How am I supposed to make money

[traillius]

I don’t have money to take any classes, or even start most businesses. I haven’t worked full time in almost 3.5 years. I don’t have business experience. How am I supposed to make money? Without making money, anything else I try to do to fix my marriage is useless and wasted. My unemployment is halfway done.

 

[St_Francis]

Tye good news is you still have half of tour unemployment so things are not yet dire

Make a list of things you can do and see if any of them are the sort of thing you can work doing by putting up signs (home repair and maintenance, lawn stuff, things like that. Look in Craigslist for your area to see what people are wanting, and also for work (general labor and specialized in your area).

If you have an idea for a small business, call the Small Business Administration. They have volunteers who help people in your situation.

Find out how to use the internet for job-searching if you don’t know. Things like linked-In, etc.

If you can write, start a blog and add to it regularly.

Volunteer (library, meals-on-wheels, schools) so that you have something recent on your resume.

These are just a few hints–hopefully others will add more.

 

[WKW_69]

Have you consulted with the unemployment office to see if you qualify for job retraining? You also may qualify for Federal and State education grants at a local community college for vocational training. Contact the colleges financial aid office and school counselors.

 

[decjlc]

This is not a spam post; I promise. If you need some extra money, there are telecommuting jobs available. Check out the telecommuting folder on wahm.com for job leads. You’ll also find information on scams, bad companies, etc. there. You probably won’t find anything immediately–sometimes it takes several months or longer–but when/if you do, it can help fill in the income gap until you find something more stable.

 

[Cat]

I think it’s sad that in the United States, anyone has to ask this question.

It used to be that if someone wanted to work, there was plenty of work, and if someone was willing to start at the bottom and work hard, they would move up in pay.

Now…traillius isn’t the only one who has no clue where to start. It’s so sad, and I’m not sure what we can do to get out of this mess in the U.S.

traillius, my suggestion to you is to start SOMEWHERE, at the very bottom of whatever job you can get. Did you know that 1/5 of all the people in the United States have worked at a McDonald’s at some point in their lives? Why not start there, or at whatever little eating place exists in your town or city?

Every little job that you do successfully will add to a portfolio of work that you can use to climb up out of unemployment. If you go to a “big” employer with no portfolio, you aren’t likely to be offered a full-time job. But if you can bring a portfolio of little jobs that you have been doing over many months, that is impressive.

Remember what Jesus taught, that we must be faithful in little things before expecting the big things.

Good luck to you.

 

[Avocadomom]

I think it’s sad that in the United States, anyone has to ask this question.

It used to be that if someone wanted to work, there was plenty of work, and if someone was willing to start at the bottom and work hard, they would move up in pay.

Now…traillius isn’t the only one who has no clue where to start. It’s so sad, and I’m not sure what we can do to get out of this mess in the U.S.

traillius, my suggestion to you is to start SOMEWHERE, at the very bottom of whatever job you can get. Did you know that 1/5 of all the people in the United States have worked at a McDonald’s at some point in their lives? Why not start there, or at whatever little eating place exists in your town or city?

Every little job that you do successfully will add to a portfolio of work that you can use to climb up out of unemployment. If you go to a “big” employer with no portfolio, you aren’t likely to be offered a full-time job. But if you can bring a portfolio of little jobs that you have been doing over many months, that is impressive.

Remember what Jesus taught, that we must be faithful in little things before expecting the big things.

Good luck to you.

Totally agree. Start somewhere. Apply at fast food restaurants, pizza parlors, Home Depot, the grocery store, coffee shops, gas stations, convenience stores… Anywhere. There ARE jobs available.

In fact, I was just hiring for my husband’s office, a $20 an hour admin job. Guess what? I eliminated about 90% of the applicants right off the bat because they either did not follow directions (i.e. did not include a requested cover letter), or had egregious grammar, spelling or formatting errors in their cover letters and resumes. Just putting together a VERY nice cover letter (that is specific to the job for which you are applying AND details how you can benefit the company, referencing the ad and pointing out your qualifications) will put you miles ahead of the pack. Miles.

Best of luck. Remember, (almost) all work is honorable.

 

[Sunbreak]

Put up a flyer in the local laundromat, grocery stores or other places that have a bulletin board and list odd jobs you can do. You can do yard work, dog walking and other such things. Also, if you are near a medical university, look to see if there are any paid studies (they often use healthy people in studies as well as those with certain illnesses). You can sell your blood plasma in most large cities. If you have a car you can start a grocery delivery business. Even if you just have a bicycle you can do a delivery business (people are already doing this in Portland, Oregon and Seattle, WA). Look around and see if there’s anything you have that you can sell on ebay or craigslist or have a garage sale. If you have some skill you can teach a class to other people or tutor. How about a paper route?

 

[bisco]

what were you doing before you got laid off?

 

[Winter_Warlock_1]

Traillius,

I am sorry you are faced with this, my prayers go out to you and your family. There is an personality test: jung personality test, you can find several sites with it if you search. There are about 50 – 75 multiple choice questions that if you answer truthfully will tell you your personality type and the type of careers best suited for you.

Once you think you found a vocation that you would like, check into community collages if you have no collage classes yet. Talk to a councilor about scholarships, grants, no interest loans that do not need to be paid until (or started to be paid) until you graduate. Go online and search for grants in the field that you are interested in.

There are always those out there that are willing to help – and it seems that you have a desire to learn and even more so to work. So even if you have to take a boring / not paid as much / mundane job, it will at least show potential future employers that you have the desire and motivation to work hard.

May God grant you peace and strength during these troubling times.

Winter