Other Options

Getting laid off can play with your head in strange ways. Here I am, having worked as an employee for the last 30+ years, now having visions of running my own business. Why? It's a gut level response to suddenly losing your job: you really don't want to go through that again.

But it's even more fundamental than that: I've lost faith in the traditional model of employer and employee. There's so much that's out of my control. Given a choice I would rather put my trust in me. That's the nice thing about your own business: you run it, you make the decisions. Odds are you won't outsource yourself!

I'm really not the ambitious, competitive type; I'm not out to take on Donald Trump. I would just like something under my control that would pay the bills and be fulfilling.

Alas, these things don't grow in trees, and often may be worse than a regular job. So I'm in the process of sorting these things through so I can make a reasonably informed decision. I wouldn't want to jeopardize our financial security through inordinate risks. But if it takes a while to find a job I need a Plan B anyway, so it's worth thinking about.