You lost your job. How soon will you start looking for a new one?

Yes, I heard in the news that a lot of people in the US are looking for jobs. Here in the Philippines these business process outsourcing companies look for new CSRs by the hundreds every day. Many apply but many also fail because of not being good in enough in English. So, it's an industry constantly looking for people, and I have one man sitting at home not jumping at the chance. He can get in very, very easily because he is skilled, and more importantly, experienced. I have heard stories of certain Americans expressing ill feelings towards such jobs being outsourced to countries like ours, and really, I can't blame them. It's just that these companies prefer to outsource the jobs to save money.

That's very interesting. I don't think they would hire Americans. The cost of living is so expensive here. $350.00 a month would not even pay rent for a small apartment. These companies are saving a ton of money by outsourcing work to your people. Here, someone earning that much a week would be considered to be in the low income bracket.

Sorry for the duplicate post. It always happen when I'm using a mobile. Btw, to add something up, I've also lost my job because the account was dissolved. What a coincidence. Are you sure you're not my wife? ;)

So, you are a CSR, too! Actually, Tan did say he didn't feel like being a CSR anymore. For the past 11 months he's been working the day shift and when he gets a position at a new company, he will most definitely get a night shift. That's what I think, he's not in the mood yet. But when will he be in the mood? His last pay is going to be used up soon, and for December I will have to solely shoulder the bills--rent, electricity, water, phone, internet, laundry, groceries. There is an immediate need for him to start working ASAP, so I am frustrated as to why he is not doing it yet. I think the other day he said "Oh, it's already the fifteenth? And I'm still jobless." I replied with "Yes, so many days have already been wasted." He said sorry.

LOL, yes, I am not your wife. :-)

That's what I think should be done, too. Go find another one the very next day. I just think no time should be wasted sulking and feeling bad. I admire you because even if things went badly, you just kept on going. it took you a while to find a new job then, but you just went ahead and kept looking. I'm sorry to hear about your girlfriend. I understand that rejection, termination, or being laid off is a painful experience. I just think we should deal with it by moving and not staying put in that rejected, terminated, or laid of state. The sooner we find another job, the sooner we'll feel better about ourselves.

I agree 100% with Kat on this. I don't think it is good to enable them to give in to their depression. It is a blow to the ego to get fired or lose a job but I can't feel it is healthy to sit around and dwell on it. I got fired once and I was devastated as I did not understand why. My boyfriend at the time was very sympathetic but he also built me up with words like "you have a lot to offer...forget this guy..it's his loss..etc." I was a single mom and really didn't have the time to sit around feeling bad about it. I NEEDED to work or we would not eat or have a place to live. I guess it's good that I didn't have someone willing to support me until my bruised ego healed. Kat's husband has a skill that is in demand in his country. There are people all over the world that would give anything to find a job right now. Here is a man with skills and job offers galore and sitting home?

He mentioned he didn't feel like being a call center agent. He mentioned desire to work at home. However such a change will put us in a difficult situation. He has nothing much planned out. If he was still working and planning out a career change, then the shift wouldn't be so hard. I suggested for him to work in a call center and further study work at home options. If he already is certain that working at home is stable enough, then he can quit the office job. But no, he wants to explore work at home options, starting from scratch, earning nothing as he is trying to plan things out. While it is true that a career is something that has to be thought about thoroughly, some people just do not have the luxury of time to think about it while not working at the same time. Maybe he is not contented with being just an employee. So, he's thinking of being his own boss. How long before he can establish himself as a self-employed professional is uncertain. I'm all about certainty here, that's why I am comfortable with being an employee. Add to that the fact that I like my job. I know I should give him time. I've given him three weeks now. I know he won't start job hunting until mid-week next week because he has something planned out with friends. Maybe he won't look next week at all. Maybe he'll continue tinkering around his PC and looking for whatever things when he can just walk into any call center and get hired in one day. All that time earning nothing.

I see.. Some things does need some planning before trying a different thing altogether. On the other hand, your Tan is exploring work at home options and, as you said, starting from scratch, so it's better than actually not doing anything at all. Your suggestion isn't bad either yet he did say that he didn't feel like being a call center agent so considering his opinion on the matter, it's ultimately up to him. It seems that he does have that kind of luxury when it comes to time and it seems so that your Tan isn't content with being an employee for he is actually initiating on his path on being self-employed. If you cannot sway him into what you deem to be certain, perhaps you can somehow support him on his new point of view so that you can also share your point of view on the matter. Be subtle with your opinions to avoid unnecessary arguments. Well, if you need to choose, something that you can really earn from but you don't enjoy or something that you really enjoy a lot regardless on how much it can actually earn you, I guess your Tan is starting to follow what Confucius said, Choose a job you love and you will never have to work a day in your life. which I think you also follow as well as a teacher who teaches English to English learners. (^_^ )

I guess it is really quite unfair of me to think he will react to a job loss the same way I would. If it were me, I'd be looking for a job ASAP. I think he is still trying to recover from it, but how long will it take? If we had heaps of money, like what you said, then the procrastination wouldn't be a problem. But we don't. Already I am calculating the bills for next month which I might have to solely shoulder.

