February 2009
46 posts
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JOB SITES FLOURISH (NOT SO SHOCKING).
Some not-so-shocking news from Cynthia Turner’s Digital Cynopsis, nevertheless extremely relevant to our lives and numbers are fun. Two things to add quickly: Monster should see a bump in February post-super bowl commercials. I’m curious to see just how much that jump is considering the extravagant price of the airtime. Secondly, where is LinkedIn on this list? Was it not up for...
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INBOX 405: THE QUEEN OF SUPERMARKET SALES.
Dear 405,
Ever since I got laid off I have become the queen of supermarket sales… now that i have some time on my hands I’ve really gotten into it! Most people think that it’s hard but it’s really not. First thing first…. You have to sign up and get the newspaper. Dont worry this is considered a tax deduction just save the subscription receipt....
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TIME OUT NEW YORK, SAVE MONEY.
No need to sacrifice a good time with tasty food and beverage just to save a few bucks. We recommend taking a look at Time Out New York’s 2009 Stimulus Plan full of money saving suggestions from cheap eats, to extended happy hours, lists for the best club, best cheap vintage stores, international restaurants under $50, and way more. My father always told me some of his best memories in...
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WatchKEEP YOUR CHIN-UPS.
It’s no secret that those feeling the crunch are cutting back. Whether it’s buying less shoes, taking less taxis, going out less, or giving up HBO, everyone’s cutting back in their own way (ohmygov’s recession cutbacks chart). Let this post serve as the strongest of suggestions to not cut back by cancelling your gym membership, especially if...
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NEW YORK STATE, #24.
Although we’ve already touched on the subject, it still might come as a surprise to you that $405 per week ranks New York State 24/51 (including Washington D.C.) in unemployment payout benefits. [Don’t live in New York State, or just want to see the full list of maximum weekly unemployment payouts? Check it out here.] This is all in spite of the fact that New York State is ranked in the top ten,...
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WatchTHE 405 CLUB MERCHANDISE IS NOW AVAILABLE.
We’ve linked up with Zazzle to produce our debut Spring/Summer 2009 line. Here’s a preview, with more to come. Visit the store here, or go through the “SHOP” link in our header. If you’re new to The 405 Club and would like to submit designs for our merchandise, please contact us.
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A GOOD GAME PLAN FOR A BAD ECONOMY.
Were you recently laid-off? Do you think there’s a chance you may be laid-off? If you answered yes to either of these questions, read this WSJ article.
-By Ryan Schramm, Contributing Writer & Member
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OPTOMEN TV DOCUMENTARY WANTS TO HEAR FROM YOU.
Optomen Productions, an international television production company with offices in New York and London, is developing a documentary on the effects of being laid off and strategies people are using to try to find new employment in this turbulent economy. Information about the project is online at www.mylaidofflife.net.
The television documentary project, My Laid Off Life, is a feature...
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NYT Article: For Uninsured Young Adults,...
If you’re checking out our site, your pockets are probably not getting fatter. You’re not the only one. This New York Times Article explains that more and more young adults, either unemployed or whose employers do not provide health insurance plans, are opting out of health insurance all together. Sometimes, this leads to the dangerous practice of self-diagnosis, and self-administered...
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FILING FOR UNEMPLOYMENT BENEFITS SOON? USE THE...
We all know how much banks love to nickel-and-dime their clients. Well this time they have sunk to a new low. It seems laid-off workers are being charged fees to make withdrawals from their unemployment benefits debit cards. Just another reason to use direct deposit for your unemployment checks.
The Associated Press has the story.
-By Ryan Schramm, Contributing Writer & Member
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“I’m currently unemployed and I’m looking for some extra cash. I don’t have many...”
– HOW NOT TO USE CRAIGSLIST TO FIND A JOB.
Optimistic Craigslist ad posted by synecdoche.
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TELL YOUR STORY TO THE NEW YORK TIMES.
Some of our regular followers have probably noticed that as early as two weeks after our launch, we started receiving requests from various publications and broadcasters to help them find people interested in telling their stories. Each has focused on a different angle of the 405 lifestyle, from your typical humanitarian piece i.e. follow the progress of a few people recently laid off workers, to...
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WatchDON’T STOP, BE-LEARNIN’.
In our “Journey” of unemployment we must not forget to continue learning new skills. With so many new technologies, hardware, software, and functional web sites joining the cyberworld everyday it’s important for us to stay ahead of the curve, helping us to not only find employment, but to thrive in it once acheived.
