Things I’ve Learned While Unemployed

Some of you might know, or have figured it out from the decreased mentions of work around here and the increased amount of reading happening, that I have been out of work for a few months. Without getting into too much detail, since I know nobody wants to hear my sob story, this past February I became one of millions of jobless Americans.

It’s been an interesting few months to say the least. And I am super excited that I am headed back to work Monday. I’m lucky that I found a job that (fingers-crossed) is going to be a fun new challenge and hopefully lead to a lot of big things.

Given all that, I’ve been doing some reflecting. I like to believe that things happen for a reason. Even bad depressing annoying super frustrating things that piss you off and make you feel like crap. So I have to believe that all this was part of some bigger plan. And that there are some big life lessons I’m supposed to take from all this.

So here, in no particular order, are the things I’ve learned while unemployed: 

I Am Not a Morning Person – This is not really a new lesson. I’ve never liked mornings. I am the person that hits snooze a million times (sorry fiancé!) and would rather skip breakfast and run out the door at the last minute than get up with enough time to enjoy a bowl of Cheerios. When left to my own devices and with no reason to get up in the morning, my natural rhythms are on the nocturnal side. It’s much more normal for me to be up til 1am than to spring up from the covers at 6am. Next week is going to be brutal.

·         Recruiters Suck – I say this as a former recruiter. Someone who has spent years calling candidates and scheduling interviews - the whole shebang. Over the last few months I have received phone calls from a lot of recruiters. It was pretty obvious that most of them had not read my resume, at least not enough to know that I had no experience related to the jobs they were looking to fill. The most annoying thing though, are the recruiters that don’t call you back. More than once, hell, more than 3 or 4 times, I got voice mails from recruiters about jobs I had applied for. And despite my calling them back within half an hour, usually less, I never heard from them again. I get that recruiting is fast paced and that most recruiters go with the first person who answers the phone. But to not return a call in that short a time frame is just rude.

·         Pride is a Bitch – It was not my idea to leave my last job. Having to explain that to people is awkward. Not just in interviews, where you can creatively weave and flub your way around it, but in real life too. Having to tell friends and family that I was out of work was a very humbling experience. People are friendly and nice and supportive and do that whole, “Screw them!” thing, but it’s still humiliating. It took me longer than it should have to reach out to people, to network like you are supposed to, cause I didn’t want to have that conversation over and over.

·         Employed People Don’t Get It – They try. They want to help you and offer all sorts of job leads and other connections. But for the most part, they have no idea what it’s like. More than once I heard some version of “Oh but you must be enjoying all that time off!” And while yes, it is sort of nice (see the morning person thing above); the truth is that unemployment is not a vacation. There is no end date. And even with Unemployment Insurance, you are still broke. You spend your days slogging through job boards, wading through the labyrinth that is LinkedIn, and sending out more resumes than you can count. Even if you get to do all that in sweatpants, it’s still no picnic.

·         Having Time Off Rocks – I know, I know, I just said the opposite. But it’s still true. You can’t spend all day online. You’ll make yourself crazy if you don’t get your head away from the search for a while. So you have to find ways to fill your time. Preferably with things that don’t cost you money. For me, this meant a lot of reading. A lot of lying out in the sun. A lot of spending time with my family.  A lot of time at the gym (I like working out –who knew?!) And a lot of movies and mid-afternoon weekday dates with the fiancé – who happens to have a non-normal schedule.

·         I Have the Best Family and Friends – I know, totally cheesy, but it’s true. These last few months have been crazy. I have had a lot of down moments; lots of times where I wanted to curl up into a ball and cry with frustration and panic. I’ve also had a lot of amazing moments too. – a new niece! I’m engaged! And through them all, I have had a close circle of the best people on the planet by my side. They fielded tear soaked phone calls and panicked freak outs. They distracted me with drinks, cookies, and hugs. They say you learn who your true friends are during hard times. Well, I’ve always known, and they did not disappoint this time around.