Now with the second anniversary of Pink Slip Lemonade Month barely past, news reports I’ve seen lately suggest that both job insecurity and unflattering pants are trying hard to stage comebacks.  Unless you have a fashion-conscious teenager, the return of bell bottoms isn’t likely to have a major impact on your financial plan. But the recent resurgence of pink slips at the national and local level is another story.

If you missed the boat on taking advantage of these tips for the newly reemployed the last time mass layoffs were in vogue and fear you may be a layoff candidate anew, now’s the time for a perhaps unwelcome, but important, walk down Memory Lane with this 2008 article Are You Financially Prepared for a Layoff? by respected personal finance author Jonathan Pond.

“The goal of this one-day retreat/workshop is to help you gain clarity on the career parameters you should consider to make better career choices for the future.

During the retreat, you will work on self-reflection exercises, alone and in teams, to help you better understand your lifelong career interests, your motivated skills, your behavioral style, and the rewards you want to achieve from your work. At the end of the retreat, we will brainstorm as a group to discover career options that will fit your unique needs.” – Randi Bussin

Click here for more information and to register for an upcoming session!

Photo by Sharon Harvell

Could it be that the long-awaited bluer skies are finally returning?  The stock market, holiday spending, and other economic indicators are up. Most welcome of all perhaps, according to the latest report, unemployment is down. 

If you are one of the lucky beneficiaries of this nascent uptick in hiring, congratulations!  Before you get too caught up in the day-to-day demands of full-time employment, check out my thoughts and others’ on how to make the most of your new job – financially speaking — in this article Newly Re-Employed Need To Revisit Financial Goals by CNBC’s Shelly Schwartz. 

Randi has changed careers twice, working in high tech, higher education, and is a serial entrepreneur.  She has an MBA from INSEAD and an MA from Tufts University.

She was recently voted one of 100 Personal Branding Experts to Follow on Twitter in 2010.

But a prospective self-employed – especially one whose financial situation has been made more precarious by a layoff — is wise to test the waters first.  Why?  As Small Business Administration (SBA) legend has it, only about half of new businesses survive past year 4.  This SBA article lists the reasons, but they pretty much add up to one thing: cash flow, cash flow, cash flow.

So how to make sure cash from your new business flows in the right direction?  In the Wall Street Journal article Becoming the Boss Can Cost Plenty, a few who’ve recently found themselves in over their heads share what they’ve learned about launching a start-up and how they would do things differently if they had it to do over again.

A look at jobs data from The Great Recession suggests — and client experiences corroborate — that there’s a new normal out there, and it reads like some sort of Bizarro Candid Camera episode. i.e. Don’t be surprised if sometime, somewhere, someplace when you least expect it, someone steps up to you and says, “Sorry, your job has gone the way of the dinosaur,” prompting an unplanned, possibly extended career transition with the potential to undo a lifetime of hard-won financial security.

Not pretty. But accepting this shift in the employment landscape is the first important step in making the career and financial choices that better prepare you for this “just in case” scenario. Check out this NY Times article to find out why that’s been even more true for baby boomers: Longer Unemployment for those 45 and Older.  (Anybody remember when experience was a plus for job seekers?)

Fortunately, some of those who’ve been on the job search front lines during this recession are sharing what they’ve learned about how to survive — maybe even thrive — in this Bizarro World. Click here to listen to an excellent New Hampshire Public Radio segment featuring none other than Tammy Hildreth, guest blogger, co-founder of Network for Work (TM) professional networking group, and winner of our recent giveaway of The Money Book for Freelancers, Part-Timers, and the Self-Employed.

Image by Ltshears

There have been several modifications to the COBRA premium subsidy program since it was enacted as part of the stimulus package about a year ago, so a person could certainly be forgiven for not being 100% clear about his or her eligibility.  Yet there are so many dollars at stake, it’s critically important for those who might qualify to have their facts straight.  No doubt in response to a barrage of questions, the Department of Labor has recently put together this new FAQ to clarify all the ifs, ands, and buts. 

Many thanks to my Garrett Planning Network colleague Deidra Fulton of Plano, TX-based Fulton Financial Planning, Inc., for calling this to my attention!

My absolute favorite point and, IMHO, the key to getting back on track: “Your newly frugal—or at least simplified—lifestyle is the most valuable asset you accumulated during those long months out of work. And you earned it the hard way, too. Don’t throw it away lightly.” Check out the rest of the article!