Unemployment in 2020: navigating furlough, redundancy, and motivation
Like many in the current climate, I am out of a job.
I know many people are going through something similar, or know someone who is. This is simply my experience, my journey so far, and some ways I stay motivated during my personal crisis amid a world-wide crisis.
Preparing for life on furlough
For context, I’ve been working in marketing (specialising in content) for over 5 years now across a number of sectors. I was working a job that I liked for a company trusted and then 2020 happened and I was let go. But it happened gradually.
So, the first thing I had to do, back in May, was prepare for life on furlough. This was an odd sensation for me, as someone who has been constantly employed without any gaps for the last 11 years.
However, rather than preparing for myself, I spent the first 2–3 weeks of what should have been furlough preparing campaigns for my old employer to run while I was away (through my own choice, I might add). I took furlough voluntarily, but didn’t want to leave anyone in the shit, especially as the team was shrinking and the other key player had only been there for a short time.
So, I guess you could say I didn’t prepare myself as much as I prepared the organisation I worked for. At the time this seemed like a great idea, but I have since realised that my priorities may have been a little off.
Adapting to life on furlough
This was a really strange time for me. Last time I had any leave longer than 2 weeks, I was studying for my MA in Creative & Critical Writing and had an essay about BoJack Horseman to focus on.
But this time, I had already graduated and had no immediate writing projects/deadlines/goals to work towards. Not to mention the whole pandemic of it all.
So, I got stuck.
I spent my first several weeks on furlough not doing all that much. There was a heatwave, yes, and that was nice. But there was (and still is) also a pandemic.
I watched a lot of Netflix, fell in love with colouring books, and decided to re-live my teen years by binge-watching One Tree Hill. Weird how Lucas was always framed as the good guy and Nathan the douchebag, huh?
So, I started off with good intentions but quickly spiralled into habits of doing next to nothing. I thought what I needed was a break, but what I really needed was a chance to change things.
My brief stint as an I’m-going-to-change-my-life person
I don’t know about you guys, but I have always had a tendency of getting very excited about something for a few weeks or months, dedicating all of my time to it, and then one day my routine breaks, and I stop. That’s it.
It happened a couple of times during my stint on furlough, but never more clearly than when I received a call, 12 days before I was due back at work.
They were letting me go.
Entering unemployment
For the first time in 11 years, I didn’t have a job (at the time of writing, I still don’t, although I’m trying my best).
That’s it, I’m changing my life, I thought. I’m done working in marketing, done working for other people. I don’t have a side hustle set up because I’ve always been loyal to those I work for but at that time it seemed like that never mattered anyway.
It was time to go it alone.
So, as I am prone to do, I spent a couple of weeks dedicating all of my time to setting up my own venture, or going into publishing, or becoming a professional editor, or working freelance, and setting up a website, and journaling again, and writing down ideas, planning a new blog.
Reality set in. I have bills to pay, luckily no mouths to feed beyond my own, but despite what I was telling myself, someone out there must want someone like me to work for them. Also, a steady income and the chance to make a difference to an already-existing company is pretty appealing.
If this all sounds like a lot, that’s because it is.
Job searching can be crushing at the best of times, even when you’re just looking to move on from your current position. But job hunting on a deadline is even harder. I’ll talk about that more another time.
If this was going to work (and I’m still hoping it is), I had to start goal-setting.
The importance of weekly goal-setting
OK, so I’ve rambled on a bit about all the woe-is-me stuff, but I think it’s important to acknowledge how hard this all is right now.
It is time to focus on moving on with my life and looking after my physical and mental health. Weekly goal-setting (and monthly goal-setting) is a huge part of that.
Obviously, a main objective right now is applying for jobs, getting interviews, and hopefully at some point entering employment again. It’s also important that I can bring my best self to my new employers when it’s time to start something new.
I wrote about the importance of objectives a number of times for my previous job (for example, in this guide to learning engagement) but it isn’t just applicable to learning and people who are currently employed.
There are a number of interesting stats in the article, but this is easily my favourite:
People who write down their goals are 33% more likely to both achieve and surpass them
Writing down your goals makes you more likely to achieve them; that’s a great reason to do it. But they can also be hugely motivational and provide us with a purpose when we feel we may not have one.
Personally, I have 8 goals each week to meet and track my progress every day. If 8 sounds like too much, that’s totally fine, start with 3, or even 1 if that feels right for you.
The important thing is to hold yourself accountable to them each day. Check in at the end of the day to see how you’re doing.
Motive, don’t berate
The idea is to motivate yourself, not berate yourself if you don’t hit all of your targets. If you keep missing the same target, consider what you can do differently, or if you need to reduce the target to make it initially more reachable.
But equally, once you’ve hit your target a couple of weeks in a row, increase it and push yourself out of your comfort zone.
What sort of targets should you create?
That all depends on what is important to you and what in your life you want to improve or change. For example, my targets include:
- Distance walked (in km) and step count
- Meditation
- Weights/exercise goals
- Page count (reading)
- Job applications
- Healthy eating
But you could create goals for all sorts of things. Start at a level that feels comfortable. Once you hit a routine and know what you can manage, slowly up the goals, either stretch your target or add one or two more goals in.
I’ve been doing this since I was released into the world from my previous job. Of my 8, there are 4 I hit every week, so I’ve increased those. And 4 I don’t, so this week I shifted them down a little.
It’s all about give and take. Ultimately, during this time it’s important to remember to be kind to yourself and not lose sight of what it is you want to achieve. Sometimes we all need reminding. And if that’s you today, I just want you to know: we will get through this.
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