I bring this to the proverbial table because I’m very...
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STIMULUS X UNEMPLOYMENT.
Our friends over at Unemploymentality have summarized the effect Obama’s Stimulus Plan will have on us, the unemployed. Thanks for the great post guys!
“On this President’s Day, we celebrate our current Commander in Chief, who will today sign the $787 billion economic stimulus package. Let’s take a quick look at how it’ll help those of us who are relying on our unemployment checks to...
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10 WAYS TO FIND A JOB USING LINKEDIN.
Over the past couple months LinkedIn has practically been my home page. Not only have we extended The 405 Club network there, I’ve tried to extend my own network by InMailing, updating my information, etc. And while I’ve thought my searches and efforts were sufficient, I recently came across an article from Guy Kawasaki’s blog that proved to me I could be utiziling this...
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WatchO BROTHER, HOW UNEMPLOYED ART THOU?
Above is a video production from our newest member in the unemployment club, Steve Proffitt. Be sure to check him out at Nicejob Media.
“I’ve created nicejobmedia.blogspot.com while I am seeking employment. For the past six years, I’ve been the senior producer for NPR’s Day to Day. Sadly, the program was canceled as part of a response...
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HAPPY VALENTINE'S DAY FROM THE 405 CLUB.
Oh man, it’s here. The day we’re supposed to woo our partners, reminding them of the love shared; Valentine’s Day. Even if you’re cooking at home for your loved one as I am, it’s still going to cost a bit of that hard earned $405. The New York Times has already written an article about how the sting of layoffs is sharper for men and that’s none more...
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RECESSION FILES #5.
Our newest recession-friendly...
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POSH SPICES & DRINKS HALVED.
Our good friends over at PinkSlipsAreTheNewBlack caught a great deal in NYC: “Well if I could afford to eat out, let alone eat, this would be really awesome. Since a lot of people are in the same boat as moi, restaurants across NYC have drastically cut prices, which I imagine is some kind of a first.
For example, if you want to go to celeb chef Tom Colicchio’s Craftsteak restaurant in the...
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TECH SAAVY? HERE'S A FREE CAR.
I’ve discovered a solution to our transportation fare crisis. From our friend rickyv:
Most of my friends live in New York and thus don’t drive cars. But for those of you who do, my friend Aaron is recruiting people for a big marketing project (not a scam, promise). Description:
Basically, we’re looking for young, digital and content savvy people, who would like to have a free car for 6...
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NOT SO TURBO-TAX.
With nothing but free time, this is a good opportunity to do your own taxes. Rather than doing the mad dash to H&R Block on April 14th, now is a good time to sit down with the 1040 and learn what all those boxes with numbers in them actually mean. The New York Times has a great primer on the basic IRS forms. It also has an article called 10 Tips for Taxpayers Hit by the Recession.
If...
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THE MADOFF MAP-OFF.
At this point we all know about Bernard Madoff and his ponzi scheme. Leave it to someone on this grand old interweb to generate an interactive map comprised of all of Madoff’s victims [here]. I believe my alma mater’s endowment (Tufts University) should also be on this map. Ouch. This definitely isn’t helping anyone get a new job.
-By Garrett Dale, Founding Member
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GAME OFF.
From our new stat friendly, layoff reporter affiliate Layoff Blog: “The economic axe keeps falling, with news today that Sega/Sammy Holdings intends to lay off 560 jobs and close 110 amusement facilities as part of its readjusted projected forecast for the year. GameDaily reports that voluntary redundancies will account for the 560 planned layoffs, which totals roughly one sixth of the overall...
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THE LAUGHS ARE FREE.
From Broke-Ass Stuart, one of our newest comical yet informational frugal affiliates - check him out: “Going to free stand up comedy shows is like trying to swallow pills made for horses: sometimes it goes well, other times it just doesn’t and you want to die. About a year ago I went to a small standup show in a backroom the size of a refrigerator and sat on the backseat of an old...
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DR LOVE.
That’s right fellow 405ers, Duane Reade’s celebrating Valentine’s day with a 20% off sale. Nothing sweeps a loved one off his or her feet like a discount on cosmetics, deoderant, shampoo, snacks, milk, and all the advil he or she could ever want! Share the love [here].
-By Garrett Dale, Founding Member
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AMERICAN TRASH RESPONDS TO THE RECESSION.
While unemployed you tend to walk more than you used to getting around New York City. The fare for the subway or bus used to seem like the cheap option, now 20+ blocks seems walkable. The good news is that now while you’re walking you can find great deals for lunch specials, happy hours, etc, like at the Uppereastside bar American Trash whom I passed by this evening showing a little love...
