Covid-19 Job Hunt To do#5: Budgeting
Unfortunately, this articles come out too late for the readers who most need to read it. And that’s because we’re already a few months into our shelter-in-place orders no matter where in the world you are. The only difference at this point is how much longer your region is to reopening or its economy to come back.
And no, it’s not just about money. For this article, there’s really 3 budgets that we’re talking about: Work, Self, and… finally, yes, money.
What’s a work budget?
A work budget is basically a gauge for your productivity and willpower. Take the article I wrote before about lists for example and how you need to maintain one to strike your job hunting goals and schedule.
The concept here is that, while thereotically yes — you can accomplish a whole week’s worth of work in a day (let’s say its 250 apps in a week, that you do in a day). That’s not the ideal approach. Not least because it’s not sustainable, but also because it throws a wrench into your schedule. Humans are creatures of habit, and if we suddenly clump work into one day instead of spreading it when we can do repeat it day-in and day-out: then we’re likely to just completely drop it.
My years of trying to self-learn computer programming and dozens of half-completed Udemy courses are a stark reminder of that.
So yes, there will be days when your work needs to be done unevenly. I.e: You’ve hit 20 apps for the day already but theres 10 postings that have been out already for 3 weeks. You should apply to those too because the staler the posting, the lower your chances.
Pace yourself, so that you can make it a habit and survive the marathon.
And the Self budget?
This one we all know. One of the biggest changes in the pass two decades or so is the recognition that the self needs to be cared for: mental health especially but also physical.
Any negative impacts on your health and joy will impact your job hunt. That can be less quality cover letters, worse outreach emails, or even completely bombing the hard-fought interviews. Make sure you’re doing okay.
If the Work budget is so you can maintain your trajectory, the Self budget is so that you can maintain your sanity.
Why a monetary budget
Those without a proper budget (and even those with) or large enough emergency fund have probably either already realized the need to budget or are beginning to need to. Though we might be reopening soon, it doesn’t mean that anything is about to be done and return to normalcy. For one, the job hunting slog is going to be a rough one with unemployment hitting above 14.7% from the last estimate.
Aside from the essential living matters (food, rent, etc), there’s also:
- Being starved for cash might force you into a part-time job or otherwise that will dramatically reduce both your Work budget and Self budget
- Having a low run-rate for your remaining funds means that you might take the first offer that comes along. It can blind you to lowball offers, toxic cultures, and any other red flags and get you stuck in a terrible situation for a couple of extra years before you can leave for a new job again
- It feels terrible, and the lack of security is going to make everything worse
Outside of budgeting, there’s really not much else or special to be said about this point. Try to reduce expenses and consider if some essentials are really essentials. Set yourself up for the marathon, don’t set aside 2 months — do 6 months. If you’re already set up for 6, go for 9. Worst case scenario you find yourself with a good chunk of change left before you start up your next job… and that’s not a bad situation at all.
That wraps up this series on the Covid-19 job hunt checklist. More articles will be coming, but wont be tied to the first post. As always, please comment and follow if you like what you’re reading. Or reach out and let’s spark a conversation!
