Allison Vorcheimer So, on top of the already stressful Coronavirus Pandemic, I lost my job…along with about 3.3 million other Americans as a direct result of the infamous COVID-19. Yet, somehow, knowing I’m not alone and understanding the financial reasons why did not make the news any less shocking or upsetting. I worked at my former company for 6 years and with my boss at another company for 3 years prior to that. I was good at my job and I liked what I did. And now all I was left with was anxiety and the overwhelming feeling of now what?
I felt anxious. Overwhelmed. Unsure. Lost…
For anyone who knows me, I thrive on organization and feeling under control. And this situation was uncontrollable. Is uncontrollable. No one knows how long things will be like this and how quickly things will take to bounce back. I felt a little bit of panic, anxious and lost. But, as I sat wide awake that night, eyes puffy and uncertain of my future, I decided to shift my focus to what I can control NOW.
I decided to focus on my family and on myself. Focus on what I can do, what I want to do and what I need to do.
So, as the typical organizer, the first thing I did was make a schedule for me and my 18 month old toddler. Now that I was taking back over the full time childcare responsibilities and household cleaning, I needed to plan time for learning, creativity and play as well as when I could focus on cleaning, blogging, my passion project and job hunting. Easy right? (Find the full schedule here)
Next, I started to run a quick search online for jobs and reassured myself that although my previous company was not faring well during the pandemic, other companies were not as misfortunate and were still searching for talent. All hope was not lost.
And lastly, and most importantly, I decided to be happy about it. The biggest complaint from working moms is that we miss so much of our kids’ lives, someone else gets to enjoy the little moments while we are in the office. So, I decided to appreciate this extra time with my son. Plan to enjoy it and take advantage of it. I also always seem to find myself with too little time for my own projects and fitness/health. So, I decided to plan for and prioritize that in my schedule.
Now, if you have been following our blog, you will understand this shift of focus in our lives is also going to shift my experiences and focus on the blog. Whether you are a new SAHM like me, have been a SAHM, a now working-from-home mom or still going into work mom, we can all agree that the hardest and best job we have is being a mom. This new direction we will take together will be sharing how we’re getting through and tips to help you do the same, no matter your work situation. And, let us be part of your community. Share with us how you’re really doing. Sometimes, it’s hard to say aloud when things are tough, but sharing, even with an online community, can lift a huge weight. So, have you recently lost your job too? Are you struggling to juggle working from home with kids at home? Tell me about it.
