7 Ways to Survive Unemployment

I got this from my Mom today in my email -

‘To get something you never had, you have to do something you never did.’ When God takes something from your grasp, He’s not punishing you, but merely opening your hands to receive something better. Concentrate on this sentence… ‘The will of God will never take you where the Grace of God will not protect you.’

The reason Mom is sending this to me is because I am about 7 months into being unemployed. Now, once you get past the male stereotype of bringing home the bacon, chief breadwinner, and Mr. Mom, you need to start surviving. It has been a roller coaster, and I would LOVE to say that I am handling it well, but that would be a lie. It’s been one of the hardest things I have ever had to endure.

With this in mind, I have 7 Ways to Survive Unemployment:

1. READ – become an expert in your field, or bone up on new strategies for your area of expertise. I would also suggest reading a lot of biographies of people who have overcome tremendous obstacles. One such story is Chris Gardner.

2. VOLUNTEER – find a church, food pantry, or other non-profit to connect with and invest your time and leadership. In these times, non-profits are often hit the hardest, and they would benefit by your involvement…and you might find a blessing as well.

3. SCHEDULE - this is NOT a vacation. You need to work hard against allowing laziness to creep into your schedule. Wake up at and go to bed at your normal times. Spend several hours looking for work and making connections, THIS is your new job, but remember, you need balance. And so does your family.

4. HEALTH – eat right and work out. You don’t have anymore excuses…you’ve plenty of time and you no longer have all those lunch “meetings” to “force” you to eat unhealthy foods. Start walking, biking, running, or whatever on a regular basis and involve the family – it’s a win win!

5. BRANDING – this is also a great time to start blogging and building a social network. Many people have found work and jobs by having a strong web presence. Twitter is free, WordPress and Blogger are free, so is Tumblr, FaceBook, and almost every other social network out there. Get out there and start sharing your ideas and brand yourself. If you need help, drop me a line in the comments and I’ll be in touch!

6. THINK – a buddy of mine suggested that I take 1 hour in the AM and 1 hour in the PM to just stop and think. You can think about any problem or idea you may have. I would suggest that you DO NOT think about being unemployed. Think about ideas like: product idea or a start-up company, or maybe a nagging verse of Scripture to meditate on.

7. GOD – I know that there are some people who read this who don’t believe in God. It’s OK, but at some point you will have to acknowledge His existence. And God has a plan for you, that we usually fight against because we assume that we know what’s best for us. My suggestion is to take some of that “think” time and meditate [process] through Jeremiah 29:11 that says,