I feel your pain.  Stabbed in the back.  Punched in the gut.  Wanna barf.  Having been laid off twice since 2002, I can relate to my fellow pink-slipped Americans.  Following are a handful (OK, six fingers) of steps to consider in your recovery to gainful employment.

Step 1.  Vent.  You’re probably mad as hell and need to blow off some steam.  Take a long walk in a nearby park, preferably an empty or at least an uncrowded one.  Once you’re out of earshot of being heard, go ahead and cuss and yell about how you’ve been screwed and that your bosses were SOBs and total idiots for getting rid of such a fine employee as you.  Shed a few tears and feel sorry for yourself, too, if you feel the need.  Once all those emotions are out of your system, walk back to your car and calmly return home.

This step won’t help you find a job, but at least you’ll feel better.  And since nobody heard you, you won’t get into any trouble.

Step 2.  File for unemployment compensation.  If you weren’t fired and didn’t just quit, you should be eligible for unemployment checks.  Right after you’ve been laid off, go to your state’s local unemployment office and fill out the paperwork to receive benefits.  Some states may allow filing online.  It’s not a lot of money, but every little bit helps.

Step 3.  Use your contacts.  You’ve probably heard about the ‘Old Boy Network’ and ‘It’s Who You Know’ approaches to finding a new job.  These axioms are probably true, that you improve your chances of getting hired by getting recommendations and contacts from people you know.  Consider your friends, family, former co-workers (the ones you liked, anyway), outside vendors you’ve interacted with, and members of your professional association.  Find out if any of these people might know of job openings at other companies in your industry.  Tell them you’re job hunting and ask if they have any leads. 

The best lead is the name and contact information of the actual person doing the hiring, the manager with the opening, at your target company.  A human resources person is probably not the desired contact, since HR may just dump your resume into a pile with everybody else’s like you’re nobody special.  It’s better to contact the front line manager, particularly if he or she got your name from a respected friend.  Then you’re much more likely to get serious consideration.

Step 4.  Scour the ads.  Ideally, check the classified ads in professional and trade media outlets.  Rarely will you find ads for good jobs in your local newspaper.  You’re much more likely to find ads for quality jobs in magazines, journals, and internet sites dedicated to your profession.  For me, as a chemist, the best job listings were posted by the American Chemical Society, our main professional association, and in their weekly newsmagazine, Chemical and Engineering News.  If you’re not already a member of an organization for your trade, do a Google search and try to find one.

Step 5.  Build a strong resume.  Sell yourself, your talents, experience, and accomplishments in a professional looking resume.  Keep it to one or two pages, and really point out what skills you can bring to a new organization.  Be sure to use spell check and have someone check your grammar.  A resume full of typos or poor grammar shows that you are an idiot and you’ll never get hired.  Send it in with a cover letter to the contact you identified from above.

Step 6.  Sharpen your skills.  Use your free time for self-improvement as much as you can. Read to stay current with the latest developments in your field.  Go online or visit a library.  This step is probably the hardest because you may still be angry and depressed, but it’ll pay off.  To make the best impression during a job interview you’ll want to show your motivation toward keeping your skills sharp.

Be patient.  It may take several weeks or even months to find the job you really want.  Keep trying.  If you haven’t heard from a company you applied to after several weeks, contact them again.  Stay positive and upbeat.  Most of all, good luck.  I’m pulling for you.