Not Working Nation: Tales In Transition

Lauren, 43, marketing consultant and fundraiser

Where do you live? New Jersey.

What was your job title? Marketing Consultant & Fundraiser

In what industry? Medical Office & a Non-Profit Political Org.

How old were your coworkers? I was 42, co-workers were around the same age, some a little older.

How did you find out you were losing your job? One office closed down, the other lost funding & we were told 1 week before our jobs ended.

Did you have to leave immediately, or did they give you a few weeks to get used to the idea? I had 2-3 weeks from one job and 1 week from the other.

Tell us a little about what you did: For the medical office I did marketing, phone work, filing, data entry, etc. I did fundraising for the non-profit org.

What was your favorite part of the job? The marketing skills I learned have been very beneficial to my art career & I enjoyed talking to like-minded people when fundraising.

What was the worst part? Took time away from my artwork. Not a lot of room for advancement.

Did you like going to work? Sometimes...but I ALWAYS did!

Did you feel like you were making a  difference? Especially for the non-profit group, YES!

What have you done since you've been laid off? I've been focusing on and building my art career...what I've always wanted to do!

How do you spend your days? Promoting my art, creating art, preparing & searching for exhibits, applying for freelance jobs, networking, working on my photography...

Have your spending habits changed since you've been laid off? (Have you cut back on anything? Given up coffee?) I shop in dollar stores a lot more. Don't go out with friends during the week anymore.

Do you have big financial worries -- kids in college, etc.? Luckily, no.

Do you have a spouse who works? Yes.

How many jobs have you applied for since you've been laid off? Many freelance positions and a few marketing jobs.

What kind of job are you looking for next? Will it be in the same field or a different one? Why? I'm focusing on my art career and obtaining jobs, clients and exhibits in this field. I feel it's what I'm meant to do & it's now or never!

Some good news

Randy, who filled out one of our surveys in July when he became unemployed, has found a new job. Congratulations to Randy and good luck to those of you still looking. Updates welcome!

Marques, sports reporter

Where do you live? Northern Virginia

What was your job title? Reporter.

In what industry? Newspapers.

How old were your coworkers? 30s, 40s, 50s.

How did you find out you were losing your job? Phone call upstairs, told in person.

Did you have to leave immediately, or did they give you a few weeks to get used to the idea? I had until the end of the week.

Tell us a little about what you did: I covered professional sports

What was your favorite part of the job? Talking with successful people, experiencing different cities.

What was the worst part? The mood in the office.

Did you like going to work? When on the road, yes. Going to the office, no.

Did you feel like you were making a difference? We all want to believe that.

What have you done since you've been laid off? Spent time with my family, applied for work.

Have your spending habits changed since you've been laid off? (Have you cut back on anything? Given up coffee?) I was already pretty thrifty.

Do you have big financial worries -- kids in college, etc.? When the transition pay runs out, I'll let you know.

Do you have a spouse who works? Yes.

How many jobs have you applied for since you've been laid off? At least 8.

Are they in the same part of the country or someplace else? Same part.

What kind of job are you looking for next? Will it be in the same field or a different one? Why? I'm open to anything.

Carrie, 37, program director

Where do you live? Long Beach, Wash.

What was your job title? Program director

In what industry? Non-profit artist and writers residency

How old are/were most of your coworkers? When I first started working with the organization I had three co-workers, 20, 39, 55 and 80. At the end my sole coworker was 81.

How did you find out you were losing your job? Board members.

Did you have to leave immediately, or did they give you a few weeks to get used to the idea? I knew it was probably going to happen for about a month, but the Founder and Board President didn't want to give up on the possibility that she would find someway to keep me on.

Tell us a little about what you did: It was a very small non-profit--so everything from answering phones and driving residents to the grocery store to program administration, organizing fundraisers, writing/designing newsletters, etc.

What was your favorite part of the job? Meeting the writers and artists, seeing/reading their work, conversations about life.

What was the worst part? Isolation, too much time at the computer.

Did you like going to work? No.

Did you feel like you were making a difference? Occasionally.

What have you done since you've been laid off? Taught Yoga, applied to film school, visited my grandfather for a week.

