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The difference between being employed and unemployed is night and day. I would really use this time to reflect on your work abilities. Everything she was saying may not have been a lie.
Good luck on finding new work ASAP.
The customers literally loved me. Her boss praised me and said keep up the good work. It boiled down to her personality and the way she enjoys scaring the other workers with weekly chats in her office. I made the mistake of not showing the fear reaction that she sought and from then on my days were numbered. I’ve worked with all sorts of managers and some really do get off on the power trip thing like this individual. I don’t need it. Just let me do my job. This another story and I have serious things to take care of now.
Well, without knowing what field you have experience in, what gaps/problems you might be needing to cover on your resume, what your personal attributes are, etc., all we can really suggest is stopgaps.
You said that your mortgage is paid off. Any chance you could sublet, rent a room to a student or young professional? Depending on where you are located, the size of the room, the size of the house, etc., you could charge anywhere from $300 to $700+ a month.
If you are unemployed, you likely qualify for Medicaid. Apply. That way, if, God forbid, you become ill or injured, you won't be forced into declaring bankruptcy to pay your medical bills.
See what you can find out about government assistance programs like food stamps. Sounds like you are in an economic crisis. That's exactly what these safety net programs are designed for.
Your town / city should have an employment office where you can get help with your resume, use their computers to apply for jobs, etc.
Have you offered to mow your neighbors' lawns, walk their dogs, etc. for $20-$30 a week? At this point, every dollar will help.
All good tips. I remember about a decade ago I was unemployed and ate the $1.50 hot dogs with unlimited soda refills at the local deli every day for lunch. It was my only meal all day for months. I put mounds of condiments on there as extra food, and walked the store to finish and refill my soda before I left the store for the day, with a full belly.
It was hard to be positive then, even though I chose to resign to find a better career and tried a few industries until I found my way. It was a blessing in disguise, so keep your head up, you will find something better.
The customers literally loved me. Her boss praised me and said keep up the good work. It boiled down to her personality and the way she enjoys scaring the other workers with weekly chats in her office. I made the mistake of not showing the fear reaction that she sought and from then on my days were numbered. I’ve worked with all sorts of managers and some really do get off on the power trip thing like this individual. I don’t need it. Just let me do my job. This another story and I have serious things to take care of now.
There's generally three ways to approach these types of individuals:
1. You submit to their way of management and just go with the flow, many people rather do this because it is easier to do.
2. Do what you did. This will either end in finding a new job or being cut.
3. Request a transfer from the employer to a different manager.
Sometimes it's hard to get along with a coworker, but it's even harder to seek and find common ground to work on. Many people will throw up their hands and feet and give up the good fight. There are times when I have had managers that simply could not relate to anyone on the team, they had the "my way or the highway" mindset and people really didn't want to be working for them. BUT, most people would conform to the new style and just dealt with it. Better luck in the future.
I will say that there are plenty of managers out there that are poor with their subordinates, this may be your case. If so, then move on and see it as something that was bound to happen anyways.
you sound like you're prioritizing so that's good but you might be getting a little penny wise and pound foolish.
your internet bill won't go up because you also surf the internet. yeah your electricity bill will go up but it should be pretty marginal.
1 meal a day won't be good for you since you need to perform at interviews, etc. just have more meals and it doesn't have to be expensive...a bag of carrots and potatoes are cheap, etc.
if it's really hot during the day, just head over to a park with shade or the mall or a coffee shop or library, etc.
go ahead and take a low paying part-time job just to keep the bills paid, etc.
either way, good luck out there. next time, try to save some money. even if you only save like $20/wk that adds up quickly...$80/month, $1000/year, etc.
Yes, the oil field jobs. I can do that and I have IT skills as well. There should be plenty of jobs out there. I have to figure out what to do with my elderly father whom I take care of and factor in relocation for him. He subsists on a modest pension and has health problems and sees specific doctors for specific ailments. In all this wonderful joy I forgot about him and his situation but they have doctors in ND too.
We’ll be selling the house and start that in the works. The housing market in this area is really bad but we’ll take the first offer just to unload the house which has become excess baggage now. The buyer will have a motivated seller and get a bargain that he can resell for twice the value when the housing market turns around. The car as a home has just become an ugly reality but others have done it and so can I. The seats are comfortable for sleep and there’s public bathrooms all over the place.
