Q. What do I do after a job goes away?

A. Gwendolyn Parker, author of Trespassing, asked for seven months of severance when she voluntarily left a prestigious corporate job.

Seven months seems like a vast, open space when you leave the corporate world, especially if you hate your job. But, as Parker discovered, seven months of salary seems a lot less when you're no longer working full-time.

What's your next move?

1. Discuss your resources with a qualified financial advisor. Can you stretch your funds beyond six months? Equity loan? Brokerage margin loan? Short-term jobs?

2. Explore feelings, if need be, with a qualified specialist. Many people grieve lost careers, houses and cities -- even those they hated the most

3. Go slow! Sell the house, move to Wyoming and live in a tent? By December, the tent is cold and the bears have confiscated your computer to play hibernation solitaire. "Career winter" indeed.

4. Explore free or low-cost career resources. Check out the Chamber of Commerce, your alumni career center, SCORE, and the unemployment office. If you have trouble staying focused or making a plan, paying your own career coach may be a good investment.

5. Do something fun at least once a day. Take the dog to the park, eat an ice cream sundae, visit a museum. Malls and television are (usually) distracting but not satisfying.

Caution: If "fun" has gone from your life and your vocabulary see #2 -- right away.

6. Get physical. Walk, run, work out, play a sport every day. Exercise creates energy and keeps you healthy.

7. Get creative. Write, paint, take a ceramics or poetry class. Seems frivolous? No. You'll need to be creative when you plan your next step. Get the juices flowing.

Above all, Keep a journal. Life will look very different a year from now and you will be amazed how far you have come and how much you have learned.