Tango635

Sorry to hear about your situation Steve. I maybe in a similar position soon. 3,500 layoffs are coming for a company that has about 13,000 employees, so everyone is uneasy.

As someone else mentioned, top sales people always find a way to sell. On that note, have you considered car sales? A friend of mine works for Lexus here in Houston TX, and he says that the economy has not affected them too much yet. I would say "wouldn't Porsche sales be great?!?!" but I think higher end luxury cars are taking a hit, not sure though. Good luck, keep your poise, and keep a positive attitude.

Chuck W.

Steve.... Hang in there pal!

993James993

Hey Steve,

Look at the bright side: you have savings to carry you for 6-9 months. That is much more than most people.

16 months ago I left my longtime job, fully expecting to find a similar position in short order. It didn't work out that way but eventually I found one, and then a second job. Keep your head up, this will all work out.

If I were in your shoes right now I would thank the father in law but tell him no thanks, for now at least. His terms are unreasonable.

Best of luck! This will work out and may be a blessing in disguise. Only time will tell.

Jim

dcdude

Steve,

First off, as with Chris' more joyous post, we are honored that you are letting us into your "real" life with something that really matters. I expect that most people would be totally dumbfounded if we tried to explain the real things that happen on "the Porsche board." You and I have never really talked much, but I grew up not far from you, near the Cabin John Mall area in the "slums of Potomac." I'll scratch my head to think of any relevant local contacts. Oh, be sure to get on Linkedin ASAP.

The good news is that you have that savings. As was said before, most don't. The two pieces of advice that lept off the screen for me were:

1) FIOS: by all means, romance the competition...Top sales guy for 21 years is HUGE! That needs to be prominent on your resume! In fact, I recommend that you look into all related businesses, including utilities, which is what I do. We have "Account Executives," which might match up with your background. My industry doesn't seem to be very affected...yet.

2) Healthcare...anything healthcare. With our growing, aging population, this will only get bigger.

3) To that, I'd like to add: anything Green / Environmental and Homeland Security related will continue to enjoy growth.

What really sucks is that I know you've been worried about this for a long time. Now at least the feelings of dread are over.

PS - tell your father-in-law that the car needs to be driven. If it breaks, then it sits, not before.

DC from Cape Cod

I would take the low paying job, tell him to take his gift with strings and shove it and keep driving the Porsche. Sorry, but for years I have read your posts and it seems like the only person in your family that loves that car is you. I wouldn't let anyone push me around...I would sell it before I would take money with a condition like that attached. It is one thing to insist that the gift goes to the mortgage only...and another thing altogether to try and force a behavior upon you because of it.

travanx

I can feel your pain. Though I just turned 30 so it doesn't hurt as much to lose a job for me. But I was planning to move to Australia, and at the end of getting my visa approved and selling everything, the job fell through. I told myself if it fell through I am buying a 993. Guess what I did about a month later. Then I took a new job at a place that appeared busy and the owner told me the work lineup. Well 4 months into that they let me go. My field is nearly dead right now. So what did I do? Bum around the house for about 3 days, and started to figure something out. It took some time, but I officially started a business with 2 other Civil Engineers and now I run my own thing. This was my plan all along, but that last job really forced me to do this sooner than later. So yeah don't let things get you down. My 3 person company is busier than some 30+ people firms I know of. =)

BTW if you lose your job, you now basically can get your mortgage reduced (rate, write down, who knows, call and ask). So maybe that's a plus while you look for a new job.

DC from Cape Cod

"BTW if you lose your job, you now basically can get your mortgage reduced (rate, write down, who knows, call and ask). So maybe that's a plus while you look for a new job."

The lenders are not doing this very much - they are avoiding it even though Obama has put together the money to offset it. I get people calling me every day telling me that their bank would not help them.

Edgy01

Steve. Attitude is everything. It's something that you, alone, control. While you can walk around depressed and feel sorry that you got screwed take this time to access all the super things about you. You didn't stay on top of the sales force by being stupid. You didn't get stupid overnight.

Check out TheLadders.com for $100K + jobs.

As you're reading, a door closes, and another opens. A neighbor walked by today as I was moving dirt in my yard and told me his daughter just landed a job with a $30K a year raise and lucrative stock options. The jobs are really still out there, but many companies are running scared because of what they think they see coming.

