It’s fun looking for a job, isn’t it?! You really enjoy claiming Unemployment Insurance every week too, right? You feel useful, productive and valued for your contributions. There is nothing worse than what you are experiencing right now. Yet, it will not last forever.
Use this time to figure out what you really want to do. Discover something you will enjoy doing.
You can start off working one or two days a week. If you work an assignment/job just 2 days a week, in most cases you will still be able to claim 1/2 of your UI benefits. (This varies by state and depends on how much you make those 2 days).
Another option is to take a 2-3 week assignment doing something new or exciting. You just won’t claim UI benefits that week. You don’t lose any money really, it extends the term of you Unemployment Insurance (you still have 12 months to use it).
Better yet, you could find a job in an other area of the country and commute home, taking you off Unemployment Insurance all together.
The government has tried to help by offering Unemployment Insurance and increasing the length of time people can have access to it, however, what I’ve seen is that this creates dilemmas… you really want to work, doing anything, but you make more on unemployment than you would in a minimum wage job. Each day you are unemployed it can become more difficult to feel self-confident. Sometimes you begin to doubt your own abilities. The best cure for these feelings is to do something, anything and get paid for it. It is amazing what this does for the spirit.
Stretch your mind, think about creating new possibilities for yourself and see what happens!
Hannah Morgan speaks and writes about job search and career strategies. She founded CareerSherpa.net to educate professionals on how to maneuver through today’s job search process. Hannah was nominated as a LinkedIn Top Voice in Job Search and Careers and is a regular contributor to US News & World Report. She has been quoted by media outlets, including Forbes, USA Today, Money Magazine, Huffington Post, as well as many other publications. She is also author of The Infographic Resume and co-author of Social Networking for Business Success.
