It sucks to be laid off, but here are some things I’ve been doing that decidedly lessen the suckiness of being without a job and help me wade through each day like a halfway normal human being.
First and foremost, I applied for unemployment insurance the first day I was officially unemployed.
I make myself get up before 10 AM. It just feels better in the long run – even for night owls like me.
I get dressed every single day by noon, even if there doesn’t seem to be any reason to get out of my pajamas. I can’t tell you how embarrassing it is when Brad returns after work to find me in exactly the same clothing and in the same position as when he left me that morning. There’s something about putting on jeans that makes the day seem more real.
I go outside for at least 20 minutes every day. When it’s too cold to stay outside that long (if I don’t have a job yet), I’m still going to get out of the house as much as possible – and find places to go that don’t necessitate spending money. Coffee shops are nice and all, but you have to at least buy a cup of coffee to enjoy their benefit.
A secondary goal of mine is to not buy coffee at all while I’m unemployed. I’ve got beans, a grinder, and a French press right here at home and no income to justify paying someone to brew my coffee for me.
I’ve also increased the amount of time I spend with other people. It’s incredibly depressing to be alone day after day. You almost can’t help but feel like a failure for not having found a job yet. Friends and family can distract you from all that negativity and just make you feel loved. Plus, virtually everyone nowadays knows someone else who’s out of work. Those stories of people in similar situations help me feel more normal.
Another thing I’ve done is adopt a “work” schedule that’s similar to Brad’s (though my “workdays” are not nearly as long as his). When he comes home from a long day’s work, he wants to play or relax. If I’ve also been working hard on something all day, I deserve to join him. If, however, I’ve spent the day in my pajamas watching movies and snacking while he was at work, I really shouldn’t be playing or relaxing with him once he’s off. I've also adopted his weekends, which vary from week to week and are almost never Saturday and Sunday.
I use TV, facebook, and to some extent food, as rewards for specific accomplishments - school work, work for Chicago Friends School, job applications, etc.
I do not drink alone. Alcohol does not cure misery. Drinking with friends, however, is perfectly acceptable.
I do all of the housework now. I make the bed every day, do the laundry, wash the dishes, straighten up the place, and am contemplating cooking entire meals to have ready for Brad when he gets home. Those immediately visible accomplishments make me feel like I did something worthwhile. And, at least in my own mind, I feel like it makes Brad happier that I’m home all day. By the way, this advice applies to all genders – I’m not being anti-feminist here.
Now, about that pesky job search... I apply for at least three jobs per week. It’s incredibly annoying, and I hate writing cover letters, but you can’t possibly get a job without applying for one.
I’ve established a routine for checking job listings and tracking my progress with those I apply for. I have an RSS feed for idealist.org listings, and I also check npo.net every single day. I copy and save the jobs I want to apply for in a Word document so I don’t have to go back and search for them once I'm ready to apply. I keep track of my applications in an Excel file with the name of each position, the contact person, the date I submitted the application, and the status of the application.
Here are my stats so far:
Applications: 18
Interviews: 3
Rejections: 7
Still Open: 11
So that’s how I’m surviving my joblessness. Honestly, I was kind of looking forward to having more free time on my hands, but with all the job applications, school work, housework, volunteer board work, and seeing friends, I'm almost busier than when I was working. I think that's a good thing.
Feel free to add your own tips in the comment section!