Sital Ruparelia

Some people come into our lives for a reason

Some people for a season

Some for a lifetime

I came across this wise saying a few years ago when I found myself asking the “why question.”

You know the one we all ask when we lose people that are close to us  - be they friends, family or a close relationship.

I’d lost a close friend and really couldn’t make sense of things. All I kept thinking was: “Why? Why did it happen? Why oh why…?”

Then one day I randomly came across the above quote which helped me look at things a little more philosophically. It didn’t change the situation – but certainly changed my perspective on things and , in time, help me move forward.

Moving forward is the greatest challenge many people face after any loss – including the loss of a job.

Interestingly, I now find myself using this same quote in helping clients move forward after redundancy. People who have lost jobs are asking the “why questions” too. And for many, the Reason..Season..Lifetime analogy provides a useful way to move forward:

Some career opportunities will come into your life for a reason

If you’ve lost your job more than once in quick succession, it doesn’t mean you’re a loser or unlucky. There’s often a reason for it that will materialise in the future. Maybe you were meant to learn a lesson in those roles and you‘ve learned it. Maybe you were meant to meet someone in that firm (a future client, a new friend or a future soul mate) and you’ve met them so it’s time to move on.

Or maybe you were meant to help someone -and having fulfilled your duty it’s time to move on. You won’t know the reason until years later – or never at all. So just accept the decision and accept that there may be a grander plan being played out… and move on.

Some for a season

If you’re flourishing career has been has been cut short by redundancy, maybe you’ve learned what you needed to learn with the last firm. Maybe it’s time for you to play a much bigger game and this is your push to ensure you do it.

Or maybe you need to change your lifestyle and the redundancy is the catalyst to change that. Just accept it and move forward in the knowledge that things will work out and the dots will join up backwards in the months and years ahead.

Some for a lifetime

It’s becoming rare these days, but for some people, a job or career will be for life. But if isn’t for you, that’s absolutely fine. You’re not ‘unlucky’ – in fact, in some ways you’re very fortunate to have the opportunity to experience different careers, different roles and meet different people.

When dealing with any kind of loss we know that time is a great healer.

And with time, people who have lost jobs often come to realise that what once seemed like a disaster, in fact happened for a reason. And that quite often, redundancy was not a set back, but the start of a brand new season..