When Lowell Perry, Jr. found himself unceremoniously laid off from a long-standing position, he knew he had to act fast to find a new job.

“I was informed at 8:30 that morning that my entire department and I were gone…” said Perry, now Executive Director for Family Wellness Dallas—Safe Conversations, in a recent interview.

Perry, former decorated CEO at Big Brothers Big Sisters, immediately put his life in to perspective. “…But at 4:55 that afternoon, I got the call that my daughter had delivered our first grand baby…so it reminded me of what’s important.”

Losing your job is naturally shocking to anyone, no matter how long their tenure within a company.

So how did Perry recover from the set back, and return to employment within 60 days?

What to Do On the Day You Lose Your Job

The first step was to get through the anger, the emotions, the confusion. Understand that there is most likely little you can do about it. But Perry didn’t dwell on the negative side for very long at all. He reminded himself, “It’s their loss. There is nothing wrong with you.” And instead of focusing on the fact that he was unemployed, he got excited to start a new chapter in his life.

His first steps were to give himself some breathing space. Put certain things on hold, as you will of course need to focus on a job search, and nothing else until you are once again employed. Making sure your finances are in order should be one of the first steps after a job loss, as you can never be certain just how long you will be out for.

The next step was to immediately reach out to his network. Within the very same day, he jumped online to tap his network, explaining that time is of the essence, and that he needed help. He informed his network about his situation, that he was actively looking for new employment, and shared his resume and accomplishments.

Perry quickly reached out to those whom he had worked with most recently. As former CEO, he had continuously built a large network up until the very moment that he was let go. And he received immediate responses. Within days, he had multiple leads, and was already receiving invitations for interviews.