The experience of unemployment can vary wildly depending on your circumstances. Here’s a Perspective from Tom Blossom.
To get to Alameda you typically get off the freeway, traverse a patch of Oakland, and take a drawbridge onto the island. This area used to be mostly empty and devoid of life but over the past few years has become the landing place for many people living in broken-down RVs and cars. A few of weeks ago a side road was closed to traffic and the people, the things, and the vehicles were removed and replaced by cement blocks on the sides of the road. While they were placed to ostensibly deter a new occupant of that space, each cement block to me was a monument to and reminder of the newly re-displaced.
This is not something I would have thought about before last summer. For much of the past 10+ years, I’ve been heads down and focused on my job. I worked for a menagerie of technology companies with increasing responsibilities and expectations. With my eye on the prize, I moved off balance, focusing less on my family, relationships, and fitness.
When the last job ended, I was ready for a change. I used my savings and did the things I’d put off for years. I biked and hiked, enjoyed undistracted time with my family, and got some coaching. After a few months of resetting my foundation, I was excited to start applying for jobs with renewed vigor and improved equilibrium.