Now I’m not saying I’m psychic or anything..psycotic maybe…but if you recall as 2012 was wrapping up I posted about The End of a Cycle/ New Beginnings. In that post I said I had a feeling things were going to change for me in 2013.
Well it didn’t take long for the first shoe to drop. I would have had my 10th year anniversary at my job this year on May 12. I just wanted to make it until then at which time I was planning to review my “options’.

I found out yesterday that I should start reviewing my options now. I’m not going to make it to my 10th anniversary. My company is moving my department to another office north of Boston. Everyone is welcome to keep their jobs and work from the new office or they can take a severance package. There’s no increase in pay for the move. For me it would require a 1/2 hour- 45 minute drive (depending on traffic) just to get to the “T”. If I choose to drive all the way it would be at least 1.5 hours each way and that’s on a good day. I worked in that office before and most days it was 2+ hours.

Between the time and the additional cost taking their offer to move isn’t an option. So that means that on April 1 (April Fool’s Day) I will join the ranks of the unemployed.

On the good side I’ll be old enough to draw social security. I will also be eligible for unemployment and there will be some sort of severance. I’m not sure how much.

Now before everybody gasps and offers condolences let me tell you that I am actually very excited about this.

I used to enjoy my job but changes in the structure in recent years had me increasingly dissatisfied. I stayed because of the economy, my age and mostly because I really like the people I work with. As conditions deteriorated I knew we were all in it together. Now that I know my time is coming to an end I’m excited to look for new opportunities.

I have been dabbling with the photography so the first thing I have to do is get serious about it. I intend to use some of the “down time” to build up my “stock” (photos) portfolio and see if I can get that producing some income.

I’d love to see my photo cards take off.

Sales have been sluggish but I’m not real good at promoting myself. I know the people who receive the cards love them and the people who have sent them are all repeat customers so I just have to get the word out more. Maybe now I’ll have time for some craft shows. Any suggestions on low-cost advertising are welcome. Chime in
www.dustyroadsphotos.etsy.com
www.dustyroadsphotos.zenfolio.com
And of course, feel free to become a valued customer. 🙂

The same thing applies to my pet photography and portrait line.

I need to get my name out there. Once again the key is advertising especially in the highly competitive market we’re in. Everybody has a phone or camera phone and everybody considers themselves a pro. I need a niche.

I was recently “flirting” with another company about a “work from home” position. I’ll see if I can get that back on track. I also noticed that a number of companies that have “in store ” photo studios are hiring as well as several “photo Processing Labs”.

Then there’s freelance work.

I have had 1 photo published and I’ve been encouraged to write travel articles and try to sell those. In fact at one point a major newspaper suggested I report on New England Travel. I didn’t do anything with it at the time but maybe it’s time to revisit these opportunities.

Relocating is not an option because my home has not rebounded enough to sell and staying here is cheaper than renting.

So the bottom line is that change is in the wind and I suspect it will be a busy , challenging and exciting time. Have any of you been through a layoff or career change later in life? I’d love to hear what kind of experience you had.