Laid Off & Loving It! How People Like You Conquered a Career Crisis [Paperback]

Paul David Madsen (Author)

Book Description

ISBN-10: 097138360X | ISBN-13: 978-0971383609 | Publication Date: September 2001

Conquer your career crisis in style! Don't be "victimized" by job instability or a career shake-up! In this book you will learn the stories of people like you who responded successfully to abrupt or planned career-change events.

In today's volatile working world, it is in your best interst to keep your skills transferable. These narratives depict those who have done that and came out on top. The professionals described in the book have all landed on their feet after being laid off, fired, burned-out, bored, downsized, or forced into an early retirement that was too early.

Some of the people cleverly got rehired at their former employers or within their same industries. Others determined ways to land in a new career field or profitably apply their skills down a new occpuational avenue. Still others learned, through various methods, how they could launch a small enterprise which built on the connections, knowledge, and resources that they already possesed. You will learn about the origninal inspirations which gave them the courage, vision, and resources to act and succeed.

The book's lessons come to the reader in an easy-to-read narrative format that describes each individual's career/work situation. This method instructs readers in a manner that is much more interesting and effective than a boring "how to" list of information. The many nuggets of wisdom can be helpful to readers from most any occupational background or situation.

The book features people from teaching, medicine, law, corporate office, library science, broadcasting, military, executive, finance, information technology, sales, trade, clergy, and other backgrounds. Their transitions will inform and inspire readers to seek and find occupational options which can work in their own lives.

Included in the book is the Twenty-Minute Career Tune Up which enables readers to develop a quick snapshot of their occupational strengths and interests. That tool, which is used by the author in his private career coaching summits and individual career consulting, can help direct and focus the occupational improvement efforts of most people. It uses a guided brainstorming process that forces one to "drill down" and come up with strategic yet practical goals and plans. Also included are 101+ web sites that were of strategic help to the book's subjects.

If readers are amidst or considering a career, job, small business, or work-place transistion, Laid Off & Loving It! can be a very practical tool.

Editorial Reviews

Review

"In today's drastically changing economy, people need this type of timely and helpful information." -- Reverend Arnold

This book illustrates how your background postions you to take advantage of opportunities which may have previously been invisible. -- Susan Thaden, CEO Client Resources, Inc.

From the Author

Are you a victim or a victor? Everyone who does some form of work for some form of compensation WILL encounter changes in their work life. Why? Because occupations involve customers, co-workers, bosses, competitors, procedures, changing markets, egos, and money. These ingredients often prove to be a volatile mixture. The US Department of Labor states that at least 3,300,000 people are laid off each and every year!

Cement cutters, CEOs, and most workers in between regularly experience life-changing career events. Career change is the norm in corporate America because layoffs, downsizing, re-engineering, discrimination, worker performance, health issues, mergers, and business closings are a regular part of the scene. Employees and employers alike are affected radically by these changes. This book chronicles the way people like you handled workplace transitions with style.

In a period of twelve years I was laid off three times, but this book is not about me. Instead, it describes the actions and thought processes that others applied as they conquered their career crises. A few workers sail smoothly from promotion to promotion and retire happily ever after. But, after personally interviewing over 18,000 profession-als, I know firsthand that only a few people accomplish that kind of feat. This book is for the rest of us who may need a guide when those inevitable “career speed bumps” occur.

See all Editorial Reviews

Product Details

• Paperback: 156 pages
• Publisher: Growmedia.Com (September 2001)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 097138360X
• ISBN-13: 978-0971383609
• Product Dimensions: 7.8 x 5.1 x 1 inches
• Shipping Weight: 1 pounds
• Average Customer Review: 4.8 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (4 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #3,265,701 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

25 of 27 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars A Great Read for Job Seekers Looking for a New Beginning, October 15, 2001

By 

Beth Olson - See all my reviews

This review is from: Laid Off & Loving It! How People Like You Conquered a Career Crisis (Paperback)

What a relief to find a book that recognizes the complexity of finding the career that you REALLY want. The author's approach of telling short vignettes about people in transition makes the reading fast and informative! I especially appreciated the additional websites that Madsen provided at the end of each chapter.

Readers will definitely gain new insight into their career prospects. Madsen stresses taking what you know and thinking laterally about where your knowledge can be leveraged. Each chapter provides an example of how people like you and me succeed despite unwanted or unexpected career changes.

I've worked with the author in his capacity as a job coach and have found his services invaluable. As a professional that took a six year break from corporate life to raise my kids, I had to quickly shift gears after my husband was laid off. Madsen was key to helping me get my head back in the game. He's helped me formulate a great resume, winning cover letters, and perhaps most importantly, navigate the uncertain waters of interviewing and negotiating for the benefits and salary that we need.

In this book, Madsen has done a great job of translating his 20+ years in the headhunting experience into a usable resource for job seekers.

17 of 18 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars "Laid Off & Loving It" is an inspiring career motivator, June 18, 2002

By 

W. Clark - See all my reviews

This review is from: Laid Off & Loving It! How People Like You Conquered a Career Crisis (Paperback)

Paul David Madsen nearly makes major career changes, especially entrepreneurial moves, seem easy in "Laid Off & Loving It." The book is immensely inspiring, even to an individual such as myself who recently found a gratifying new job (I found that new position following some vital guidance from Madsen). The thought-provoking vignettes in which successful professionals need to make often abrupt career moves made me start to think of what really interests me and where my strengths lie, and how I could create my own lucrative business someday.

Not only are the stories inspiring, they also offer guidance as to how everyday people can become entrepreneurs. Useful Web sites, trade associations and helpful hints abound in the book.

Additionally, "Laid Off & Loving It" is an interesting and fun read, something most people would not expect in a career transition book. No one enjoys looking for a new job or career, but Madsen inspires the reader to consider a career change more an exciting challenge than a daunting task.

4 of 4 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Excellent, July 21, 2003

By 

Michelle Mahowald (Omaha, NE) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Laid Off & Loving It! How People Like You Conquered a Career Crisis (Paperback)

This book is an excellent help for those in any possible career transition. It can affirm your current career choice or it can motivate you to make a change in your career when you need it. It is a wonderful tool to help you explore and imagine career options you never thought you had.