How do you spend your days? It has varied. Sometimes I am very aimless and overwhelmed by the lack of imposed structure. Lately I get up early, find a place to work (usually a coffee shop), look for jobs online, look at grad schools, run and do yoga, talk to friends on the phone, feel discouraged about my lack of direction. Mostly I feel like I'm doing a lot of searching online.

Have your spending habits changed since you've been laid off? (Have you cut back on anything? Given up coffee?) I'm living with a friend to reduce rent, driving less.

Do you have big financial worries -- kids in college, etc.? No, still have some student loans to pay off, but nothing huge.

How many jobs have you applied for since you've been laid off? 65

Are they in the same part of the country or a different part? Same part.

What kind of job are you looking for next? Will it be in the same field or a different one? Why? I've been looking a social work jobs, but most of my experience in the field is from about 7 years ago, so that's made it hard. I'd like to do something with more direct contact with people, and something that requires a lot of creativity and innovative problem solving.

Wrong label

AP released a story today saying that people will spend less money for the holidays this year than they did last year. The essence of the story is fine. But I have a huge problem with the headline that was on Yahoo (Debt Turning Shoppers into Scrooges) and the lead, which goes as follows: By JEANNINE AVERSA, AP Economics Writer 

WASHINGTON – A lot more Americans are feeling stressed out by debt this holiday season, raising the glum likelihood they'll behave like Scrooge rather than Santa.

In fact, fully 93 percent say they'll spend less or about the same as last year, according to an Associated Press-GfK poll. About 20 percent say they are suffering from debt-related stress, up from 15 percent in the spring despite all the talk about economic recovery.

You can read the rest of the story here.

But before you do, I want to point out that it contains an incorrect interpretation of the Dickens character. Scrooge HAD money, remember, yet he wouldn't spend it on anyone, least of all the people who could have really used a break. It's decidedly NOT Scroogelike to save pennies if you're in debt. And it's not Scroogelike to refuse to spend money you don't have. It's smart. So my holiday wish for you is that you won't be guilted into blowing more money this season by a hyped-up marketing campaign or a misguided news article. Maybe the real meaning of the holidays will come through if it isn't buried in STUFF. 

Call for submissions

As we approach the holidays, I'd be interested in seeing some essays on: Why you're thankful (welcoming all types, sweet to sarcastic) or how celebrating the winter holidays will be different this year than usual. If you're interested, please contact me at editor [at] notworkingnation [dot] net.

Meanwhile, I've been thinking a lot about The Sound of Silence lately (okay, not the S&G version, but I couldn't help linking to it). SO many people have mentioned about how frustrating it is to spend hours filling out an application to apply for a job and than hearing ... NOTHING. I've found the same thing whenever I apply for writing gigs. If anyone's interested in expanding on that theme, I'd love to hear from you as well. 

With luck to all job searchers

Madelyn

Kevin, 39, investment manager

Where do you live? Plattsburgh, N.Y., recently moved to Bozeman, MT.

What was your last job title? AVP, Director of Managed Accounts

In what industry? Investment Management

How old were your coworkers? Similar in age to me -- 36 to 45.

How did you find out you were losing your job? The consultant I brought in to help went to my boss and told him he could do my job for half my salary. The consultant firm was angry so they called me to tell me, before my boss did.

Did you have to leave immediately, or did they give you a few weeks to get used to the idea? 5 weeks notice, and I had to help my replacement get "up to speed" or they wouldn't pay my crappy severance. (After 15 years)

Tell us a little about what you did: I managed the firm's entire "separately managed accounts" program. I started with 30 accounts in 2001, and figured out how to run 4500+ accounts without hiring the correct amount of staff (i.e. I worked 12+ hours per day)

What was your favorite part of the job? Challenging, unpredictable work flow, always changing.

What was the worst part? Same.

Did you like going to work? Yes.

Did you feel like you were making a difference? Yes.

What have you done since you've been laid off? Collected unemployment, while sending out over a hundred resumes while hearing almost NOTHING back.

How do you spend your days? Searching for jobs, taking care of the kids, making dinner, and cleaning the house.

Have your spending habits changed since you've been laid off? (Have you cut back on anything? Given up coffee?) We've cut back on EVERYTHING. We only buy what's on sale now, we save NOTHING for retirement, we drive old cars, and we don't even dream about vacations.