Actually, Kat, you are NOT being unfair at all. We all have lost jobs at one time or another and suffered the blows to egos. Those of us who don't have someone like you to pull our weight along with your own, well, we have no choice but to go right out and start looking for work right away. I, personally, can't afford to take even a couple of hours off of my job without seriously compromising my budget. I would have to be right out peddling myself ..it'd be survival.

I wish he thinks the way you do. We are not in a financial situation wherein we can afford not earning anything for 3 weeks. He knows that. He knows I'm gonna have to pay for everything next month. He knows I also have to allot a big part of my salary for family. He knows it's only I who's been paying for groceries the past three weeks. So I am frustrated as to why he is insisting on looking for online jobs and not walking into a company and getting hired when it could be so easy. We don't even have unemployment benefits this side of the world. Good for you that your job is relatively stable.

For Tan and his associates, nobody saw it coming. I guess they're still trying to get over the shock. These people he used to work with are also not working yet, when every single one of them could've just walked into any call center and get hired the next day. I guess there are just some people like us who won't want to waste time, and some who would like to take a break for a few weeks.

Yes, that's what I think should be done, too.

I guess a few days of rest won't be bad. Or a week. But it's now been three weeks and I am starting to be alarmed.

Exactly. There is a need for Tan to start working immediately, as we have bills to pay. What frustrates me is the fact that he could walk in to any call center and be hired the same day, and he doesn't do that. The first week he was jobless was okay. The second week came and went. And not it's Friday, November 18th, and three weeks have past. Sometimes he says things like "I should go and look for a job." But he busies himself with online task-based jobs which will earn him little. Rest and relaxation would be nice since he and I started working in our teens and we were never really in between jobs. Maybe he wants a month of R and R, too. Maybe I'm just resentful because I am working and he is not. But I can't help but wonder how long he'd want his R and R to last.

Do you not have a need to work? Are you being financially supported by family? You go job hunting with years in intervals and stay in the said jobs for just a short time. That is basically not a normal thing for an adult to do. How do you spend your time? What do you do? Even if there was no need to work, I still think people should find jobs to earn their own money. I have one friend whose family is so rich she need not work. She could just go out every day with friends and take trips. Adn yet, at the time we met, she was working two jobs! She was an online English teacher and a chef. The money she earns is nothing compared to the money she receives from her father, but still she works hard and works well. Unfortunately, I am one of those who do not understand you. Honestly, I have a certain dislike of people who do not work.

Thanks for this, he is actually expressing interest in doing work-at-home online jobs, as he registered in Odesk and also a site for teaching English to Japanese students. I will check out your site and tell him about it. Actually, I've joined a variety of sites and I tell him a lot about MyLot to encourage him to try out these online money-making sites.

He is looking at those online jobs at Odesk and is discussing other online work opportunities with his friends. However, I already expressed my feelings about that to him. Since he is just starting out, he cannot expect to earn much from those online jobs. If we are to sustain are way of living, he will need to have a regular job in an office. You know it's very easy for people who speak English to just walk into a call center and get hired. That is what I am expecting him to do. Find a regular job and then work on these online jobs on the side. I told him not to expect online jobs as a primary source of income. However, that what he is doing so it's getting me frustrated. He has also complained about being bored, which made me even more annoyed.

That's why I'm frustrated---I can't seem to understand why that power to start job hunting is something that doesn't seem to be present in him right now. If he is trying to enjoy this time, then he shouldn't be complaining about being bored. He did that yesterday. Complained he had nothing to do because his computer broke down and I just got so annoyed I could've said 'If you had a job, you wouldn't be so bored!" But I didn't. Now our food budget is solely coming from me, as we are trying not to spend his last pay so he could use it for job hunting. He's busying himself with online jobs and I already told him that I'd rather he look for a regular job in an office, rather than these task-based, low-paying online jobs because he wouldn't earn enough from them since he's just starting out. I want him to work in an office and have these online jobs on the side.

I think it's good you were made to take a course in preparation for a job loss. I'm guessing it's mainly about to boost people's confidence that they can get over the hard times. Tan sometimes shows sadness over his job loss by scrimping on things, like suggesting a really cheap dinner, or suggesting we download a movie instead of watching it at the theaters. But I think that for him to start feeling good again, he should start working. He's always been the type to want to accomplish things.

I know that I should support him and show him I believe in him, but suggesting to a man that he should go out looking for a job is hurtful to his ego. I already told him once that I would rather that he look for a regular job at a company rather than focus on online jobs, but we ended up arguing.

That is also how I would react if I lost my job. I am wondering, why wait? When you start sending applications, processing may take several days as well. So it's best to send out applications ASAP. You are right, there are bills to pay, and not working for half a month will cause problems. At this rate, he will probably not get employed until December, and he will probably not get his first pay before Christmas.

Good for you then, if that's the case. Unfortunately, it is not the same for us. We won't be in debt, but we're going to have to make some adjustments.