We all have a tendency to resist change, it's a human thing. But some change can be beneficial. Let this opportunity be just that,--an opportunity. Now, go take 48 hours to be bummed about this loss,--and then bounce back!!

Do NOT sell that car!!! It's too nice to be lost.

Mike M.

Great advice here, Steve. As a fellow salesperson, we picked this position (or did we fall into it?), and being 100% commission based is not for the faint of heart. Kind of a strange way to think of things, but I'll never forget my uncle says we're unemployed until the next paycheck. Well, keep your head up, because top producers are often "recession-proof". As a top producer (21 years?), this is a great opportunity to hone your skills and think outside the box as some have stated here. You've been selling your cable product for years, but in a sense, you've been selling your own persona and talent, so I'm confident that as you are feeling a lil' beside yourself, you may still have the edge over others who have not been placed in a position to sell a product/themselves before.

Times are tough all around, but as you know this too shall pass....

cdmdriver

Hang in there Steve. It will all work out. Although I would still drive the 993 on the sly.

jw97C2S

I would never take the money from the FIL. He's only giving (more likely loaning) half of your mortgage rate and he wants to dictate how you will live? I don't see his demands ending. Next week he will be bringing over his laundry saying "remember I'm paying your mortgage." You've had posts in the past suggesting the possibility that you would lose your job and have saved accordingly (although I think one should have at least a year in savings just in case). I would say do your best to make it without his help.


[QUOTE=Steve 96C4S;6419841]My wife's father has generously offered to help us a bit with some money (not really that much, about 1/2 our mortgage payment) till I get another, higher paying job that starts paying out. There is one caveat... you're going to love this, that I don't drive the 911 while he's giving us this money. He said he doesn't want us to incur any maintenance expenses on this luxury car while he's helping us.QUOTE]

UserA

Steve,
First off tell your PHD father in law to shove his money up his ***. Anyone who would attach strings to loaning a grown man money he is related to is a jerk. Second, go to my website www.comstar-usa.com and tell me if my company has services that you would feel comfortable selling. PM me your email. We have been very lucky to actually expand during this economy and need a sales guy in your area.

Steve 96C4S

My wife would hate it if I chose driving my 993 over taking this money from her dad, but your point is well taken. I thought it was a weak argument when I first heard it, this "strings attached gift". I haven't had any strings attached with parents since I was 17! Your company looks very interesting. I'm PM'ing you my resume.

Regards,
Steve

murfysflaw

Hate to hear the news, but as others have said, good sales people will find a job.

Hang in there!

TYNUSKT

Sorry to hear this Steve and I've read thru the thread so I'll give you my $.02. I worked for a company for 10 years and got let go November of last year but I was lucky in the sense I was given a 1 year severance package which I was very thankful for. It has taken me about 4 months to land something and I actually start next week which I am thrilled about because there is a lot of competition out there for jobs.

You will have highs and lows but as everyone else has said attitude is everything. Get up your normal time in the morning, keep yourself physically in shape or get back in shape as part of your new routine and try and do all your job research in the morning because by afternoon you may not feel like it. LinkedIn is a great resource to see where people you know are working and where people these people know are working. I would check out where my contacts on LinkedIn were working and then check out the company website to see if there were any jobs I was interested in then try and reach out to a specific person. I think it is a lot about who you know these days. I personally think having more then 1 recruiter is a waste of time. I had 1 guy who got me a couple interviews that I trusted and knew was actually putting in the effort to help find me something. Also check out the site www.indeed.com for job postings. I think it is easier to use, more concise and gives better updates. I personally stayed away from Monster.com and Careerbuilder.com because you will get a lot of BS recruiter calls if you post your resume on there. People mention TheLadders.com on here but I checked it out and didn't think it was that great. You can find plenty of $100k+ jobs using the other tools I mention above especially in the area we live in. Oh and don't be surprised when you don't hear back from a company right away. I have received 2 phones calls this week alone requesting me to come in for an interview for jobs I applied for back in December. Ofcourse it felt good to tell them I already had something

I think starting in 2Q some hiring will pick up in general so I wish you the best of luck.

Oh and when you do leave on your last day don't forget this great quote from the movie Half Baked
"F*ck you, f*ck you, f*ck you, you're cool, and f*ck you, I'm out!"


Amen.