Do you have big financial worries -- kids in college, etc.? I am about to lose my home, Citimortgage doesn't help, even though they pretend to.

Do you have a spouse who works? Yes

How many jobs have you applied for since you've been laid off? 55

Are they in the same part of the country or a different part? Different part.

What kind of job are you looking for next? Will it be in the same field or a different one? Why? Currently, I am looking for ANY job. Don't care what it is. I will take almost anything.

Julia, 25, Forensic psychologist

Where do you live? Jacksonville, N.C.

When did you graduate or move? Graduated in May, moved in July.

What was your field of study? Forensic psychology.

How long have you been actively job-hunting? 8 months.

What sort of job are you looking for? Anything at this point.

Any interviews? I was called in for an interview, only to be called back a couple of hours later to find out that the job had been filled.

What are your biggest obstacles? (Do you have to move back in with your parents? Do you have a mortgage to worry about?) My husband is in the Marine Corp and his current duty station has us living in a small, isolated town with limited job opportunities. I'm finding my education is making me over qualified for most of the jobs in the area and because I have spent so much time in school and I don't meet the experience requirements for the jobs that are in my education range, I'm sort of stuck in limbo.

What are your biggest frustrations? I think the most frustrating thing is sending out countless applications daily and never hearing anything. Is anyone out there?

What are your biggest fears? Never getting hired.

What do you do all day? Job applications, cleaning, taking care of the house, the dog and my wonderful husband.

Do you have big financial worries -- family obligations? Loans you're supposed to pay back? A growing credit card bill? Student loans, student loans, student loans and a growing credit card bill.

Any final thoughts? I wish there was more job support for military spouses. 

David, 26, biomedical engineer

Where do you live? Richmond, VA

When did you graduate or move? May 2009

What was your field of study? Biomedical Engineering/Mathematics/Physics

How long have you been actively job hunting? I have been looking for a job since graduating this past May.

What sort of job are you looking for? Ideally, I would obtain a position as biomedical engineer and develop cardiac medical devices, such as, artificial heart valves, ventricular assist devices, and implantable cardioverter defibrillators. Alternatively, any mechanical engineering job would suffice. Regretfully, the job title, fry cook, is looking like an excellent position with plenty of room for advancement.

Any interviews? What's an interview?

What are your biggest obstacles? (Do you have to move back in with your parents? Do you have a mortgage to worry about?) I need to get reestablished. In other words, I need a short-term job, an apartment, and a car.

What are your biggest frustrations? I can't find a car.

What are your biggest fears? That I will stay underemployed.

What do you do all day? I tweet on my-face-space-book blog. Also, I babysit my two year old nephew.

Do you have big financial worries -- family obligations? Loans you're supposed to pay back? A growing credit card bill? I have a hefty amount of school debt. I do not have any credit card debt.

Do you have a partner or spouse who works? No.

Any final thoughts? I'm considering putting together a fake resume just to waste the time of the human resources department. I'm bored and frustrated. Yes, I received my PhD from Harvard.

Alison, 28, school counselor

Where do you live? Chicago, IL

When did you graduate or move? I moved back to Chicago in June of 2009

What was your field of study? School counseling.

How long have you been actively job hunting? Ever since I got here.

What sort of job are you looking for? At first it was strictly school counseling, then I opened up to any kind of counseling, then any kind of youth work, now I'm to the point of applying for office jobs. I need money, so I'll do anything.

Any interviews? Yes, they come in waves. I'll go two weeks with nothing and then have 3 in one week. I've been VERY close to getting a couple, and later got edged out by a bilingual candidate.

Are they in the same part of the country or a different part? Same part.

What are your biggest obstacles? (Do you have to move back in with your parents? Do you have a mortgage to worry about?) Really, just living month to month is an obstacle. My husband and I are both looking for work so we have to scrape together rent, utilities, and credit card payments every month by temping and selling our things.

What are your biggest frustrations? I am frustrated with consistently being edged out by bilingual candidates at the very last second after much effort and multiple interviews. For example, one school required me to submit a huge binder of programming to address their hypothetical problem scenarios, which I worked on for weeks. I went to two interviews with them and at the last second they hired someone else with ZERO training in counseling because she is bilingual. Apparently that counts for more than my graduate degree in counseling. If you want someone who is bilingual that badly, please state that in your job posting so I don't have to waste my time and get my hopes up. I am trying to learn Spanish but there is no way I can become fluent overnight, so it seems like there's absolutely nothing I can do to get a job in this town right now despite all my good training and experience. It makes me feel hopeless.

