5 Career Lessons I've Learned During Unemployment

For the first time in my life, I'm unemployed. Between jobs. Laid off.

It's been a scary journey and one that I'm still getting used to — although hopefully not for much longer as I'm actively interviewing.

As scary as it's been not knowing what my next career move will be, it's also been a tremendous learning experience.

It's taught me how to pause, enjoy life and truly relax for the first time in 15+ years.

But aside from teaching me how to dial back my workaholic ways, it's also taught me some valuable career and life lessons... five of them that I'd like to share with you.

1. Not having a job doesn't make you lazy

From Day 1 of unemployment, I knew I didn't want to become a couch potato — especially not in sunny San Diego.

Within my first 24 hours of being jobless, I made a plan to ensure that I wasn't going to feel sorry for myself, dwell on the past or become the "lazy free-loader" that some would like to have you believe every unemployed person is.

My plan included:

Holding myself to doing at least one new or different thing every day.

To hold myself accountable, I started a journal, recording in one sentence or less that one thing I accomplished. These things could be big or small. Productive or relaxing. Some of my examples include:

• Day 1 of unemployment — signed up for 2 workout classes in one day

• Day 8 of unemployment — went to my first ever reiki session

• Day 16 of unemployment — uploaded my resume to CalJobs for unemployment benefits

• Day 19 of unemployment — hiked 5+ miles in my new hiking boots

• Day 27 of unemployment — finished my first audiobook

This list goes on (and is slightly embarrassing, especially my bad handwriting), but you get the picture. I filled my days with things that kept me occupied, some in the pursuit of my next paycheck and others in pursuit of a happy, healthier me.

Updating my resume and LinkedIn profile.

This hasn't been and shouldn't be a one-and-done process. While on the job hunt, it can take hours and days or weeks of continual updates to get your resume and profile just right. And even then, there are always tweaks you can make to customize it to each individual job posting.

Taking care of paperwork.

Admittedly, this was my least favorite part because if you know me well, you know I hate "adulting" tasks like scheduling appointments, paying bills, filling out forms, etc.

However, if you're unemployed, it's critical that you handle the admin tasks associated with making sure you're covered, both financially and from a healthcare perspective.

Don't wait. Review that severance document (if you received one). File for unemployment. Sign up for COBRA or other healthcare benefits (tip: I looked into "ObamaCare", or Covered California for me, once my employer COBRA benefits were up. It was a lot less expensive with some good providers and plans available.)

Planning and taking a "dream" trip.

The most exciting thing I did to fill my time during unemployment was to travel. I took advantage of the fact that I had no PTO days or pending deadlines to worry about.

I had always wanted to drive cross-country, stopping at National Parks and destinations I had never been to before. I also had been dreaming of going to Iceland and Norway. So, I decided to plan an epic 2-1/2 month trip that included:

• Almost 10,000 miles of driving

• 30+ states passed through or visited

• 8 National Parks and monuments

• 7 European countries

By the end of my trip, I was exhausted, happy to be home and more than ready to dive into job hunting!

2. Your network is your lifeline

I've been so thankful to have worked with amazing people over my 15-year career in marketing.

Many of those people graciously agreed to help me with LinkedIn recommendations, professional references, contacts for people to connect with, leads on marketing jobs I might be interested in, suggestions for my resume, moral support, words of encouragement and so much more!

You all know who you are — THANK YOU and I truly appreciate your help!

3. Approach life like Europeans

I've always envied how Europeans approach life. They seem to be happier, healthier, less stressed and more accepting.

My overseas travels reaffirmed this perception and helped me to better understand that your life isn't measured based on your career/work success.

Stop letting those PTO days go to waste. Taking the time to enjoy your community, family, happiness, health, good food and travel are more important than anything else.

4. You're not supposed to be unhappy at work

By the end of my time at my last job, I wasn't as happy as I used to be. I won't go into all the reasons why, but I learned this to be true — a kind boss is the key to a happier, healthier and more productive work environment.

The point is, before I was laid off I was feeling a bit stuck. I thought it was normal to be unhappy at work sometimes.

Being unemployed has reminded me that I LOVE what I do and generally I've always been happy at the places I work. I have to choose to be happy and choose the fit that's best for me.

That's why, as I'm applying for my role, I plan to interview the company and leadership just as much as they interview me. Because life's too short to waste it not being happy.

5. Although unemployed, you're employable

This is something I have to constantly remind myself of while I'm growing frustrated of job hunting.

It's easy to get down on yourself as you receive reject emails or crickets from jobs you've applied to. I've found it's incredibly helpful to lean on your network for support, as well as remember the companies that did hire you and why. The people who recruited you and why. The bosses who lured you away from one place because they saw something in you and why.

Every person is employable. It's just up to us to see that in ourselves and go after the right fit for us.

Funemployment is a time of learning & healing

While I hope that my time of unemployment is coming to an end soon, I'm not going to stress about it.

I'm filling every day, enjoying every day and taking advantage of every day. Because you can have some fun while you're looking for your next big move!