6 Tactics For Staying Sane When You Are Unemployed
Last year I spent several months out of work. After two years of working under a poor, belittling manager, I finally walked out but not before my motivation took a hit. It was a spontaneous decision and as a result I had little to fall back on, but at the time I was just so relieved and happy to be out of that oppressive environment. However I quickly realized that I’d have to deal with different challenges to get back onto the job ladder. As tough as it was, looking back now it was a productive experience. Like any experience, it’s what you make of it. Below are my tips for staying sane while you are unemployed.
- Don’t be fussy about what you apply for
Apply for anything and everything. It’s not the time to be fussy. If you wait around for the ideal job to show up you could be spending a lot of time unemployed. You don’t have to take the first job offered to you but it keeps you focused and provides valuable experience at filling applications, doing interviews, creating a good resume and just generally how to sell yourself. - Use the extra time productively
It’s a big change to go from struggling to fit what free time you have around a job and then to find yourself with more time on your hands than you know what to do with. Regardless of whether you are unemployed for a few weeks or for several months all that free time isn’t something you’re going to get often so make good use of it! This blog would not be where it is now and my home would still be a cluttered, undecorated mess were it not for those several weeks of downtime. - Keep socializing
Your work environment is where you socialize the most and usually where most of your friends come from. Take that away and you can suddenly find yourself spending most of your time alone. Not healthy. Regardless of whether you intend to stay friends with your former work colleagues, make sure you keep socializing with people and put in the effort. - Focus on the positive
Being unemployed is stigmatized. Without a job it can seem like you have no purpose and some people will frown on you, thinking you are lazy and work-shy. However, it’s important to look on the bright side. You can learn a lot while being unemployed. Like any experience it’s all about what you make of it. As well as the invaluable interview experience I got I also, for instance, learned how to entertain myself on a tight budget. - Get smart with your money
You don’t know how long you may be out of work so it’s important to get to grips with your finances now before you get caught out. If ever there is a time to learn frugal habits, this is it. Because of the lessons I was forced to learn during that period I’m much more financially smart nowadays. - Don’t fall into bad habits
Regardless of whether you like your job or not it sure gives your life a lot of structure. Without it, it can be tempting to stay in bed till lunchtime, lounge on the sofa and just generally fall into bad habits. When that happens it’s a difficult hole to get yourself out of, one which will drain your motivation to look for work or make good use of your time.
6 Comments
I like that last point. I feel that it is really easy to sleep in several hours too long when there is nothing of importance to wake for. Instead, why not wake up at that same early time and go for a walk, get some exercise, then read a good book for a couple hours? Good stuff!
Thanks for the comment Tage. That last point is the hardest to do in my opinion. It starts off with sleeping in for one hour. It’s easy to justify. After all what harm will one hour do? Before you know it you’re on a slippery slope and staying in bed till lunchtime, lounging around and being lazy. Having all that extra time is both a blessing and a curse.
This was an interesting article James with good practical advice. The emotional baggage that comes with unemployment can be a real problem for many people to overcome. Being aware of its existence and having a plan to cope are definite pluses.
Great post! In the beginning of my self-employment it was hard to know what to do with myself. I found that making daily to-do lists did three things for me. It gave me tasks and positive things to focus on every day, especially as I was able to cross them off the list. It also helped me to get through the gargantuan list of jobs that had been starting to accumulate over the previous months and, finally, it helped me to get into a routine of taking better care of myself.
I recently went back to working at a regular job full-time. I think having gotten into these good habits has made the transition easier and helped me to be in the habit of saving large amounts of time and money.
When I left my last job I was in panic for about three days. I thought about rent, food for my cat and other stuff like that. Than I decided to improve some of my skills (I spent about week just reading and researching). Several weeks later I got a much better job. Good coworkers, higher salary and close to my house. In the end it was all worth it.
Also it is very important to realize that you are not alone. It helps to put things in perspective in the way that some people might have it harder than you, they have more kids, more bills, etc.
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