It’s Monday morning, and you walk into your office after a nice, restful weekend. Your boss approaches you and asks to see you in his office right away. From the tone of his voice, you sense this won’t be a “How was your weekend?” kind of conversation.

You grab your pen and notebook and follow him into his office. His desk is clean with the exception of your personnel folder and an envelope that looks like what you receive on payday. A weird feeling comes over you. Your stomach starts to churn as he begins: “It’s never easy to have this type of conversation.” You can’t recall the rest of the dialogue since all you heard him say was, “Blah, blah, blah.” It’s not until you leave his office, paycheque in hand, that you realise you were just fired. The thought that you will never work again keeps replaying in your mind.

Although it may take a while for you to pick yourself up, you will work again. More than likely, your ego has been bruised, and it will take some time to heal. While that is happening, what can you do to get your career back on track?

Take time to mourn

Hearing “you’re fired” can be devastating. Your first inclination might be to ignore your feelings. Don’t. It’s natural to feel a real sense of loss. Take the time to work through your emotions so they don’t come back to haunt you when you least expect it.

It’s helpful to talk with someone about your job loss. If you need to, seek professional help.

Get back in the saddle

At some point in time, you will need to get out in the job market again. When you are ready, consider putting together a plan for your job search and updating your resume. Your plan should include concrete goals and deadlines so you can measure your success.

Work the plan

Developing a plan can be very empowering. Once completed, don’t put your plan in a drawer. Check your plan daily to ensure you’re staying on track.

Make the hardest calls first

Procrastination is common during a job search. We tend to make the easy phone calls first, and then if we get around to it, we might make some of the harder calls.

Try reversing the order and see how much better things work. Start your day by making the hardest calls first. This way, you won’t spend countless hours cleaning out your closets just so you don’t have to make these calls. Put the extra hours to better use.

Stay networked

Sure, you want to crawl into a hole when you’re unemployed. But you’re not a bear, and you need to stay visible.

Networking is a critical component of any job search and usually requires some face-to-face contact. It’s important you push yourself to get out and stay in sight. Start small, and attend one networking function or meeting a week. Then when you are more comfortable with your situation, try bumping up the frequency.

Manage your references

Eventually, you will need to provide your potential employer with a list of references. It’s a good idea to get this in order before you start interviewing.

Yes, this list might need to include the one who just fired you. Contact your old boss and ask about his willingness to talk with potential employers about some of the positive contributions you made while working for the company. Be prepared to highlight your more significant accomplishments.

If your former superior won’t agree to a positive reference, then line up other people in the company who can attest to your attributes. It’s easy to hope that you won’t be asked for references, but it’s a very unlikely prospect. So prepare your list.

Before you know it, you will be gainfully employed again. The experience of being fired will stay with you for a while, but you will have learned that life goes on.