This is the first in my 3-part “Joe Series”.
Sometimes my readers say it better than I ever could. Here are Joe’s own words of wisdom based on his many months out of work. As the weeks ticked by, this same confident guy who up until then had always felt sure he could get a job started to lose hope and worry he’d never find work again. (Fear not…there is hope!)
Hi Ronnie Ann!
Your post Days Off Are Way Better If You Actually Have a Job! summed up my job hunting experience last year perfectly. At first I was nonchalant about the whole thing. Jobs had always sort of fallen into my lap, so why would this time be any different?
Well, the weeks of looking for work soon stretched into over 5 months! Apart from the first few weeks, I did not enjoy my time off one bit. I grew positive I would never work again, lose my house, move in with my parents, work odd jobs for minimum wage…you get the drift. The only blessing was that I’m single with no kids so I didn’t have that added pressure.
I’m not suggesting that those who find themselves unemployed kick back and work on their tan, but I would handle things differently in hindsight. I cringe when I think of all the time I wasted worrying and scouring the same old want ads repeatedly. For example, I’ve been trying to lose a little weight for a couple of years. Why didn’t I hit the gym twice a day? It might seem excessive but did I have something better to do? Hell, I would probably be looking back fondly on my time off now and reflect on my accomplishment.
For what it’s worth, here’s my unsolicited advice (from experience):
1. Get your finances under control ASAP. Assume the worst. Are you really prepared to be out of work for 3-6 months? Cancel the cable, plan ridiculously cheap meals, end all unnecessary spending, change your habits to reduce your utilities, have a yard sale, etc. Of course, be careful not to cut back on things you will need like Internet service. I would also keep the gym membership, but maybe switch to one of those low cost places like Planet Fitness ($10 a month!). Review your budget after the first month to make sure your estimates were realistic.
2. Apply for unemployment immediately. I waited until my funds were low because I was embarrassed (not sure why) but I won’t make that mistake again. I paid into that system for almost 20 years.
3. Put in 6-8 hours a day job hunting. People aren’t joking when they say looking for a job is your new job. Be honest with yourself about how hard you’re actually working.
4. Take the weekends off! New jobs aren’t typically posted on weekends. Also, when I spent all weekend on job boards, my Monday sucked because there were so few listings that were new to me.
5. Stay positive. You will get another job if you have realistic expectations. I finally hit a streak and had 3 good offers on the table and now make more money at a more challenging job. Oddly enough, this didn’t happen until I “lowered” my standards and applied for a wider range of positions. 7 months later, I can honestly say the whole ordeal was worth it to be where I am now.
Nicely said, Joe. Most of all, you’ve shown us even if we don’t do everything right, as long as we just keep going and really work at it (and take advantage of good advice, as you talk about in the third post of this series) we get to where we need to be.
And your point about lowering standards is one I hope everyone really listens to. Truth is…when you really need a job, it pays to fish wide. You never know what you’ll find in the net. And even a slightly less prestigious job or one with a lower salary can often be parlayed into something better once you have your foot in the door.
Thanks for sharing this with us, Joe. I wish you all the luck in your new job!
Ronnie Ann
This is the first of a 3-part series based on Joe’s experiences. More tomorrow about how it feels to be out of work and what you can do about it. And please feel free to share your own stories of being out of work.
Other posts in the “Joe Series”:
Being Out of Work is Just Plain Scary (2nd post)
Good to Have a Friend in HR Tell It to You Straight! (3rd and final post)
More from Work Coach Cafe:
In case you’re curious, Joe’s original comment came from this post:
Days Off Are Way Better If You Actually Have a Job!
Other posts you might find helpful:
12 Ways to Jump Start that “Impossible” Job Search
Make Job Hunting a Daily Job. Oh How It Pays Off!
I Got the Post Interview Temporary OCD Blues
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