Recessions drive me crazy

Sticking to the topic of jobs....I'm just going to put it out there and say it. If you read my previous post, just be lucky you have a job. Stick to those simple bullet points and be grateful for the time being. Hmmm...maybe I should explain where this is coming from.

As many of you readers out there know, I lost my job last November. Of course I had my few days of shock and sadness. Believe it or not, there actually is a grieving process that goes on. I didn't even feel mad or bitter towards my boss who gave me the news and I felt confident in my skills, the experience I had gained. I even listened to everyone who said "You will be back on your feet in no time!" Well, it's all about timing. First off, why do people think that giving workers the boot on the holidays make it easier. I love how everyone tries to say "Go out and enjoy the holiday. Now you have time to go have fun and go shopping." Here's a clue, it makes it easier if you have a paycheck to help out. Also, it's a time when NOBODY is hiring, but they all are dreaming big for the new year. So, they are still interviewing people, but in reality, they know that nothing is going to start moving at the pace you need it to. Yet, you can't afford to not be looking and interviewing at the same time. Might as well practice those skills, right?

Okay, so it's the new year. Maybe those prospects, that you thought you won over, might make a decision and move forward now. I keep telling myself, keep your chin up. Stay confident, you can still get through this. Well, as many of you might have heard..Breaking a four-year string of growth in hiring, employers shed jobs in January, the clearest sign yet that the U.S. economy is nearing a recession, if not already in it. Lucky for me, right? Yeah, this doesn't look good. In the meantime, two of the jobs that I was very hopeful about, both claim they continue to grow. But now, I have to take into account that any job that I may get, won't be a great offer because no matter what, all companies right now are cutting back. Especially if they are trying to add on more and more employees.

You may ask, what prompted this post? Well, I got news today from a company that they hired someone internally, that had been doing contract work for a while. So, knowing this makes me sad because I lost out, due to a technicality. What drove it home, was that I got forwarded a goodbye email from the person who got the job. You know, her "Dear John, I'm leaving my job and am eager about this new opportunity..blah, blah."

This new angle makes me feel guilty too. I have a friend that was being interviewed for the same job, as me, at my other prospect. As far as I know, I'm still in the running, but she's already gotten notification of them moving forward. If things ended up in my favor, I would find it very difficult to tell her. She's been very great about it and supportive, but I can't help but think that she might feel the sadness that I feel today over this. It had already been looming over my head since I found out, but I really can't afford to look the other way right now. I need a job and this would actually be something I really want too.

As I am challenged with these things, it has been attacking my self confidence now (back to timing as I mentioned above). I feel like I have the scarlet "U" on my chest, standing for "unemployed." As I move into my third month of this hiring challenge, I am starting to feel a little frustrated towards my situation. I realize why a lot of people in the music business jump from label to label. It is simply because it's all they know, so I advise you to look at #5 on the list below. It's a niche market and it is hard to pull yourself out. I am starting to feel sad that my old job was so quick to let me go and eliminated my position and are now so SLOW in moving forward without me with their plans. What was the rush?

Keep your job

The Today Show had a segment today about keeping your job during this recession time. Geez, I wish they would have a segment about how hard it is to find a job during the recession. These simple steps seem easy and for those of you out there who aren't willing to try...well, you disappoint me. I've listed the bullet points below and especially like the last one. (If you follow through, I may have a lot of friends coming to me. One thing I've noticed in the work place, when you lose your job, is who your friends really are. It was shocking to me how certain people, who just don't feel comfortable around you anymore, find it hard to say "hi" when they see you outside the workplace now.)

1. Be a good sport-don't be a drama queen and don't complain
2. Don't expect to get a raise-don't offer to take a pay cut, but don't turn one down either
3. Work harder and smarter-re-commit yourself to the job
4. Review your company health plan
5. Update yourself-it's time to learn those new skills
6. Add 20% more to your emergency fund-save your tax refund check
7. Prepare other options-there's no shame being open to other jobs and keeping your resume updated
8. Redirect a portion of your 401k to savings
9. Reconnect with people that have lost their jobs-they can give good advice and perspective



On a sidenote- this brief portion came on to help caution workers about work email. I kept on saying to myself "Who is dumb enough to do that?" because not sending your resume/personal emails from your work account just seems to be common sense, right? Well, they say that half of all businesses scan companies emails. They use software that detects key words because they want to protect company secrets, personal information and monitoring inappropriate contact. Courts are finding that businesses have the rights to do this and an employees' right to privacy just doesn't outweigh that interest. That's it in a nutshell.