Crossroads & the Economy: You're Not Alone

The summer of 2007, I realized I’d either need to stick with a job I hated (for a plethora of reasons) for the duration of the economic roller coaster that seemed imminent OR I’d need to take a leap of faith that if I quit, I would find a position that actually aligned with my values and career goals.   A life coach that I worked with weekly convinced me of the latter because “what’s the worst that could happen?”

At that time the average job hunt took 4-6 months, and I had squirreled away 6 months of savings.   Since I planned to hit the ground running with lots of ideas as to places I’d like to work and the type of work I wanted to do, as well as scores of networking events and heavily researched job hunt strategy, the 6 month window seemed reasonable to me.   And shelling out thousands of dollars a year to work with someone on creating my best life, it seemed time to take a bigger step and a greater risk than I had up to that point.

Fast forward to March 2009, and I’m still without a full-time employer, which was NOT the plan.

I have worked my network to get my resume in the door at companies and organizations with openings that look interesting, as well as to land informationals to have a better understanding of certain fields.   In sticking with my golden rule, I’ve helped a lot of people I meet at networking events find resources and contacts they need.

I’ve lost count of the number of job applications for positions ranging from Executive Assistant to Associate Director in a variety of fields with a wide array of responsibilities or lack thereof.   I signed up with several recommended temp agencies that never called, despite my high scores on their tests, and my following their rules of engagement.  My resume has been sucked into the black hole of the crumbling retail world.  Three different “professionals” rewrote my resume.   (The person who charged me the most, helped the least.)  I  send handwritten thank-you notes to each individual I speak to in relation to a job opening, unless I’m going to be sending follow-up materials — in that case, I may email my thank you note with the requisite attachments.

Basically, I’ve conformed to the job hunting check lists written by (aspiring) career advisors and no pay dirt as of yet.

Lots of rejections, though.  In the past 18 months, I have been told that I’m overqualified; I’m underqualified; I’m simultaneously over and underqualified (yes, it can be done!); they loved me, but Candidate X holds a Roladex that is a source of envy; sorry, there’s been a hiring freeze; you’d be bored in this role and leave; damn, they pulled the funding for the position; we decided to promote internally instead; and the list goes on.

But I’m coming to believe the hardest and least planned for roads can bring the great rewards and life lessons.

I’m lucky.

My family is able to float me while I try to navigate the quarterlife quagmire; I’m cognizant of that privilege.  It’s a lifeline not readily available to many people.   Thanks to the recession twenty percent of Los Angeles county residents receive government aid of some sort, and more than one in ten Californians is unemployed.  Though it’s the worst unemployement rate in a quarter century, it’s expected to get considerably worse before it gets better.

As singleton with no mortgage or car payments pending,  I can move anywhere for the right job opportunity.  As I pointed out to an interviewer concerned about the timing of a cross-country move, my possessions are books and clothes — the former you ship, the latter fit in a suitcase, or three,  in the trunk of my car.

I’m healthy, which is much less expensive than being sick, whether you have insurance or not.

A recent study by Harvard University researchers found that the average out-of-pocket medical debt for those who filed for bankruptcy was $12,000. The study noted that 68 percent of those who filed for bankruptcy had health insurance. In addition, the study found that 50 percent of all bankruptcy filings were partly the result of medical expenses.  Every 30 seconds in the United States someone files for bankruptcy in the aftermath of a serious health problem.

Career development opportunities aren’t just for the employed.

• Want to learn a new skill? Find a few non-profits that align with causes you care about and see what they need.  Through my volunteer work, I’ve learned about fundraising and securing donations (sales), as well as new member and donor outreach (marketing and public speaking).

• Build your current skill set. My side job has been teaching fitness classes of some sort for the last 7 years, which comes with all sorts of continuing education requirements.  Unemployment gave me the time to earn a new certification that has not fit into my schedule for years.  Find a community college to take that HTML or PowerPoint workshop.  Head to a industry specific conference to be up-to-date and schmooze with people who might have job leads.   No money for a rainy day you can tap?

