Quote:
Originally Posted by Unregistered
(Post 268784)
I was once jobless for about 4 months.
I was surprised reading some of the recent posts. Unlike some others, I absolutely hated the state of being jobless.
It was not about the money. I come from a middle-class background and had enough savings to last me more than a decade. It was not about the loss-of-status/face. My family was very supportive and never hurried me to find a new job.
My main gripe was waking up with nothing to look forward to for the rest of the day.
The first month was super fun. Freedom to wake up at any time you want. Play computer games that you missed out on. Go to fancy cafes. Take short-term classes like cooking or language. Go on holidays.
But that utopia quickly changes into a bad dream.
Your friends are all working and cannot hang out with you. You get bored of solo travelling from place-to-place. Your initial enthusiasm for cooking/language classes wears off. You finish most of your computer games and have nothing left to play. When you open your eyes, the first thing you do is to scroll through the job portal and apply for jobs. Once that is done, to pass time, you turn on Netflix and watch whatever is available until its time for lunch and dinner.
I know several friends who have lived like this for a year or more and they are totally fine with it. But for me, this lifestyle was an absolute nightmare.
The way I view it, it was like an RPG game where your main questline suddenly comes to a halt (i.e. losing your job) and you suddenly have free time on your hands. Ok not too bad at first; you use the time to complete all the sidequests that you missed out earlier. But once even those sidequests are completed, you are just walking around aimlessly in the game with nothing to do.
Some people have told me to get a hobby. I do have a few hobbies. But the issue is how can such hobbies be done on a full-time basis with no end in sight? Let's say I like rock-climbing; how can anyone rock-climb day-after-day for weeks on end? Or if I like to do gardening, how can I just be tending to my plants non-stop forever?
I was fortunate to have found a suitable job within months. But if I failed to do so, at that point, I would have just taken any job available (even with steep paycuts in a totally unrelated field) just so that I can not be jobless. I don't know if its a product of the Singapore system where one must always be "doing something", but I really did feel very desperate during those times, and not for financial reasons at all.
Anyway, we all eventually find our paths in life. All the best to those still finding jobs!
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For me it is ok being jobless for more than a year as I'm doing freelance work that also allows me to hone and polish my craft/skills while job-hunting. At the same time I can earn my keeps and don't give hiring managers the chance to lowball me.
I understand where you come from; being humans we are wired for a purpose, and often times we discover our purpose through work. At the same time, jobless for 4 months is not long (read: not that bad compared to others). There are other ways to make your life count outside of work, and derive purpose. For example, you can volunteer at an organisation where you can apply your existing skillsets, or learn new skillsets. Say for example, volunteer to do social media marketing for a non profit org. It involves time and effort crafting narratives, but of course it will turn seasoned workers off as you're not being paid.
No need to resort taking a payout in unrelated field just to find a semblance of purpose. There are many gig jobs available that does not need long term commitment, eg, private hired drivers, tuition, event helpers, and even retail asst. At the end of the day, you just want something to do, an avenue to create value for the society.
As for hobbies that you can't seem to do forever w/o purpose, well, it's up to you how you want to challenge yourself out of the comfort zone. Take solo travel as an example, you can always set goals and objectives for the trip. Be it spend only 3k to Europe for 2 weeks, or challenge yourself to invite someone to Korean bbq with you in Korea (cos Singaporeans are anti-social freaks who likes to cry in introversion), there are lessons you can glean about yourself, and the world around you through solo travel. Singaporeans are typically frogs in the well, so you can't say you are well-versed with global culture and affairs.
Maybe you don't realise it, but you can also monetise your hobbies and turn it into a side hustle/business.
At the end of the day, not working for a few months is not a big deal. Someone could find purpose through work by volunteering and yet still complain for working for free. It all boils down to heart motivations and attitude towards life.
