Bounce back from being sacked - how to recover emotionally and professionally.

When you have been fired from a job it is easy to wallow in self-pity or self-doubt, to get de-motivated, depressed or downright angry.

However, whilst these emotions are natural and only normal, the trick is to pick yourself up, dust yourself down and get back out there as quickly as possible.

Check the legalities

First things first, try to find out whether the reason that you were fired was genuine or whether you really should have been made redundant and your employer was pulling a "fast one".

If the business was failing and you were sacked, this could have been a cover up so that your employer wouldn't have to fork out any redundancy money. If you suspect that this was the case, you may be able to sue for unfair dismissal.

In the UK, it is best to seek advice from ACAS or your local Citizen's Advice Bureau.

Stay positive

Although it will be difficult, you have to remain positive and try to concentrate on the good things from this situation. It's OK to feel down or be angry, but don't dwell on these negative emotions. The sooner you start to focus on the positive, the sooner you will be back on your feet and back in work. Take note of the common saying, "things happen for a reason". Well, you never know what great opportunities are just around the corner. You can't change what has happened, but you can take control and grab new opportunities that come your way if you go out and make them happen.

Get support

The best thing to do in a situation like this is to talk to people and get some support and advice. Don't keep your emotions or thoughts bottled up, as this could cause strain on your relationships at home and with friends. Talk to your family and friends and seek advice on what to do next from professionals if you are unsure. It is imperative that you surround yourself with positive people who care and that you get the professional help and advice that you need.

Learn from your mistakes

Find out the reason(s) that your employer fired you and try to learn from your mistakes. If you have been fired more than once, look to see whether there is a common theme and address it. Maybe you have to work on your people skills, you have to retrain or you just need a bigger and much louder alarm clock!

Don't dismiss your dream

If you have been sacked from your job maybe this is just what you need to get out of your boring old routine and do something new and exciting. If you don't have any financial worries, maybe this is just the right time to start thinking again about old dreams or plans that you had in the past but never got round to doing. Perhaps you secretly yearn to open up your own small business or you want to travel around the world and see what life has in store for you. You may want a complete career change and decide to go back to college or university. Nothing is impossible!

Update your CV

If you plan on getting straight back into the employment market, you will need to update your CV. Reassess your key skills, think about all the things that you are good at and work them into your brand new CV.

Network

Many people don't know that most jobs are filled by recommendations through friends, family and work associates. This is because companies want to try and save as much money as possible on advertising, plus employers would rather take someone on that has been recommended by someone they know rather than have to read hundreds of CVs and sit through numerous interviews.

For this reason, if you plan to get back to work as soon as possible, you must advertise your availability with everyone that you know. For more details on networking, please see our networking guide.

So, as you can see, getting sacked from your job is not as bad as you first thought and it is certainly not the end of the world. It is actually very common and it doesn't mean that you are useless or a bad person. In fact, when you look back a year or two later, you may just be thinking that it was the best thing that could have possibly happened at that time!!