• Just do it. I know I want to be doing at least some writing in my next job, so I blog and journal and try to keep the thoughts flowing from brain to screen or pen to paper.   (I’m also a horrible proofreader of my own work, so I’ll take all the practice I can get.) What job responsibilities do you want to have in the future?  How can you work on developing those talents while unemployed?

• Learning doesn’t have to come with a grade. Sign up for the RSS feeds on topics of interest. Visit your local library, BookMooch or DealOz to pick up those books you’ve been meaning to read, whether work-related or for the sheer pleasure.  I read more now than I did during grad school (when a paper wasn’t due) and have developed a to-read list 600 books deep.   Why  not document your readings a la Art Garfunkel? I recently found another blog of “Words Learned Reading David Foster Wallace,” which has sadly, but understandably,  been discontinued because the blogger wants to focus on the PR-centric blog that aligns with her professional life. (If you’re a David Foster Wallace fan, she’s open to someone taking over the blog).

I’m not alone.

It’s easy to get buried under columnists, commentators, bloggers, and politicians who suggest the unemployed should “just get a job”, like they’re hanging from bushes and trees at the local parks, and we can simply go pluck the one we like best or the least bruised one at worst to pay our bills.   They’d have you believe the unemployed are lazy OR just not trying very hard to find a job OR look at certain types of jobs as beneath them.  (Meanwhile, they help Corporate America make the case for industry-wide welfare, which is totally different than lending a helping hand to workers.)

Andrew Sullivan’s series “The View From Your Recession” points out how unemployment is much more complicated right now.   He recently posted a lengthy missive by a third-year law student with no serious post-graduate job prospects anywhere in his or his peers’ futures.

I myself worked at the Massachusetts Office of the Attorney General for the past nine months and interviewed for a really exciting fellowship. I received a call from the AGO’s HR Director:  I was third in line for the position, but they were cutting the number they were hosting from three to one.  In four other positions I’ve interviewed for, I’ve received word that the position itself was canceled, or would not be filled at all this year.  There’s also a state-wide hiring freeze in Massachusetts, and a lot of established attorneys suddenly on the market after record layoffs in Boston law firms. . .

Without a job, I will not be able to afford malpractice insurance on my own and would not risk practicing law without it. I’ll have over $130K in debt from my law degree. Thankfully, I live in Massachusetts and can utilize MassHealth – anywhere else in the country, I would have to do without health insurance (I have no pre-existing conditions, but the quotes I’ve received are so high as to be ridiculous).  If I stay in the city, I do not know what I’d do for rent.  I’m 26 years old, and am frightened to death I will have to move back to Ohio and away from my gay community, and live with my parents.  With a law degree.  I feel like a chump sometimes.

It is odd to feel relief when reading the slices of life by other people who find themselves in similar circumstances.  There’s an unexpected camaraderie in recession pain right now.

Every day I read about the plight of people who are less fortunate and unemployed.  Every day I read about the plight of people who have several kids and were just laid off.  Every day I read about the plight of people who have serious illnesses and are unemployed and are probably going to lose their health insurance and their house and then what? Everyday, I’m still more concerned about them, than I am me, because I know I have access to the resources I need and little in the way of roots that could make a solution more difficult, but what about them?

I’ve typically avoided writing about my prolonged job hunt because I opted to leave a job and wasn’t fired, so my unemployment is of my own making.  But it increasingly feels wrong to not reach out to others who find themselves unemployed in this crappy economy.

When you’re bogged down by the drama in your own life, it can be difficult to remember we each have a unique pool of resources (and sometimes a government one) to pull through.   There’s also always opportunity in adversity, it just matters how you choose to view the situation.

And most importantly, you’re not alone.

What’s your window on the recession?  How is it affecting you? How can your online community support you? And what are you doing to look forward?

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