DISPATCHES FROM THE GHOST MOOSE

Tuesday almost slipped by with no post.....but it is late afternoon and here I am. I had a good day - I had coffee with a friend that I met from a posting on linkedin. Peter responded to my posting because he wanted to help. He had been laid off before in his career and knew how it felt. We have had a number of meetings where he showed me some sales and bus dev techniques to use in the job search. His willingness to help a stranger has been a bright spot during this trying period. I had lunch with my son - White Castles. Not the best thing for the digestive system, but he likes them so we had a good time. I took him to Best Buy to use a gift card he had and we took the dog for a walk. So, the day was full of non-job search activity. My son goes back to school next Monday. While I can't totally slack off on the search, I have to cherish these days with my son because I have never had the opportunity to spend time with him like this. So, in summary, it was a good day. And w...

It is Monday after Christmas. I remember that as being a downer returing to the office (back in the days when I had a job). All the joy of the holiday joy is gone, and the work is there to be done. However, I want to have that feeling once again. Of course, the only thing that will change my situation is work and some luck. Seems like the job posting is minimal, so this week will be slow. I am hoping some of the many submissions of the last few weeks will get read, as some were very good fits. We shall see. Last week of 2008 - make the best of it.

A respected colleague of mine commented that my bloggings seem down, and don't adequately identify the things I have to be thankful for. Well, he is right. I obsess far to much about the job search, and lack of success I am having. As I have been told, I can't hire myself - I need to work through this and make my own luck. so, having said that, I need to take time to list some things on the flip side of the coin; and I need to realize that the list far, far outweighs the list of gripes I may have. so, a very short, incomplete list of some of the good things in my life are: - my health, and that of my family - my wife who has been supportive and puts up with my rantings. She is not one to let circumstances get her down, and I need to be more like her in my approach. - my great kids who are a joy to be around - my friends, both old and new. I have become acquainted with some very good people who have been helping by offering advice, sharing contacts and just being available...

Got up, checked the online postings. At this point, it is pretty much a robotic action, as I do that each morning out of routine. But I feel like a day not searching is a day lost. I am resigned to the fact that this week will be as slow as last week, and am hoping the hiring will commence in the new year. Acting on my wife's recommendation, I have branched out my search to other locations. I have always been open to relocation, but am more aggressively sending to out of state locales. Hopefully if I relocate, it will be to somewhere warm. Much sunnier today. The rain moved out, and it is cold again. The winter is such a depressing time to be job searching. Have a good day watching football.

Very gray, foggy and rainy outside. I suppose if it had been snow, we would be buried. As it is, the now is melting and everything is underwater. No search activity to do. The job alerts are minimal, I have already applied to any posting remotely appropriate. At this point in the search, I am losing self-confidence. I read the job descriptions and I know I can do the job. But I get no responses, so there must be something I am deficient in, right? I suppose my VP level may scare off some organizations. But, how do you impress upon an interviewer that you are willing to do whatever it takes? Conventional wisdom says not to come off as desperate, but I guess it is natural to be willing to take significantly less salary when your current earnings are zero. Thankfully, I have a supporting wife and family. I will make it through this and be a better person for it. I just wish I could see the light at the end of the tunnel. I former colleague of mine used to be self employed, giving training...

Well, Christmas was here and gone. Funny thing - today is garbage day, and the parkway is lined with boxes and bags from all the gifts that were given. We had one bag of garbage. We decided to control our spending a bit this year. And, this was the best Christmas ever. We played a few family games, watched a few new videos, and as I mentioned before, I was touched by my son's maturity and generousity. Today seems like a continuation of the holiday. No one seems to be working, the job posting activity is light. Hopefully that will pick up. And so it goes......

Merry Christmas. We had a nice time with my 2 brothers and their families last night. We opened presents when we got home. I got Season 2 of the Office, and a massage device. One heartwarming thing that happened was my son felt bad that I had not gotten much, and asked his sister if he could take some of his presents back so he could buy me another present. That made more of an impression on me than I could begin to describe. I am choking up as I type this. I knew how fortunate I am to have kids that think that way. As long as my family is happy and healthy, I have everything that I need. The frustration of the job search will commence tomorrow. But for today, I am celebrating Christmas, and realizing that while I may not have a job, but I have so much more. I am truly blessed. God Bless us all.