What are your biggest fears? I am afraid that I will never find something in my field and I will be miserable working at McDonald's or something, working hard everyday for minimum wage and still not being able to cover my rent, bills, and loans.

What do you do all day? I look for jobs every single day. I have applied to at least 10 jobs each day since I got here. That takes up a lot of time. I also watch more TV than anyone should, sleep more than anyone should, and feel miserable.

Do you have big financial worries -- family obligations? Loans you're supposed to pay back? A growing credit card bill? I am on a six-month unemployment leave from my student loan and that [is ending]. That is SCARY. We buy everything we need (gas, food, etc.) on the credit cards and the balances are getting higher and higher. What happens if they max out?

Carolyn, 37, Consultant in warehouse management

Where do you live? Arlington, VA

What was your job title? Senior Consultant

In what industry? Warehouse Management Consulting

How old are/were most of your coworkers? Early 20s to late 40s

How did you find out you were losing your job? Someone in the firm leaked info to the media, which alerted me to layoffs happening in the firm. I got a call from my manager the next day, which came as no surprise to me because I had not been significantly staffed with a client in over a year.

Did you have to leave immediately, or did they give you a few weeks to get used to the idea? They gave me 30 days notice. They also gave me 26 weeks severance because I'd been with the firm for 14 years.

Tell us a little about what you did: Celebrated! It was hard work and 100% travel. Not having been assigned to client work for about a year made me get used to being home every night. I wanted to quit, but was never able to get the courage to do so. The lay off forced me to leave and reevaluate my life and what will make me a happier, more satisfied person.

 What was your favorite part of the job? The team work. Every few months to a year you moved on to a new project with new teams. Sometimes you worked with people you knew, sometimes new teammates. The majority of the folks I worked with were amazing and made being away from home fun. I also enjoyed training the client staff and seeing them grasp concepts and then apply them. (I also must say hotel points and status were good as well.)

What was the worst part? "Go lives." I did not enjoy implementing software in the warehouses that usually were 24/7 facilities. Many night and weekend shifts would be necessary, with multiple weeks away from home rather than going home for the weekend.

Did you like going to work? Sometimes. When a project was staffed with people and good project management work was great. When there was even one bad element to the team, the work could be brutal and the thought of seeing that person for 12 hour days could induce insanity.

Did you feel like you were making a difference? Many times, yes. However, sometimes the client would take the work we had done and destroy it once we left.

What have you done since you've been laid off? Got a dog, started doing midweek social outings, stopped eating at restaurants because I could cook at home, started concentrating on my marathon training, decided to take some time to myself! I traveled M-F for ten years and missed out on being social during the week or being able to have a pet or sleep in my own house on a nightly basis, etc. It's nice to be home M-F!

How do you spend your days? I'm trying to write a novel, which is a dream of mine, so I do some writing. I play with my dog. I watch TV and movies. I relax. I'm completely not productive right now, and I don't feel guilty in the least! I'm living on my severance.

Have your spending habits changed since you've been laid off? (Have you cut back on anything? Given up coffee?) I've cut back on spending a little, but not as much as I had planned because it is hard to completely cut things out when you enjoy them. I use coupons now and look for sales - something I never used to do. I think twice before buying unnecessaries. I have not started buying different foods or shopping at cheaper places, etc. I have tried to keep my life mainly the same.

Do you have any financial worries? Just mortgage and condo fee which was based on what I could afford as a high paid consultant. Not sure my next job will pay as well, but I cannot keep this place if I do not make at least 75-80% of my last job's salary.

Do you have a spouse who works? No.

How many jobs have you applied for since you've  been laid off? Zero. I'm taking 6 months to myself. I deserve it.

What kind of job are you looking for next? Will it be in the same field or a different one? Why? Not sure, hopefully different. That's why I am taking a break. I don't want to travel M-F for work. Adopting a dog forces me to have to not be able to travel. I'd like something that involves writing or training (which was the best part of my consultant job).