Lose your stress with Insult Your Former Boss Day

Last year was the inaugural celebration of Insult Your Boss Day, a holiday to help frustrated employees let off steam. Many workers embraced this holiday in spirit, though most of those insults were heard by commiserating colleagues rather than the boss himself. (Figures on the employment status of those who took more direct action are unknown.)

However, with the jobless rate over 9% and growing, there are fewer workers with bosses to insult.

How can this significant part of the population celebrate? This year, a new holiday has been added to complement the old! Insult Your Former Boss Day will take place on Wednesday, July 29th, concurrently with the original Insult Your Boss Day. 

This year’s honorary chair, Lady Arabella Snark, has this to say to the jobless: “Being out of work is no excuse for sitting on the sofa, wallowing in ice cream and Oprah. A little revenge on your former employer can boost your self-confidence and get you back on track.” 

Lady Snark’s top five tips for reducing stress related to job loss

1. Get in touch with your feelings. If you don’t feel angry and resentful about losing your job, it’s probably because you’re repressing those deeply uncomfortable thoughts. It’s okay to want to put your former employer’s picture on a dartboard.

2. Let your tensions go. The stress caused by unemployment can lead to serious problems, including depression, high blood pressure and increased obesity. Releasing that pent-up emotion with a wounding insult can help keep you upbeat and healthy.

3. Give credit where credit is due. Don’t take your frustrations out on an innocent spouse or friend. Instead, get back at the person responsible for your troubles: your ex-boss.

4. Look for support. Maybe there are other disgruntled former coworkers who would like to join you in celebrating Insult Your Former Boss Day. Working with a group will improve the overall quality of your insult, as well as providing an opportunity for networking. 

5. Say anything. You might be worried about repercussions that will hurt your current job search, but many companies will only give out your job title and the dates of your employment when asked for a reference. Others will keep mum because they are concerned about lawsuits. If your former company is more forthcoming, you might wish to insult your ex- boss anonymously.