Although this topic has been written about quite a bit already on the internet, given that it’s my first week after finishing graduate school and I am now unemployed, I thought this would be a good post to share with my classmates and other jobless MBA graduates. If you feel like you are about to pull out your hair because you’re bored out of your mind and not getting any responses from resume submissions, don’t worry. While it might seem like the worst of all fates that we don’t have jobs, there a some great things you can do when you are unemployed.
Volunteer work: I had always been looking at ways to find volunteer work and could never quite figure out what it was that I wanted to do. This post on the rewards of volunteer work does a good job describing what it can do for you mentally. But, another thing that you may not have considered is that volunteer work can provide you a great networking opportunity. For example, I am volunteering for the National Foundation for Teaching Entrepreneurs, where I will be judging a business plan competition for some high school kids. It’s entirely possible that the other judges may be people who are connected, or could connect me to the right person. I think it’s important you find volunteer work that actually interests you. I enjoy public speaking and motivating people and that’s how I ended up finding this opportunity.
Read Books: While reading might seem ridiculous considering we just graduated from school, reading for pleasure is always a great escape. I am continually reading self improvement books because that’s what I enjoy. The great thing is that you can check out about 10 books at a time for free from the public library. They often have many of the new bestsellers and even offer DVD’s, books on tape, and more.
Explore your creative side: How often do we get caught up in the daily grind of 9 to 5 and talk about how we would write a novel, screenplay, whatever, if we didn’t have to be in the job we’re in. Well, stop talking about it and do it. There’s no better time than now to explore your creative side. Maybe you have been itching to be an artist and paint. So, go for it.
Travel: Travel doesn’t have to be expensive. With spring right around the corner the weather is getting fantastic every where. National parks, beaches, and other scenic options are usually pretty inexpensive, You can probably get away with just the cost of gas if you pack some sandwiches, granola bars, and treat your road trip like a camping trip.
Learn a new skill: With the amount of resources available on the web for free, there’s no shortage of things you could learn during this time. When you have the option to take Free classes from MIT, why not give it a go. You can sign up for a free foreign langauge course . There really is no end to the amount of knowledge you could acquire during this time. If you are worried about how difficult it might, don’t fret. This post on How to Learn Almost Anything should put your mind at ease.
Write: I think it’s obvious why I’m a supporter of this one. It gives you a great outlet to express yourself, write what’s on your mind, and get some interaction with other people when you are stuck behind the computer. If you are really serious about starting a blog, check out Yaro Starak’s Blog Mastermind Program . I joined the program to learn more about how to make money blogging while I’m searching for a job.
Go to networking events: This should be a pretty self-explanatory. If you are searching for a job, networking is essential. But just showing up and hoping things fall into your lap is not really going to be effective. If you’re shy, check out Tina’s post How to Overcome Your Shyness
Get in shape: If there’s any time to get in really good physical shape, it’s when you are unemployed. Lack of time seems to be one of the biggest excuses we use to keep us from hitting the gym or exercising when we have a job. You don’t need to spend any money to do this, and blogs like Go healthy Go Fit, have tons of information.
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I am very interested in this