrong." I'd be staring at my computer, unable to start my resume, and choosing to mop the floors rather than search www.monster.com.
I know this grieving and finding anew is a process and I'll have good days and bad ones, but this book, with its edge of comedy helps me keep my perspective.
Georgene says, "I took four days off from the job hunt. I slept in and got out of the house to the beach, my favorite dessert place, park and such. Part of the late sleeping is a bit of depression, but most of it was trying to be good to myself. I feel stronger than I have in a long time and I have two strong job leads that I believe came from job hunting tips I learned from the book."