Well, I only thought that going back to school was a major lifestyle shift. Little did I know that there are much bigger shifts that can happen, such as, say, losing my job. Yes, I’ve not been posting for the past week because I have been using every spare second searching for a new job. Luckily, I was given plenty of notice, and it isn’t due to poor performance on my part; they are divesting the entire R&D arm of our company and about half of us will be lost in the shuffle.
On a not-so-side note, I finally learned what not having a degree means in terms of job availability. Even though I don’t feel the degree really means you know more (and personally will never hire people as if that were true), a lot of companies weed out potential candidates based on that little piece of paper. Oh, if only this were happening two years from now when I will have finished school.
So, this is a pretty shaky month. I had to start working part-time immediately, which reduces my cash flow quite a bit. I’ve made some big cutbacks already, and have more to make. If by next week I do not have a job, I’m going to have to call creditors and see if they’re willing to give me a break while I find a job. I do have a few prospects, and if worse comes to worst I’ll have to move back home and work fast food or something. So I’m not sweating it too much; worrying about it will not get me anywhere. I am, however, allowing it to motivate me to keep looking for jobs. Unfortunately, out of about 500 jobs I’ve looked over, only 2 seemed appropriate for me.
I’m also at a disadvantage because I won’t be able to make what I’m currently making at a lot of places, without that degree. In a small business, I provide a lot of value. In a large business, I’m just another programmer, and the pay scales accordingly. I’m hoping I can transition into a position that pays what I’m making now, and also pay for school still (or put school on hold for the immediate future).
So, some lessons well learned about life and how it throws you all sorts of curveballs. Don’t worry, I’ll come out of this stronger. I now see even higher levels of importance in being debt free and having plenty of savings stockpiled. That will motivate me to try even harder.
On a side note, I’m not allowed to talk about it in detail yet, but let’s just say that Mint.com is going to be an incredibly awesome tool, and will blow every other finance tool out of the water easily.
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