What I Did Over Summer Vacation

What I Did Over Summer Vacation

Every year, when returning to school in the fall, this was the first assignment given.  Some years, I really looked forward to writing this essay, because I had a phenomenal summer.  Vacations, adventures with friends, and just plain having a blast.  Other times, you could tell my summer was uneventful.  Listening to my friends recall their spectacular summers made it worse and put me in a funk. 

When you’re unemployed, you’ll probably be asked in your interviews, “What have you done to get a job?” or, “What have you been doing since being unemployed?”  Like the summer essay, it will be obvious if you’re fulfilled and happy or totally bummed. 

You want to maintain a vigor and freshness about you that’s contagious.  What you do during your time of unemployment will directly feed into your attitude.  Here are some ideas:

Apply to as many staffing agencies as possible.

Post your resume to as many free sites as possible, especially niche boards.

Get new skills.  Find someone in your occupation that you can connect with, and ask what skills you need to learn.  You may need to schedule an informational interview if you don’t personally know anyone that can advise you.  Google “free online computer training”.   Join a public speaking group.  Improve your typing speed.

Learn a new language.

Take an online college course.

If you’re not using social media for your job search, take this time to learn the most popular sites and post your resume.  Make connections, too.

Volunteer somewhere, and hopefully the volunteer opportunity will line up with your occupation.  I know a woman that volunteered at a non-profit for nearly a year before they hired her full-time.  

Improve your appearance.  Exercise will make you feel great, and look great. 

Start your own group.  Get creative; the sky’s the limit.  Are you really good with resumes?   Then find a way to market this to job seekers that need help.  Start a Bible study.  Help people with their public speaking and interpersonal communication skills. 

Attend a one-day seminar or week-long workshop.  There are many topics to choose from. 

I hope this brief list gave you someplace to start.  Put together your own program.  You will actually look forward to the question, “So what have you been doing since being unemployed?”   

I’d love to hear your stories about how you made the most of your time of unemployment.  Feel free to contact me.