I lost my flight attendant job when Spirit shut down. I’ve had to manage my emotions and am hopeful I’ll find new work soon.

• Julian Richardson worked as a flight attendant for Spirit Airlines for nearly eight years.

• He was shocked to hear that Spirit was shutting down, even though he had been hearing rumors for years.

• While she’s applying for more flight attendant jobs, she’s relying on her side hustle to generate income.

This article, as told, is based on a conversation with Julian Richardson, a 42-year-old flight attendant living in Fort Lauderdale, Florida. Edited for length and clarity.

I am a spirit flight attendant for almost eight years. This was my first and only job as a flight attendant and I would definitely have stayed much longer if I had the chance.

Having someone step off my plane and say, “This is the best flight I’ve ever taken” made coming to work every day so worthwhile.

I had heard rumors for years that Spirit might close, so I always knew it was a possibility. Yet when I wake up early in the morning to an email from Spirit on my phone announced its closureI was shocked. I guess I didn’t think it would actually happen.

There’s a question mark in my mind when I think about job security as a flight attendant, but I’m not ready to give it up.

The day before Spirit shut down, everything seemed business as usual

When Spirit closed it all seemed to be over.

Fortunately, I wasn’t traveling at the time, but the email said all flights were canceled and operations had ceased. Now my insurance has been stopped, I have no severance pay, and it is unclear when I will receive my last paycheck.

It was a difficult situation, but I managed my emotions by remembering that everything happens for a reason. I’m not too worried about losing my income because I’m sure the skills I’ve developed will help me find another job.

I don’t know what my next role will be, but I’ve already applied to airlines that have flight attendant openings.

I’m working on my side hustle, but I’m not ready to give up the perks of being a flight attendant

I’ve been doing comedy skits on social media for a while now and this is definitely side hustle For me. For such situations, it is important to keep a rush.

Social media income can be very up and down, but I’m currently working on getting more brand deals. Still, I enjoyed my time at Spirit and learned a lot. As a flight attendantI was largely responsible for myself. It was up to me to wake up, get to the airport on time, and catch the shuttle. It taught me a lot of independence and responsibility.

I also didn’t experience any micromanagement as a flight attendant. In my experience, you can see your supervisors or managers, but you don’t get to see them every day. They’re not looking over your shoulder to see what you’re doing.

I’m still pretty young and I feel like I’m really good at what I do, so I want to continue working as a flight attendant. Nothing beats flight perks. I love this part of the job. My family and I can travel at discounted pricesso I would definitely like to continue to enjoy those benefits. However, I am also open to other opportunities. I’m not naive enough to put myself in a box.

Eventually I want to own my own business

When you work for someone, nothing happens real job securityTherefore, I cannot say that I feel that there is job security as a flight attendant.

I think the only time you can find real job security is working for yourself and running a nearly recession-proof business. So my long-term goal is to eventually own my own business. Still, I would recommend becoming a flight attendant to anyone.

Being a flight attendant gives you a lot of flexibility. I could live wherever I wanted. It’s kind of like a remote job in that respect. I had colleagues who lived in Spain and worked 15 days, then rested for 15 days. There aren’t many jobs where you can do this.

Flight attendants also have the opportunity to interact with people and help them have a great experience. This is part of the job I love.

Spirit Airlines declined to comment for this story.

Do you have a story to share about coping with job loss? If so, please contact the reporter at tmartinelli@businessinsider.com.

Read the original article Business Content