Summary

The article "The Unemployment Blues" discusses strategies for coping with job loss and the emotional impact of unemployment, emphasizing resilience, adaptability, and maintaining a forward-focused mindset.

Abstract

The "Unemployment Blues" is an insightful piece that addresses the psychological and practical challenges of being out of work. It redefines unemployment beyond mere statistics, highlighting the personal and emotional toll it takes on individuals who find themselves disconnected from their productive and purposeful selves. The author shares personal experiences of job transitions and the importance of not taking unemployment personally, staying pragmatic, working smart, pacing oneself, and trusting one's intuition amidst a sea of advice. The article aims to provide comfort and guidance, suggesting that this period is a temporary pause and that with the right approach, one can emerge stronger and more resilient.

Opinions

Unemployment is more than a lack of a job; it's a disruption of one's identity and ability to provide for loved ones.
The pain of unemployment is magnified by its unpredictability and the feeling of loss of control.
Employment is a fundamental aspect of one's life, enabling the pursuit of personal aspirations and responsibilities.
Despite the challenges, unemployment can be an opportunity for personal growth and strengthening relationships with family and friends.
The author emphasizes the importance of not losing one's native ability to cope and intuitively navigate through joblessness.
It's crucial to focus on what one has rather than what one lacks to avoid becoming paralyzed by negative emotions.
Continuous action, planning, and networking are key strategies for moving past unemployment.
Trusting one's intuition is invaluable when sifting through the myriad of advice and making decisions during job searching.
The article suggests that the current unemployment situation, potentially due to external circumstances like a global pause, is different from past economic downturns.

The Unemployment Blues

How to cope with being out of work — even if only for a little while

Definition: Unemployment

1. The state of being unemployed; a lack of employment

2. The commencement of a search for a part of you that you had moments ago, but is now lost

3. The emptiness that TV, crossword puzzles, long walks and Face Time just doesn’t fill up.

Being unemployed is not a damn statistic!

It is not the lack of a paycheck coming in so bills like mortgage, insurance and cable television can be kept up to date. Nor is it a temporary state where employment is playing a rather insensitive game of hide and seek.

Unemployment is when a part of us — that loves to be engaged, active, purposeful, productive, creative and dedicated to a group of like-minded people, is momentarily cut off from our reach. When our agreement with others, mostly loved ones, to provide for them financially and keep their worries at bay, is broken and taken out of our hands.

The reason unemployment hurts as much as it does, is because being employed is such a key element in what makes us who we are and how we fund the life that we have chosen to live. It isn’t love, it isn’t family or the importance of being a parent. It isn’t coaching or teaching or showing our five-year-old how to ride a bike. It’s what makes all of these things possible over the course of our lives.

Unemployment hurts to the degree it is out of our control. The more random, the more capricious the world seems to be at that moment, the greater the upset that we experience.

But it’s not the end of the world. It really isn’t.

If I were to compile a complete resume for this lifetime, and count the number of jobs I held over the past 45 years, I would be left with two possible conclusions:

a. I was incredible at finding new work and making a go of it, or

b. I couldn’t hold a job to save my life.

I love my life, but it has not been linear. There have been more sharp turns and blind curves than an alpine highway. And throughout it all, I have learned several very important lessons that I would like to share with you.

I have been unemployed for 10 minutes, before snagging the next gig; and desperately clinging to my cellphone for 24 months during one of the most harrowing and identity-testing periods of my life. But I came through to the other side — not alone, mind — with the help of my wife and daughters and some friends.

The point here, is that while I rode that tsunami of hope and fear, I came away stronger, more resolute, and more grateful for the skills and resilience I had inside.

What I am offering up here are not rules, nothing that formal. Consider them suggestions, from the guy who tried to swim with his boots on, and learned that it wasn’t such a bright idea. Who swore, yelled, wept, sang the praises of, cajoled, pleaded with, threatened (politely) and otherwise went through every fucking emotion imaginable, while maintaining a life, a marriage and my sanity. Looks at these as gifts, because that is how they are being offered up.

Also keep in mind, that what is happening now is NOT the same as what happened in 2008–2010. During that recession businesses large and small disappeared for different reasons and took a while in coming back. Right now, our lives are on Pause and hopefully someone will push Play sooner than later. It’s my hope that you’ll never need these suggestions and you can then ceremonially burn the list over a Margarita before returning to work.

A. It’s not personal. Yes, it was your job and someone took it away — even if temporarily. Yes, it feels like crap and someone should pay for what was done, but as an endless number of goombahs have said over the years, in far too many movies to mention — it’s not personal, it’s just business. Due to poor management, bad luck, acts of God and general incompetence your job went away — for now. But what is STILL there is everything that made you good at it. DO NOT undermine your native ability to cope with the situation and intuitively work yourself out of it. This is #1 because it’s that vital. Who you are and what you are capable of doing will get you through this.

B. Be pragmatic. It’s a job. It’s important, maybe it’s vital for your survival, but it’s still a job. Focus on what you have and not what you don’t. If you obsess over not being employed and deep dive into all the possible head-games that surface, you will be too impaired to do the work needed to get a new one and are likely to mess up what is still in place.

C. Work smart. Plan. Organize. Make lists. Check them off. Learn from your mistakes. Then let them go. What gets you through unemployment is motion. Don’t stop moving. Don’t stop communicating. Don’t stop believing in yourself and the inevitable outcome — a new job. This isn’t the power of positive thinking — it’s life. If you focus on the negative — the checkbook balance, the hollow feeling inside, the anger at being laid off — you will snuff out like a cheap firecracker and end up prone on the couch, watching reruns of the Beverly Hillbillies.

D. Pace yourself. Use whatever platforms you can think of to make personal contacts. Personal contacts being, friends, acquaintances, the neighbor down the street with the mailbox shaped like a striped bass. People you meet on Facebook, LinkedIn, Etsy, Medium — any place. You need to make contact with people who have opportunities or know others who do.

E. You will get advice. You will get corrections to your resume. You will be told what to do and what not to do. Above all else, trust your intuition. Do the next right thing and move forward.

Thank you for stopping by to read. Hopefully you found something of value. It’s just my way of saying thank you to all of those that helped me in the past. Cheers.