At the beginning of the pandemic, people were getting laid off left and right. Some businesses were going to work-from-home models while others shut down or closed completely. It was a scary time, and there was a lot of uncertainty.

Luckily for us, I was working from home at the time, though I wasn’t making much, so not much would change for me. My husband, however, works in retail, and we were relatively certain that they would be shutting down. We just didn’t know when. Most places were already in lockdown, and I was pregnant and at home with a 4 and 2 year old.

I’ll never forget the moment that my husband called and said he was laid off for the foreseeable future. In a moment that could have been filled with anxiety, uncertainty, and panic, I was calm and so was he.

I asked how long he thought they’d be closed. He said he didn’t know.

I asked if he was going to get paid. He said he didn’t know.

There I was, standing at home in the midst of a global pandemic with two small children and one on the way hearing my husband say he wasn’t going to be working and may not be getting paid, and I was calm.

To be perfectly honest, I was excited. Things were crazy and scary, and now my whole family got to be together. He was laid off for a month and ended up getting paid close to what he would normally earn which was a welcome surprise. But we spent that month eating every meal together, playing in the yard, watching tv, and doing puzzles.

We had worked so hard for years to get out of debt and have an emergency fund. But there’s still really no way to know if the decisions you’re making are truly the right decisions until they’re put to the test. In that moment of calm, I knew that everything we had done financially up until that point had been the right decision.

We were able to face uncertain circumstances with certainty, knowing that, financially at least, we would be fine. That helped to make all of the other uncertainty — would we get sick? how long would we be in lockdown? would things ever get back to normal? — a little more manageable because we had controlled what we could.

Taking control of your finances is one of the best ways to layoff-proof your life. And in today’s economy and what seems like new layoffs announced every day, now is the time to take control.

It may seem daunting at first, but these steps can get you moving towards a financial situation that allows for more calm in the midst of chaos.

1. Know your numbers: This can feel very overwhelming at first, but the first step to taking control of your money is to know how much you make, how much you owe, and how much you spend. It can be as simple as breaking down those three categories.
   • How much you make: How much do you bring home each month? If you’re in a couple and you combine finances, use the total of both incomes.
   • How much you owe: If you have debt, take inventory of how much you owe. Include everything. Car payment, mortgage, credit cards, money you own your brother, payday loans, medical bills. Everything.
   • How much you spend: Some people spend money each month and don’t know where it went. It’s easy to do. Take stock of exactly how much you spend and on what. Some will be easy, like streaming services or a cell phone bill. Other things, like how much you spend on takeout or shopping, may be a little more difficult. Track your spending for a month or two to see how much you’re spending each month and where your money is going.
2. Make a budget: Budgeting is just making a plan for your money and sticking to it. A zero-based budget lets you designate a job for every dollar you bring in.
3. Save an emergency fund: Some financial advice is geared towards paying off debt as quickly as possible, and I think that’s typically the right move. But the last few years have shown us that there’s no playbook. So saving an emergency fund of three to six months of expenses (you can add up your “how much you owe” and “how much you spend” categories) will help cover you in the event of a layoff.

While there’s no real way to fully be prepared for getting laid-off, making sure your finances are in the best shape possible can help make the transition easier and allow you to focus on things like finding a new job without the stress of wondering how you’ll pay for groceries or the light bill.

As I used to say to my students – questions? thoughts? comments? I’d love to hear them!

Photo by Vojtech Okenka: https://www.pexels.com/photo/person-holding-apple-magic-mouse-392018/