Living with Uncertainty

My co-workers and I have been living with uncertainty. The project ~45 of us have been working on ends October 20^th. Fortunately last month was told no one else gets laid off.  We just do not know if we will be working 787 or the other programs.  Next week may find out.

~20 of my co-workers will be working in Renton, about 26 miles from the Everett Plant. May be one of them, at least have a job. Several other co-worker have been laid off or taken voluntary layoff. We have been working most of the year with this hanging over our heads.

Surprisingly productivity has still been good. My co-workers and I kept up with our workload. Research was done on openings and what happens if we got layoff notices. Discussions happened around the water cooler. But until people had to prepare for changes, work got completed on time.

Humor has been a coping mechanism. Co-worker said this week, “They told me they were arguing who I would work for. But they didn’t tell me if they were arguing to get me or who got stuck with me.” Most people now know where they are going. So been telling people, “feel like the little kid picked last for teams” :) for the last couple weeks.

Always been more comfortable with uncertainty than most engineers. Every project has required a redesign or changes from customer feedback. No one knows how well new products will sell. We start projects based on best guess. Economies change, competitors offer new products, and life happens.  Results do not turn out as expected. Best sellers are often version of the original. WD-40 is the 40^th version of the lubricant.

To deal with uncertainty with resilience, focus on what you are doing now. You can’t control the situation. Helps to plan if the worst happens what you will do. Apply for jobs in advance, update your resume in case, and cut optional spending. You only need one job. Another opportunity will show up. The worst usually does not happen.

Sometimes it helps to image talking to an older you several years after this was resolved. What did you learn from the change? Should I have worried so much? (Usually no.) Every job change has expanded my knowledge and added new skills that helped my career. Did not feel good at the time, but worked out for my benefit.

My faith is another reason am not worried. God has a plan for us, and since I gave these challenges to God, my life is so much better than I would have expected. Working in 7 states (so far) was not my plan, but met great people because I moved. Hard to give up friends and co-workers to move, but thankful for all my opportunities.

Summarizing - You can’t control what happens to you. You can only control how you react and think about it. Resilience happens when you try to Find the Good, the Humor and Have Faith It Will Work Out. If nothing else you have another story to tell your children and friends.