Here’s why you should aim to be on the shortlist for the next round.

It’s one of your worst fears in life, isn’t it? To be escorted out of your cubicle, into a dimly lit room with an HR rep, your boss in monotone thanking you for your service. It’s the shame of it.

The shame of coming home early without a clue what to do next.

The shame of being at the bottom of the barrel.

The shame of everyone else knowing you got let go.

It’s the shame of being *chosen* to be cut loose. Like pirates that made you walk the plank and fed you to the sharks below, or cast you off to the merciless death of floating across a vast open sea.

That’s certainly what it can feel like if you weren’t expecting it. The fear of rejection of this kind is the exact thing that helped us as a species survive. And frankly, if you aren’t expecting it, you’re living by the thin veil of hope, my friend. I hope you have a life raft handy.

It’s an entirely different thing to plan for it. To know that at some point you’ll be one of those fortunate few who landed on the wrong end of the bell curve. Even if it’s 6 months, hell, even one or two - you’ve set yourself up to continue the building you’ve been doing on your escape hatch.

And now is your chance to fly.

Of course, it’s the prep that gets you to feel confident that no matter how the earnings report shakes out for your company, you’ll be in the clear. Because in this environment, no one is safe. Be ready for that surprise, and you’ll be cruising along the jetstream to your new freedom once they’ve voted you off their island.

And the water is oh so warm here.