The wife and daughter are working today, so it still seems wasteful to be off. But, I tried hard every year to get Christmas Eve off, so I am glad I avoided that hassle this year. Lots of snow, and went out early to clear the driveway. Did the usual internet search and applied to postings that I know won't be read. I saw a job that I had interviewed for in September and still isn't filled. I felt like I was very qualified for it, so don't know if the job was filled and is now open again, or if they don't know what they want. I had followed up on an interview I had a few weeks back. Was told I was "in limbo". If someone can tell me what that means, I would appreciate it. At this point, just hoping that the hiring situation will pick up in the new year. The news on the economy continues to be bad, but the media seems to thrive on bad news. At any rate, can't throw in the towel - there is never a time when no one is hiring. merry Christmas to all. ...

Nothing to apply to, nothing pending, no one that has a job seems to be working. I wish I could enjoy the holiday season, but the constant reinforcement that I cannot adequately provide a nice Christmas for my family is never far from my mind. I am now calculating how many groceries I can buy with what's left on my unemployment debit card. A few months ago, I was a Vice President - now this. How did we as a country get here? I suppose the buffoon that was president for the last 8 years has something to do with it. If we had elected a bucket of sand or a golden retriever, could anyone argue that we would be worse off?

Well, it's the Monday before Christmas. Seems like a lot of people are home, but they will have jobs to go back to after the holidays. I see a guy running in my neighborhood each afternoon. I would think he has been downsized like me. who knows. My son is off school for 2 weeks, so it will be nice to be home with him. But, the frustration is never too far from the surface. I sit at the computer and send resumes. I have not signed up for any of the premium services - they seem like they are minimally valuable, and I don't have a cent to spare these days. I have resigned myself to the fact that there will be no activity for the next 2 weeks. That in itself is concerning, as is the fact that I have nothing in the works. Nothing. This sucks.

Pretty much the same routine as usual. Get up, log on, scan the email job alerts, submit to a few. There really is not much to apply for, but you really have to keep putting one foot in front of the other. As Tom Hanks said in "Castaway" you have to get up every day because you never know what the tide will bring in. I read an interview with Carlos Mencia in Newsweek yesterday when I took my son to his orthodontist appt. Carlos was an engineer before he became a comdian. His advise was if you lose your job, make a movie, record a rap album, try something you have been meaning to try, but didn't have the time. Obviously the odds are huge, but you have to sieze the moment. so, that's the message for today. keep at it, enjoy the holidays. Things will get better.

Huge snow storm today, and the family was all home. So, that was nice. Next to no job search activity that is appropriate today. I get the feeling that no one is reading anything I am sending. But I suppose the next few weeks will be very, very slow, and can't get too discouraged. My daughter is making Christmas cookies, and there is a good feeling in the house. It is not too difficult to find many things to be thankful for, and those things quickly outweigh the frustration and desparation of the job search. Happy Friday to all.

Once the wife and daughter are off to work, and the son off to school, the tedium of the daily job search commences. I find myself applying to the same postings day after day. To no avail - no one calls, and except for an automated response, there is no acknowledgement of the effort. I am of the age that I remember mailing resumes in response to ads. The majority of time the company would mail a rejection letter. These days, there is absolutely no professional consideration; I have had multiple interviews with companies and have not even received a rejection. Or, I get an email from a low lever admin in response to my voice message. Now I respect the fact the company has to select the right candidate, but if a job seeker has gone through phone screens and multiple in person interviews, they at least deserve a timely rejection letter if they are not chosen. The psyche of an unemployed professional is to get their hopes up on a positive development. The key is to expect rejection...

what makes it worse, as I am sure many of you would agree, is the holidays are upon us. I feel so useless not being able to provide a Christmas for my family. This sucks. I wish I knew who to be angry at. I attacked the job search with vigor initially. Now I find myself applying to the same jobs every day. Uselessly networking with people who are worried about losing their jobs. They can no more help me than my dog can. this really sucks.

I have been off work since September 8. I am by nature a plow horse - I am ready to answer the bell each moring. I have not had a sick day in years. so the down time is really stressful and frustrating. What is even more frustrating is I left a job I really loved for this one because the money was so good. God, was I naive. Although Hewitt (the company I left) has had its issues as well, I had a great team and a challenging job. I hope this blog will capure the life of a job seeker, and I will do my best to document the ups and downs in hopes that it will benefit the many out of work professionals out there. God bless us all.