If you found your way to this article you either lost your job or feel like your job is in danger of going away. You may need to know how to survive without a job temporarily, or it could be a longer stint. Whatever your situation it is possible, but the amount of difficulty you are in store for depends on many factors. Are you supporting a family or are you by yourself? What does your savings look like? How about your expenses, are they overwhelming?
Although everyone is in a unique situation, there are certain steps each of us can take to mitigate the damage of a job loss. It is a scary time, especially these days. you may need to know how to survive without a job for months because of the current economy.
I feel you; I am going through it now myself and it is not easy. To be frank, unemployment sucks. You watch your savings get depleted and you feel your productive days are being wasted. The goal is to hold off any collapse of your life until you can get back on your feet. Follow the below on how to survive without a job and the steps you should take, and it will help ease the pain.
There is No Magic Bullet
You may have come to this post hoping for some secret formula for surviving without a job. As if we can pull pennies from heaven and use them for rent. The truth of the matter is job loss is A) terrible, B) a call to action; there is work to be done and it must be done quickly. The number one thing we need to remember is to act. Hoping things get better while ignoring our bills is not a solution. The steps below are what actions I took (or more accurately am currently taking to survive my job loss).
Before the Job Loss: Plan Ahead
This first step might be a little late for some of you, but the best way to survive a job loss is to plan for it. My hope is I reach a person or two before the inevitable happens. Trust me job loss will happen, sooner or later most of us who are in corporate America will be laid off. Sounds bleak, but I do not know anyone who has not experienced a painful termination.
It is old advice, but it holds true, have at least 3-6 months savings on hand. We need to get serious about this, having cash available is crucial. If you are living paycheck to paycheck, then cancel cable, get rid of your expensive cell phone plan, do anything until you have an emergency fund that you do not touch. It is bizarre how many people cannot live two weeks without a paycheck. Not having an emergency fund limits your options, making you extremely vulnerable.
Pay Down Debt
Once again obvious advice, but a reminder to do everything you can now to get rid of any loans around your neck. The goal is to only have a mortgage and no other debt. Everything else is to be paid off as soon as possible. You need to live like you know you are going to lose your job. Surviving a job loss is much easier when there are fewer bills. The advice will not all be this overt, but you would be surprised how many people do not know these basic steps.
After You Lose Your Job
Once you get called into the office or carted off to human resources this is where the fun begins. I took a day or two to let it sink in, after this I needed a plan of attack. First, you must have the knowledge of where you are and how much money you will need to survive.
Prepare a Budget
This is not I sort of have an idea as to where my money is going, this is more like down to the nickel I know everything that is going out. You need to understand how long you can survive without being thrown into the streets or have your lights turned off.
This may be eye opening, knowing where your money is truly going may make you kick yourself for not starting a budget sooner. Americans on a whole do not realize how much of their cash is being wasted through both small and big leaks. We need to plug these leaks if we are to survive without a job.
Eliminate the Unnecessary
Time to whip out the sharpy and start crossing things off your list of expenses. If things are getting scary, nothing is to remain that is not essential. This includes any kids sporting teams or activities. Cable, Netflix, nothing should be sucking money out of your pocket. Think like the people on extreme cheapskates (the T.V. show). The goal is to buy as much time as possible.
Assess Your Assets
It is time to start looking at your liquid and non-liquid assets. Once again, we are in survival mode, everything is on the table. If it is not involved in keeping things moving forward, then it is a target to be liquidated.
The next step is clear, look at your bank accounts and take stock of your cash and liquid assets. Take every nonretirement account into consideration. You do not want to touch any retirement you have unless you have exhausted all other avenues.
Now that you have both your monthly expenses and your liquid assets you have an idea as to how long you can survive without a job. Is it 6 months, one month, a week; how long can you go until you are on the street? Whatever it is, the quicker you face the reality the quicker you can mitigate some of the consequences.
What Can you Sell?
If it comes to this, you need to know what you can sell quickly to keep yourself afloat. Do not sell things that are essential, like your interview suit or the family car (clearly). Still nothing else is off limits when it comes to survival. Clothes do not really fetch much, electronics can if they are new enough. I know it is not ideal to get rid of your things, but things can be replaced, and we need to buy time. This is (hopefully) temporary, it will get better.
Downgrade When Possible
Our biggest expenses are our cars and home. It is time to look hard at moving into a smaller place away from a big city. Easier said than done if you are in a house with a family, but it should be at least considered. If you are single and paying month to month rent then look into moving into just a room or smaller place in a less desirable location.
This also goes with cars, that BMW should be traded in for a used Kia until you get back on your feet. I may sound like a broken record, but you are trying to survive without a job, survive being the optimal word.
Do Not Skimp on Essentials
It may be tempting to go a few months without health insurance, but this is a terrible idea in my opinion. You are risking your entire future to save some cash (as needed as it may be). The same thing on basic maintenance for your house and car, I know things are tight, but whenever possible assets need to be maintained, so you do not create bigger issues down the road.
