With a new year upon us and the job numbers still not exactly too good out there if you find yourself recently without a job, still out of work or know someone who has recently faced a reduction in their employment (with 1 in 10 out of work on record and more like 7 in 10 not working full time you likely know someone) this may be for you. Now I faced this myself back in 09 after a run of good luck in a bad market I got hit. It happens. Recently a relative whose employment was nullified asked me advice on being Funemployed and what to do. The first thing you need to do is confirm you are actually Funemployed in the first place. The definition of Funemployment is that you lost your job and can afford for the next 6-9 months live as if you are working. In other words you have cash saved that you can burn through without liquidating your assets. If you can afford the 6-9 months it's going to take to find a job (in this economy this is the average) then you are Funemployed...if you are in debt, live month to month, have to start selling your stocks/bonds/home to get by you are not.
Now if we established that you are not screwed and you can ride this bump in the road and can enjoy yourself while your at it we can get down to business. Now it's important to keep in mind it's going to be hard to find a job so you need to reach out to everyone you know and their brothers ex-girlfriends 3rd cousins neighbor along with far more recruiters then you ever thought were out there...but you will do things that you enjoy while you're at it. The key here is to allocate X amount of time per day to do some job hunting while doing things you enjoy. The key here is to be productive. Sitting around watching TV hungover while stuffing yourself with frozen pizza while feeling sorry for yourself is for losers....not the Funemployed. The Funemployed do things that they always wanted to try, don't do as much as they used to, like to do & do more of. When I was Funemployed I was busy all day long....as a matter of fact I was busier then many of my working friends.
I can't tell you what to do but I can give some examples of what I did. I started my day looking for jobs and doing follow-up while keeping on top of what was happening in the market ( I sell Technology to Financial firms) this kept me sharp for both interviews and when taking to people who can help get me one. I actually started writing this blog because while I felt I was strong presenting to people verbally I felt my writing skills were lacking when I had to do cover letters and proposals. From the feedback I received this experiment has been very beneficial. I started on 2 short stories and now write for the online blog http://newyork.nearsay.com/blog/steveroberts (yes shameless plug...did I mention I'm in Sales?) I used to love to draw as a kid....so I went out and picked up a bunch of colored pencils, a pad and started drawing again. I'm into photography so I purchased the new Olympus EP-2 and went on Photo-Safari's around the city (big ticket purchases are not too wise here but 1 or 2 won't kill you...but hey you know your budgets and the ramifications of what this will mean...you don't want to reduce your number of months). I worked out pretty much every day and during the summer did laps most days. I also read a load of books...some were business and plenty for pleasure.
To help keep costs down you may want to make some changes to your social life and spending habits. I made my own coffee in the morning w/eggs or oatmeal and cooked most of my dinners. It was lunch where I let myself have a decent lunch (this means $15 all in not $50 w/drinks). I spent a lot of time learning all the little spots in my favorite hoods. Coffee shops w/Wi-Fi are great and a easy inexpensive way to bounce around, check your e-mail for jobs and flirt. Just don't be one of those idiots who park themselves for an entire day off a $2 cup of coffee. It's a break for up to an hour then get a move on. Happy Hour is your best friend. I like it as is and at least in NYC there are plenty of places w/great drinks deals and even good food. Now is not the time for $17 rooftop martini's...it is a great time for 2 for one drinks w/half price food where y can have a night out including dinner for $30 bucks or less. Also get yourself a Metro-Card if you live in the city or boroughs...you will need it for appointments and bouncing around the city. There is rumour of the 2-1 movie but again going to see one movie and then somehow seeing another is mere unfounded rumour. Art Galleries are great if you're into it and many Museums have free days.
I went on not one but 2 vacations during my Funemployment. With the technology we have at hand you can can be following up on jobs and doing over the phone interviews (this is now common practice....HR will do an over the phone and often times either the first interview with the Hiring Manager will be on the phone to screen you before you are let in. Subsequent meetings may be as well due to geography). I even did some of these from the beach...as long as you have the mind set to be on and it's over the phone do you really need to be in a suit/pant-suit sitting at a desk?
If you manage this right and seriously and sincerely look hard for a job you can turn what could be a depressing dificult time into a great time where you get to do loads of fun stuff that you enjoy. The secret is nothing more then keeping yourself busy and taking advantage of the time to better yourself vs being self destructive and self loathing. I can do w/o being out of work again for so long...but when I look back on it...I consider myself lucky and made the most of it. What will you do?
No comments:
Post a Comment