State Unemployment Information

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Get the latest information Unemployment rose in 30 states in January from December, evidence that jobs remain scarce in most regions of the country. What’s your opinion of this?

Get the latest info A nearly $140 billion bill to extend unemployment benefits and a host of expiring tax cuts cleared a procedural hurdle Tuesday in the Senate on a vote of 66-34, setting up passage of the bill possibly later in the day. Please leave your thoughts

Looking at the list of “hot careers” for the twenty-first century, you may at first feel a little surprised to see “college professor” coming-in at number 3. Information technology leads the list, and health care follows close on its heels, but careers in higher education rank third-considerably higher than ever before. Although preparation for academic life demands commitment to considerable study beyond the Bachelor’s degree, working as a tenured professor holds considerable advantages over professional jobs that require similar academic preparation.

Consider, for example, a professor’s work schedule: In a traditional setting, a professor conducts class and office hours approximately fifteen hours per week for 32 weeks of the year. With approximately the same education, and attorney works 100 hours per week every week of the year. Just as importantly, a professor receives incentives and encouragement to write and publish, and the publications naturally supplement the professor’s already substantial income. Professors who write textbooks typically earn six figures in annual royalties; twenty-first century professors who write texts for netbooks will earn even more money from royalties and downloads.

Especially if you stand on the threshold of earning an undergraduate degree in any of the humanities, you seriously should consider continuing your education to a doctorate and joining the professors’ ranks. If you attend a traditional four-year university, note how many of your instructors are in the fifties and sixties. Then, ask yourself who will replace them when they retire. Why not you?

Never think of money as an obstacle. Federally sponsored graduate fellowships abound, and the National Endowment for the Humanities supports many doctoral candidates as they complete their dissertations. The universities themselves support graduate students with research and teaching assistantships, and most of them supplement government grants with fellowships of their own.

Job loss is the most unpleasant word combination in the English language. It is not only painful, but is also scary and spiritually uncomfortable. If you are currently coping with a job loss, your anger and horror are certainly understandable. However, as you deal with your temporary ordeal, it is important that you are aware of certain actions that must be avoided at all cost.

Never Play the Blame Game

The easiest and yet worse thing that you can do is to blame others for your job loss. It’s impractical and unproductive. Instead, except that it has happened, and try to be as introspective and as levelheaded as humanly possible. Don’t make excuses, blame your circumstances, race, or religion. Don’t take your sadness and frustration out on others; especially if they are in no way connected to your misfortune.. Come to terms with your job loss, and give yourself the peace of mind that losing your job is not the end of the world.

Never Retaliate Against Your Employer

Coping with job loss is not just about how to manage your life after being stripped of your employment. It is also dealing with the idea that your boss no longer wants your service, or can no longer afford to pay you. For many people, the boss is often characterized as a callous, inconsiderate, and worthless idiot whose only intent is to control and make life difficult for his or her subordinates. Conversely, there are some bosses who are unsung heroes, and are loved and revered by many. Whether your former boss is Mother Teresa or Darth Theta, never retaliate. Graciously pack your belongings and leave the premises. If your job loss was due to cutbacks, make certain to leave on friendly terms. Unbeknownst to you, your boss may have you in mind for future projects with the company that will ultimately provide you with huge dividends in the future. So, always try to think along those grounds.

Never Lose Hope

One thing you never ever want to do after a job loss is to lose hope. It’s a destructive attitude with negative consequences. Try to look at your job loss for what it really is. It’s an opportunity for better things to come. Nobody dies nor loses their soul after a job loss. It’s not a death sentence, nor is it a threat against your loved-ones. It’s a chaotic and painful episode that is also liberating. So, think of all the things that you’ve always wanted to do in life, but weren’t able to due to lack of time at work. Be excited that you can now pursue your dreams, and take every worthwhile advantage of your free time.

Never Behave Impulsively

The first thing that most people do while coping with a job loss is to rush down to the first advertised local job fair that they happen to read about. On the surface, this may appear to be a good response, but it rarely is. The reason is that those who respond in this fashion usually don’t reflect on where they are after losing their jobs. Instead, they only focus on where they are not; which is back behind their desks at their former workplace. They rush to find the first job that will place them on an employment roster. They don’t take the time to make a decision about what they really want to do, and where they wish to be. It is better to take some time to relax, and be put the situation in perspective. Then, once you are clear-minded, you can behave in a more proactive manner.

Never Be a Victim

There are many questions that we ask ourselves when things happen to us that we don’t approve of. Why me? Why does this always happen to me? Why not someone else? It is very normal to ponder why certain bad things happen, but it is often ineffective and psychologically hazardous. Instead focus on these questions. Why not me? Why didn’t this happen to me sooner? Why someone else? In the words of popular television evangelist Joel Osteen, “Be a victor, not a victim.”