This is, of course, not the kind of lead time that we get when we lose our jobs. Whether you're being let go because management thinks you're longer a good fit for the position, or if you're laid off because of lack of work, or if you're terminated just because you're an incompetent boob, it doesn't matter. We don't get a lot of time.

It happens, suddenly. And only when it happens do we start to think about our next job. We start to panic, and realize that getting the next job is going to take a lot of work. We weren't ready, because it was unexpected.

The time to panic about your next job is not when you suddenly lose your job six months from now. (And it could happen to almost any one of us, in these times.) The time to panic about it is right now, before you need to panic.

Far be it from me to be dolling out life advice to anyone who might be reading this, but I've always been wary of comfort. I get uncomfortable with being comfortable. Life isn't supposed to be easy. A lot (not all) of the stories I hear about people caught off guard happened because they let their guard down in the first place.

I think if you manage to go an entire month at a job without feeling any pangs of stress, you should let it worry you.