Jack’s Empowerment and Inspiration: 103. DO YOU OPTIMISE YOUR TIME? Jack’s Redundancy Empowerment - empowering redundancy - empowering redundant workers

103. DO YOU OPTIMISE YOUR TIME? Jack’s Redundancy Empowerment - empowering redundancy - empowering redundant workers - empowering redundant staff - empowering redundant employees - making redundancy work for you - is redundancy a dead end? - is redundancy the end of the road? - making the most of redundancy - empowering the redundant worker - Jack Lookman - Rita Nnamani - Olayinka Carew - Ola Carew - Jack Lookman Limited - Amebo - Olofofo - Ire o - Ire kabiti - Empowerment and Inspiration - Empowering And Inspiring Generations - Yinka Carew - Olayinka Carew aka Jack Lookman - Jack’s Empowerment and Inspiration

One of the first things to realise is that you have more control over your time than you think. When you work, your schedule is designed to meet the needs of others. Redundancy allows you to create a rhythm that suits your mind, goals, and current needs. The challenge is that unstructured time can appear chaotic. If you allow days to blend together, you lose momentum and confidence.

Recognising your emotional state is the first step towards optimising your time. The level of redundancy is high. If you push through without accounting for the shock, you will be exhausted. Taking a few days to breathe, reflect, organise your thoughts, and accept what has happened is not a waste of time. It clears the fog. Once that fog begins to settle, your mind becomes sharper and you can approach your next steps with intention rather than panic.

Once you have a bit more mental clarity, the next step is breaking your goals into manageable blocks. Instead of saying you want a new job soon, you define the small steps that lead there. Updating your CV. Researching sectors you'd like to transition into. Checking eligibility for benefits. Creating a simple job search timetable. Reaching out to former colleagues. Taking small online courses to sharpen specific skills. These tasks become your anchors. When you assign clear times to them, your days develop structure. Structure reduces anxiety because you can see progress, even if it’s slow.

Optimising time also means cutting out habits that disguise themselves as productivity. Scrolling through job boards endlessly without applying. Refreshing your email every 10 minutes. Watching too many tutorials without practicing anything. Venting to the same people repeatedly without using the advice they give. These behaviours feel active, but they keep you in place. A good rule is to ask yourself whether the action brings you closer to your goal or simply keeps you busy.

There is also a practical advantage to setting boundaries around your time. When people know you’re redundant, they may assume you are always available. They might ask for favours that eat into your days, especially if you find it difficult to say no. Protecting your time is part of protecting your recovery. You can still help others, but you must guard the hours you need to rebuild your career. Those hours are investments. If you allow them to be pulled in every direction, you slow down your own progress.

A good approach is to treat your job search as part-time work. Assign core hours to it, and then step away when the hours are completed. This provides structure without overwhelming you. It also alleviates the guilt that many laid-off workers experience when they aren't actively looking. Knowing you've already set aside dedicated time allows you to relax, which boosts your mental resilience.

Optimising your time also involves preparing for opportunities before they appear. Tailoring a CV when you’re stressed and tired often leads to errors. Writing a cover letter in panic makes your sentences tense. Practicing interview answers under pressure makes you sound unsure. When you dedicate calm time to preparation, you perform better when opportunities surface. Employers respond positively to candidates who sound ready, confident and self-aware.

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