Get Help

So, you’re out of work or soon will be. Now what? The traditional approach is to polish up your resume, network, get out there and search. Your full time job is looking for a job! Let’s say that you’ve already done those things and realize by now that it’s not working. These actions were all quite valid in former times when the economy was growing, but the economy has shed so many jobs that there are more than 15 million of you out there looking for work when there are fewer than a million jobs being created each year. And nearly 2 million people are entering the job market each year. And, the jobs being created are jobs that you’re not qualified for or are over-qualified for. You will not get different results by continuing to do the same thing.

As I discussed in my last post, you need to recognize the lies for what they are and start to plan a much different life. The old one is over. Of course it’s one thing to make a financial plan, and it’s absolutely necessary, but executing that plan is another story altogether.

It’s time to do something completely different. As humans we are united in our basic needs: food, clean water, shelter, and companionship. Many people don’t list companionship as a basic need, but I consider it so. I’m going to use the word sufficiency to indicate the satisfaction of these basic needs. As you work toward sufficiency you will need lots of help. We sure have. So, don’t be afraid to ask.

Sufficiency, rather than self-sufficiency, recognizes that we need and get help. Companionship we have in each other, our family, and our friends. To give you an idea of the scale of help that you’ll need, here’s a partial list of people who have helped us: Suzanne, Leslie, Bob, John, Mary, Tim, Richard, Claudette, Isaac, Nancy, Tom, Paula, Charlie, Mike, Margaret, Wayne, Bill, Mark, Terry, Renee, Jan, Trent, Janice, Cathy, Don, Diane, Stan, Marge, Bruce, Jim, Ann, Carrie, Dave, Janet, John, Mark, Stan, Tom, Brian, Kim, Debbie, Barb, Dennis, Eldon, Jim, Andy, Jun, Todd, Mike, Eldon, Steve, Andy, Nathan, Shannon, Mary Kate, Mac, Sean… Thanks to all of you and those I haven’t mentioned, thank you too.

You get the idea. Not one of us can stand alone, but together we can accomplish a lot. So get help.

Restructuring your life is hard to do, but you can get help there too. Again, you’ll be doing something completely different because the old ways won’t work anymore. The definition of insanity may not be, “doing the same thing and expecting different results”, but “doing the same thing and expecting different results” is insane. While you still have some financial resources, like unemployment benefits, you should take classes that will help you restructure your life. The very first you should take is a permaculture class. You’ve got the time, and I can’t think of a better way to spend the money. You’ll make new friends and come up with a new way of living that will save you more money in a few months than you spent on the course. It likely will be that transformative.

How about I word this recommendation a little more strongly. Every unemployed person should take a permaculture class this year.

Here are some resources:

Wayne Weiseman and the Permaculture Project
Bill Wilson at Midwest Permaculture
Wayne, Bill, and Mark Shepard were my teachers in the Permaculture class that I took in 2008.

The Permaculture Activist
A great publication and lots of resources.
Keith Johnson's blog
And PRI Australia