What is 2,980, Alex?
TweetWe bought our Long Beach home in the late 1990s, before the housing bubble began inflating. We thought that Long Beach homes were undervalued relative to other “Beach” cities (Manhattan, Hermosa, Huntington), and expected that other young professionals would come to the same realization and settle here. We were fortunate in that this indeed has happened, and that our neighborhood has flourished over the past decade.
I’m moved to write this because I just received the first COBRA bill in the mail from my former employer’s HR Service Provider: The total for our family of four is about equal to that of our house payment.
And they need two months in advance.
And the 65 percent cost reduction from the stimulus package hasn’t yet been applied.
I’m very much a “glass is half full” individual: There are great things about pursuing new opportunities, including the freedom to consider how brands you represent match up with your personal values and ethics.
So maybe today’s note will help my fellow professionals out there who might be experiencing wanderlust, or struggling with balancing new business plans with client asks, or wondering if the extra time you’re putting into client service is ever going to pay off.
I know that others have written with tips on what to do in a recession, or ways to prove yourself valuable. And I especially liked “How I Met Your Mother’s take on this, being “That Guy” – http://tinyurl.com/djvegw.
Here’s what I’d say to you out there: Keep counting your blessings; keep giving 100 percent (or, is it 120 percent, according to the most used press release buzzwords); keep supporting your team, your clients, and your partners; keep doing what you do great; keep improving what you do not-so-great; and, above all, keep doing what’s right.
Be the master of the things you can control – exceed deadlines, draft what you can draft, keep your peers and supervisors in the loop – so you can be prepared for the things you can’t.
Treat every client or work challenge as one you can conquer, and celebrate when you do.
Do these things every day, and hopefully you won’t have to answer the Jeopardy question, “It’s what two month’s health insurance coverage on a COBRA plan could cost you.”
