Day 365 of Unemployment

1 year ago today my contract was canceled due to COV🆔. Do you know the last time I didn’t work for an entire year? I was 14 and an 8th grader. What a year, I’m sure some of you can relate.

For at least the last 6 months I’ve been locked in on LinkedIn, Indeed, Glassdoor, & any other job listing website to find something. I’ve messaged past co-workers, team members, & anyone else I knew that might open a door…or two. I’ve had numerous interviews and there’s still some opportunities still pending, but truth be told, this has been humbling because I didn’t think I’d ever be in this position.

Here’s the thing…

Applying for jobs is a painful process. I’m not sure if any of you have gone through it lately, but it’s antiquated, lengthy, and in some cases I’ve been ghosted. Even when the recruiter mentioned next steps.

First of all, asking someone to chicken peck in their employment history after attaching their resume, is asinine. Even more so when the website parses your resume, but only parses basic info & not the employment history. I can’t tell you how many applications I’ve stopped filling in when this happens. Feels like an employer stuck in the ‘old ways’ because ‘why fix it’ anyways type of place, which isn’t for me. If this is their way of “weeding out lazy people”, well…consider me lazy I guess.

Also…

How many interviews is too many interviews? I kid you not, I went through 4 interviews & even was asked to create a presentation about me only to be told, ‘we’re sorry, we’ve decided to go a different direction’. This was spread out over 3 months too.

Do you know what the difference is between an adventure and an ordeal?

A positive attitude. Admittedly, these last couple of months has certainly challenged my mindset and ability to stay positive. Truthfully, I’m lucky to be in this position. Had we not ventured out on the road as fulltime nomads back in 2018, this would be a different conversation altogether. I truly believe everything happens for a reason & in this moment I’m being tested to remind myself that no situation is too tough to overcome & staying positive is how you defeat challenges.