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Stuck

There are times in each person’s life when things do not work out as expected. Sometimes those times are personal and other times those times are professional. Everyone has a moment when the outcome was not as planned and this can be quite difficult to stomach. An individual goes back over the event in his or her mind and tries to figure out what went wrong. The “if only” phrase comes to mind and suddenly the event replays like a broken record. Suddenly, the spiral is out of control and a past tense event is front and present.
It is not that life can sometimes be unpredictable that is the issue. Rather the issue is the repeated replay of events. Sometimes a job seeker will come in the office with a “life happens” story that caused his job loss. In workforce development land this scenario is quite common. If there are a million stories in the naked city, there are just as many in workforce development land.  The job seeker explains what happened to his job to you and because you are a helpful workforce development professional, you immediately spring into action. Resources are provided, referrals are made, and the job seeker becomes encapsulated into the world of workforce development. Things seem great, but are they? A time comes when it is time to have an interview, either mock or the real thing, and suddenly the story is front and center again.  The program you thought was “just the answer” cannot make the progress with the job seeker because he is stuck in replay mode. Ultimately the “life happens” story is suddenly a barrier the size of Mount Everest and you are on a trek to the top with this job seeker. 

“Life happens” can be so many things. It can be a downsizing that caused a job loss, a person that found himself in the wrong place at the wrong time, not being able to attend the college of choice, a death in the family, or anything else. It may seem small to the listener, but is not to the job seeker. It was life altering. Life altering is something that ultimately changes perspective for the person. Sometimes the event creates wisdom and the person can get over the issue. Other times someone is stuck in the past, like quicksand. Sometimes the job seeker is trying to move on and well-meaning people keep reviving it.
I think everyone has a moment like this in his life. Everyone knows someone in their personal and professional life that has been at this place. As workforce development professionals, we need to help people move beyond the event. This could be helping the person tell the story differently, see the positives in his situation, or refer him to counseling services if necessary.  As difficult as this is, the only way to get to the next job is to deal with the issue and move on.  Life happened.
If anyone has any questions, or comments, please feel free to post below. Thank you to my followers ~ Karen Cirincione – kcirincione@gmail.com

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