‘It’s job security, stupid’: An unemployed maverick weighs in
Turns out the prediction was on target. Last January a number of work life trackers voiced concern, along with the rest of the world about the job market. In my post in January of 2008 entitled, ’It’s job security, Stupid’ , I wrote that growing unemployment data, the slowing economy, lingering fallout from the sub-prime crisis and outsourcing due to expanded technology would put a mighty dent into our future job market. It wasn’t brain surgery.
No one knows this better than Norm Elrod, the founder of Joblessandless.com,the blog for who he calls the “employmentally challenged.” The unemployed marketing executive was laid off four times in eight years, most recently in October. In an e-mail exchange, he told me that he hit the blogasphere for a few reasons, ” It’s a good outlet for writing and I was missing that in my life,” said Elrod who adds that he figured his best chance for a new marketing job would be in Search Engine Marketing, which at first he didn’t know much about.
“I know about the SEM industry, just not the nuts and bolts of actually doing it. Running a website is letting me learn and practice,” said Elrod, who muses that his “unemployment experience” made him an unintentional expert in the field of – unemployment. Although, he would prefer to be working. In those times that he’s found himself without a job, he makes good use of his days learning, feeding a good state of mind and sticking to a four to five day a week workout schedule. So is that , I asked, his way of cultivating resilience?
“Unemployment makes it very easy to stay with it (working out). I never really thought of it as building resilience, but i guess that’s what it is. It takes my mind off of things…lets me take out my frustrations in a productive way. It’s cathartic,” said Elrod.
Cathartic, as has been his blog writing. He hasn’t made any cash with it yet, but hasn’t ruled out the idea. It would be pretty ironic, he says, if his blog lead to a new career. Elrod says as the jobless ranks swell, creative people are using blogs as outlets for their talents and frustrations. On his list of reading,Unemploymentality.com, which explores the condition of such a disposition and the site which he says, “chronicles the carnage, minute by minute,” Layoffblog.com
“I try to laugh and wonder about things, and I’ve been pretty successful so far. Otherwise I’d just worry and cry. These are scary times.” Times that also call for a bit of humor. In Elrod’s blog you’ll read about his escape to a mid-day movie, his family life and his kitty. And on a more serious note, he extrapolates on how the way unemployment is measured is flawed. Check out that post by clicking here.
Not only can you read about Elrod’s thoughts on being unemployed, but at his site you can also download his resume. Now that’s good marketing.
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