Work with Creditors
As a (former) landlord myself, you will be surprised how flexible many of us are in terms of delaying rent payments during difficult times. These days with the disease that shall not be mentioned, many creditors are good at working with people who have experienced job loss. I received a note today from my student loan company saying they will delay my payments in case I became unemployed… I did not have to ask. Do not just stop paying your bills or rent because of some moral outrage, you have obligations that must be fulfilled. The problems associated with this job loss are yours to fix. Most people will work with you to get through these times, creating good will in the process.
Alternative Incomes
We need to get some money coming in after a job loss. Unemployment paid a lot earlier but has tapered off, and rightfully so. Three-hundred dollars a week in unemployment will help a tiny bit, but let us face it, that is peanuts and there is a need for something more substantial. We cannot (and should not) rely on the government to help us, they seldom do anyway.
Surveys/Writing/Focus Groups
I have done focus groups in the past and had success. I usually use the company 20/20 research and was always paid well. One time I made around $500 to be a store secret shopper after the survey. These days many are online so you will not have to leave your home.
Survey sites are technically a way to earn some money, but I find them to be somewhat of a waste of time. I am a member of survey junkie, I have cashed out of it before, but the pay is painfully low. You probably can spend your time doing something better. That being said, if you are doing nothing, it could bring in gas money every month.
If you are a writer, take advantage of sites that will pay you up to $100 for a post. I came across this article here that talks more about the process. Even if you get $50 an article and can write one daily, that is $1500 to hold you over. I believe you should still be able to collect unemployment.
There are plenty of miscellaneous sites to make money online. For example, you can be on a mock jury, cases up to $60/hours’ worth of work. There are sites where you can review books or hook up with someone to deliver groceries. If one looks around, they will find some interesting ways to make a side income on the internet.
Uber/Postmates
I do not know how this will affect any benefits you get, but a lot of people drive for these companies to make spare money. It is good because you can set your own hours, leaving time to interview for a real job in your field of expertise. I understand coming from making close to 6-figures to driving around drunk people might be humbling. This is about surviving without a job; we do what we need to for survival.
Inventory/Night Work
I see a lot of night jobs out there for part-time packers or warehouse workers. The pay is not great, and sometimes either are the hours, but it can help you float by until you can find employment. What is good about these jobs is that you work them at night, therefore you can interview during the day. It is difficult to find the time to job hunt when working a normal schedule. There is the bonus of not having to see anyone you know, if you are like me this time is a bit embarrassing and you do not want to run into someone from your past.
Assess (and Use) Your Skills
Do have any abilities that you can pimp out? If you are a handy man go on to local Facebook groups and mention your services. You can also use sites like Taskrabbit (link included) to hook up with someone looking for help. Lastly one can advertise their online services at Fivvar, which matches online tasks to people that can perform them (pay starts at $5, but you can ask for more).
One thing you should have a lot more of now is time. Take advantage of this, as we get older we do not always try to learn new skills. There are many places that help you become an expert in various expertise. I currently use Skillshare, the cost is about $99 for a year, but the first year was discounted to $60. There is also strive , but this is a lot more expensive. The point is to gain some marketable skills which you can turn into a supplemental income.
Start a Side Hustle
Everyone should have a side hustle that with a little work can be used to replace your income down the road. This is not something that will automatically help you survive without a job, it takes time to learn how to do any business correctly. Still, since you have more time on your hands this is when to start throwing ideas out there to see what sticks. This way during your next period of unemployment you are not in survival mode or coming from a place of desperation.
A few money-making ideas are things such as learning to blog, setting up a shop on Amazon or eBay. If you do not want to sit in front of a computer you can become a handyman, help people move etc. In the future, when you have money again, you can learn how to buy and sell rental properties to have a stream of cash coming in. Whatever it is, get good at it so you are no longer at the whim of a useless human resources department for your standard of living.
How to Survive Without a Job: What Not to Do
I think I touched on all the major points when you experience a job loss. There are also things I believe you should not do unless they are necessary. Do not destroy your future to take care of your present. Make the hard decisions, like getting rid of assets and downgrading as opposed to taking the more comfortable route.
- Do not Touch Your Retirement: It may be tempting to raid your 401K and you may not have a choice, but it is a horrible idea to do this. I am divorced and childless, personally I will live on the streets (the tent cities are getting nice) rather than raid my future. I understand if you have kids and a family this is difficult, just make sure there are other options before sacrificing your future. You may think you will make it back later, but you will not.
- Do Not Just Stop Paying Things: Unless you want your credit to be decimated than do not just stop paying your bills. If you make payments in good faith, you may be able to keep your credit score relatively intact. If you just do not pay people, the bills will pile up and you can find yourself on the street.
- Do Not Cancel Insurance (or get some): I mentioned this earlier, but it bears repeating. These days health insurance is a must. One accident or illness and you can end up in bankruptcy. I lost my health insurance when I lost my job, but there are some decent plans out there for not too much money, especially if you are healthy. These can help you get through this difficult time without adding too much risk.
Conclusion: How to Survive Without a Job
As mentioned, there is no magic bullet to surviving without a job. You must work at moving things forward if you want to be successful. You must take action and do what is needed. It is easy to curl up in a ball and not face your problems, but you will regret it. There is the old saying “This too will pass,” just keep working at finding a job while doing the above and you will get through this.