When someone we know loses their job, we must be mindful of the profound emotional stressors they face. We can encourage them to stay connected to their personal communities by socializing with friends and staying engaged with professional networks, as well.

It's now been a couple of weeks since I was notified of my layoff, and I've recently been getting some vibes from my wife indicating that she doesn't exactly share all the positive feelings about my newfound freedom and creative ambitions.

You never think it will happen to you, but after a quarter of a century in the book publishing industry and having worked on countless bestsellers, I am now among the millions of unemployed Americans.

For all of the people who keep waiting for things to get better -- stop. Stop waiting. You're losing time, whether you are enjoying this moment or not. This is it. It is all you have, so wake up. Live.