Getting laid off or even fired can be a shocking and upsetting experience. Being prepared can help cushion the blow so take our quiz to find out if your job could be on the chopping block next.
Whether it is due to tough economic times or poor work performance, find out where you stand in the working world:
1. No matter what you have still waiting to be done on your desk, you leave the office:
a. Not until everything is done, you hate leaving with work still waiting.
b. Probably an hour late, you don’t want your desk to look too messy.
c. Right at 5:00, you do have a personal life after all.
2. During staff meetings you:
a. Take careful notes and often send out meeting minutes for those who didn’t follow as carefully as you did.
b. Sip your coffee trying to stay awake, jotting down the occasional thing that filters through your mind.
c. Barely cover your yawns with your hand, what happened to your note pad anyway?
3. When given a big new project to tackle you:
a. Jump in feet first, you love a new challenge.
b. Moan and groan a bit to your friends and colleagues, but start working away.
c. Procrastinate until the deadline is approaching. You work better under pressure anyways.
4. The frequency of personal emails to your inbox could be described as:
a. Absolutely none. Your friends know you are at work to work.
b. A couple every day, some things just can’t wait.
c. Frightening, and you hope your boss never finds out. But everyone does this, right?
5. When you read about your company in the news it is usually about:
a. One of the top employers in Canada again!
b. A few rumblings about possible layoffs, but nothing in your division.
c. How your main client is no longer signed with your company.
6. When your co-workers start planning an office get together you think:
a. Of course! And is there anything I should bring?
b. An hour tops, and then I need to get out of here.
c. Spend time outside of work with them?!
7. Your office has just acquired a new computer system. The first thing you notice is:
a. How much faster you can get everything done now.
b. No more long waiting times for the Internet to connect!
c. That it does your job for you. Hold on…
8. The product your company produces is:
a. Cutting edge and priced accordingly.
b. A little slower, but a lot cheaper than its competition.
c. Recently recalled.
9. You use your sick days:
a. As sparingly as possible, you never get sick.
b. Now and again when you’re sick or feeling ‶under the weather″ on a Monday morning.
c. As much as possible, who needs to wait until they’re sick to have a day off!
10. When you have completed a big project your boss:
a. Thanks you with words of encouragement and mentions your work to those higher up.
b. Nods their appreciation and moves on.
c. Doesn’t acknowledge your contribution at all, in fact, they barely know who you are.
Mostly A’s: You’re in the clear.
Take a breath and relax, you’re in the clear! The star of your workplace, you are the model employee. While you may not love your job, you realize that hard work and professionalism are the keys to not only keeping it, but getting ahead as well. Well rounded, you realize that hard work and good teamwork are essential to a productive workplace for you. Surranna Sandy, President and Editorial Director of Resume Solutions, a Toronto-based career coaching and career management company, notes that people who are both strong performers and strong team players are the ones who will remain when people need to go.
Mostly B’s: You could potentially get laid off.
While not quite out the door, you may have one foot over the threshold. While you do go that extra inch, it’s not quite the extra mile your employer may be looking for. One way to get back onto the path to success – communicate with your manager, set goals and prioritize what is critical to getting your job done. In addition to your own work, work on strong working relationships, as they can help you succeed. “People should build workable relationships that enable them to meet their goals,” says Surranna Sandy, President and Editorial Director of Resume Solutions. Even if you don’t like someone, remind yourself, this is my job, and they are essential to helping me get my job done.
Mostly C’s: You need to start looking for a new job.
Completely unproductive and uninterested in your job, it’s only a matter of time before you’re out the door. If you leaving is due to your company’s decline, what you can do at this point is prepare for leaving says Surranna Sandy, President and Editorial Director of Resume Solutions. She advises taking stock of what you have done in your role to launch your job search and begin networking. “If you prepare, you can adapt,” says Sandy. If you leaving is due to your own performance, start looking at why it’s not the right fit for you before it affects your overall reputation.