E120 - Workplace Survivor Syndrome

First 100 Words
It’s one thing to read about layoffs in your local paper; it’s quite another to see a close colleague pack his kid’s pictures into a heavy box and hobble for the door, to find yourself speechless in the face of his shock and humiliation, to know that you may never share a joke over lunch again.

You’ve been spared–for now, at least. But being lucky never felt so bad. Miserable is how most downsizing survivors would describe it–grinding through massive daily workloads while waiting anxiously for the other shoe to drop and wondering why it was the other guy, and not themselves, who ended up out of work . . .

When To Use
What is workplace survivor syndrome; coping with loss at work, managing guilt and anger, steps to take to experience healing and how to adopt a renewed positive attitude about the future.

How to Use
Post-downsizing, counseling sessions.