First I need to get a minimum wage job so I can save up money for the trip out that way as I’m on the east coast. Maybe there’s a way out of this hell after all, assuming the minimum wage job comes through and the money coming in is more than the money going out. Hopefully there will be a job, any job, in ND. Man I have to get things rolling. I may not be on the internet much except for job searching only as I can use the free internet and computers at the library and I doubt that I’ll have any time to spare for forums any more. I can hoof it there and back too. A lot of things going on.
Concerning the bold, it's amazing I've had the same conclusion. It seems employers; however, are potentially seeing me as too qualified so they pass on to another candidate.
It's pretty frustrating when you have trouble just getting a job with all the baggage of the fancy degrees and all.
There are a lot of baby boomers (such as myself) who are finding activities like lawn mowing and snow clearing becoming difficult. Someone has already mentioned law mowing, which can be a good self-employment opportunity in the right circumstances. If you could find a way to advertise lawn mowing and snow clearing services to the right audience, you might be able to build up a fairly substantial client base. If you don't have the right equipment, it is possible that your potential clients would; you could offer a reduced rate to do the work with their equipment until you could buy your own.
House cleaning is another self-employment opportunity. People who need housecleaning services value someone who is reliable and thorough and has good communication and social skills. You could set yourself apart from the housecleaning services (like Maids, etc., which you don't want to work for because they pay poorly) by including things like window washing and other "heavy cleaning" tasks in your repertoire.
Another area of house cleaning that people will pay someone to help with is clearing out basements or other storage areas and hauling stuff away (to the dump, to be donated, etc.). You might have to rent a truck at some point to make this lucrative, but you could start small with just doing the clearing out and packing up. In the same vein, people often need help clearing out the home of a deceased relative, so that's another avenue to pursue.
People moving from their long-time home to a retirement community or otherwise downsizing need help clearing out and packing up. The people who helped me clear out my Dad's house after he passed away used UHaul trucks and boxes so they didn't have to maintain an expensive inventory; they just rented what they needed for the job. They gave me little stickers to put on everything I wanted moved to my house, packed all that up and delivered it, then took everything else salable to be auctioned (they made the arrangements) or donated or discarded, then cleaned the house. They charged by the hour.
Then there is always dog walking or in-home pet care for folks who are away. There is a company in my community that provides companions and drivers (along with skilled and other in-home care people). Sometimes a person who lives alone needs some help at home after a hospital stay or surgery, and this company provides people who will stay in the home and provide light housekeeping and transportation and the like while the person recuperates. Maybe there's something like that where you live. I would think you would probably want to work for an established company for something like that as you would have to be bonded and insured, and the company would probably take care of that.
Look around your community at the types of people who live there (preferable the ones with money) and see what services they might need. That can give you ideas. Find a need and a way to fill it. If you have good social skills and customer service experience, you might be able to collect a client base and make a living with self employment. Never underestimate the value of good social skills.
Good luck to you. It sounds like you had a tough break. I hope you find your way back to prosperity very soon.
Here would be my action plan if I were in your situation (and I have been exactly when the economic downturn happened in 2007).
1. Get off this forum right away. We all like visiting and reading rants and giving advice but for the most part the forum is full of negativity and folks who claim they cant find even a min wage job. Not a place you want to visit to poison your mind.
2. Don't watch news, listen to unemployment numbers or anyone else who says they can't find a job.
3. Good job on the cutting down bills. Soon enough you will be employed and can restore your old lifestyle.
5. Fluff your resume like there is no tomorrow. Lie if you have to, don't care, you have a responsibility to yourself and your family to get a job and survive. I don't give a f**k about all the dweebs on their high horses who say you should be honest, never lie and be quiet and wait for the good employer to give you a job. Its survival of the fittest out there and any advantage helps. Stand out, get noticed, get infront of thhe decision makers. Watch that video over and over.
Do your customers have businesses? If you can get in contact with them, that might be a good place to start networking for a new job. If they don't have businesses, some of them probably know someone who does. What about your former employer's competitors?
She enjoyed firing me too. It was in her office, closed door, with a 3 hour item by item of lies describing where I was deficient in this or not up to par in that. She was making these lies up and the fact that there was nothing I could do about turned this sick chick on. Just say "you're fired" and let me the H out of the place, you don't have to draw it out for so long like that. Yet she did and relished every second.
After about 45 minutes of that, I would have gotten up and walked out. That's me personally.
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I miss it and pray daily for another position to open up anywhere. If I have to move across the country for a 2 month gig I’m there. I can commute up to 4 hours each way if need be and I’m applying for all the local minimum wage jobs I can find. If anyone has some productive ideas or commentary I’m all ears.
What is your skillset?
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