I recently read a great blog in the Harvard Business Review ( www.hbr.org ) written by Douglas Conant - retired CEO from Campbell's Soup.
In the blog he discusses how his experience going thru outplacement helped shape him into becoming the leader that he became.
http://blogs.hbr.org/cs/2013/03/what_losing_my_job_taught_me_a.html
Some of the valuable lessons that he learned from his outplacement experience was:
- Do not have a "victim" mentality - losing yourself in self pity can be a burden and weight which will stop you from moving forward on re-building your career, life and self esteem.
- Connecting with people by being fully present - listen with intent and purpose with the goal of complete understanding versus how you are going to guide the conversation.
- "Honor" all people who cross your path - think about the people who have honored you along your life journey and challenge yourself to become more like them
- When someone does help you, acknowledge it - get the names of everyone you interact with - from the receptionist to the CEO - and thank them for their help.
- Always be building your network - unfortunately for many they only begin building a network when they need one. By always building and nurturing your network you will be fully prepared if a transition every happens to you.
The expert advice that Doug Conant received during outplacement helped him build a very successful career. Outplacement does help transitioned employees rebuild - re-focus - and renew themselves on the path towards successful careers
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