On the exact day I started working here, 24 years ago I got called in to HR and informed my position was being terminated as were many other unsuspecting employees. That blow came a week ago and it's taken me since then to swim back to the surface gasping for air. Damn, this is about the worst I've ever been made to feel. I'm sure I'll find a way of landing on my feet again, just not convinced I want to stay in the same line of work.
Curious if anyone else has found themselves in a similar situation, and made a change in occupations to something completely different?

What do you do for work now? I've been floating around doing some contract work lately wondering the same thing myself.

Currently, and for a little over a year I have been responsible for maintaining an on-line technical documentation repository. Prior to that I did work licensing satellite antennas and handling related issues with the FCC. Before that I developed a technical training/distance learning program for remote satellite technicians and operators, and before that I was in IT doing programming (does anyone even use COBOL and Assembler anymore) and help desk support starting back in the DOS days. All these jobs I really enjoyed doing, I'm just not feeling moved to go do any of them somewhere else.

Yup. Happened to me about five years ago. Like a kick in the nutz ain't it?

The contract gig might not be bad...it will get you working in short contracts while you figure out what you want to do. Just finished a 3 month and am currently working a 6 month....sometimes they do turn perm and that gives you the option of checking out the company while they check you out.

just a thought...

On the exact day I started working here, 24 years ago I got called in to HR and informed my position was being terminated as were many other unsuspecting employees. That blow came a week ago and it's taken me since then to swim back to the surface gasping for air. Damn, this is about the worst I've ever been made to feel. I'm sure I'll find a way of landing on my feet again, just not convinced I want to stay in the same line of work.
Curious if anyone else has found themselves in a similar situation, and made a change in occupations to something completely different?

The exact same thing happened to me after 22 years with the same company. The severance package was decent and it allowed me to do some things I would've never been able to do otherwise, like hanging out my with my three year old for a couple of years. I started a little internet retail thing for awhile and that was okay. After awhile I got itchy to do what I was good at again and put my resume out there, no bites. I picked up some consulting gigs but it was spotty. Last year the day after Thanksgiving I got the call from an old friend who was just promoted to executive vp of my old company and he told me he was bringing me back into a regional managers position with all my years of service restored. Stay in touch and don't burn bridges is about the only advice I can give you.