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REMINDER: CLAIM YOUR WEEKLY UNEMPLOYMENT BENEFITS...
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MTV TRUE LIFE: I CAN'T AFFORD MY LIFESTYLE.
One of the producers from MTV’s True Life reached out to us and we wanted to help spread the word about her show idea “I Can’t Afford My Lifestyle (after the economy crunch/lay offs)”. Apparently THE 405 CLUB is a goldmine for said situation - who would have thunk it? I kid. So here’s the premise, and reach out to us if you’re interested…
Were you...
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SENATORS REACH DEAL ON STIMULUS.
From The Daily Beast: “After a long day on Capitol Hill featuring stimulus bill rewrites, heated exchanges, and frustration on both sides of the aisle, senators agreed on a $780 billion version of the stimulus tonight and will vote formally some time this weekend. The day began with the announcement that nearly 600,000 US jobs disappeared in January. By morning, a memorandum circulated the...
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RUN NYC.
From our affiliate PinkSlipsAreTheNewBlack: “Not terribly shocking for anyone that’s ever lived here, but the Center for an Urban Future just released a report about how the “middle class” is leaving NYC in record numbers.
Even when I did have “a good job” I still felt like I was living paycheck to paycheck and it was nearly impossible to save money. Now is an entirely different story…but...
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WatchCLUSTERSTOCK’S “CNBC: THE WHOLE COUNTRY NEEDS A BONG BREAK.”
While Michael Phelps takes the heat from Kellogs and all of the swimming associations, apparently it’s free game to joke about bong hits on a CNBC finance show. That being said, he’s probably right - the market is horrible, as we all know here.
-By Garrett Dale, Founding Member
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STIMULUS VS UNEMPLOYMENT.
Tonight I came upon an interesting comparison between the pending Stimulus Bill and the amount of unemployed Americans. The chart above is in response to Senator Thune’s public disapproval with the president’s Stimulus Bill judged on the basis of how high the number of dollars would be if you stacked them on top of each other. Josh Marshall from Talking Points Memo decided to compare...
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WatchOUR VERY OWN JANET FALK.
See Janet Falk 1:35 into this video from Fox 5 News among other 405ers (whether they know the term or not, yet) as they mingle and trade resumes among the fallen wall street lay off victims and recruiters. More info here.
-By Garrett Dale, Founding Member
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THE NOT-SO OFFICIAL UNEMPLOYMENT GUIDE VISUAL.
via
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TURNS OUT FLEEING COUNTRY WON'T HELP YOU FIND A...
Now that I can scratch out plan B of fleeing the country if I haven’t found a job in the next few months, I ask myself, are we all overreacting? The folks at EconomicPic Data today published a very interesting post on the unemployment rate by country according to the CIA’s world fact book. By comparison, the United States’ unemployment rate of 7.2% (December 2008) is low compared...
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I WANT THE FREE COFFEE.
Listen up NYC, throughout the month of February you can drink coffee, for free. You’ve probably eliminated your Starbucks craving by now or at least put it in somewhat of a remission, but now you don’t have to! It may not be Starbucks, but it’s F-R-E-E.
SeamlessWeb (apparently trying to rival Fresh Direct) is giving away the cups of joe as a promo, but who the heck cares...
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UNEMPLOYMENT HAIKUS.
Perhaps a little poetic & free entertainment to lighten the mood?
My Second Career
This Economy
Will Work For Salary
Gave Up Luxuries
And many more at Unemployment Haikus Weekly.
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WE WANT WORK, TWO.
One of our LinkedIn members, PR Specialist Janet Falk, brought to our attention a group founded in 2002 of motivated unemployed job hunters such as ourselves who referred to their cause as “WeWantWork.com.” The group of 70 were able to market themselves as go-getters, efficiently hitting the streets of Manhattan doing everything from passing out fliers urging New Yorker’s to...
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REORGANIZATION: SYNONYMOUS WITH?
According to Folio, Chicago-based publisher Johnson, known for Ebony and Jet Magazines, is going through a “multi-phase” restaffing organization where the employees will be able to reapply for jobs within the company. Whoa, whoa, whoa, wait a tick here. I feel like I’ve heard this one before. Restructuring = Termination, right? While companies in the past have previously...
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FREE & LEGAL MUSIC DOWNLOADS.
As the music industry lay off victim/representative of THE 405 CLUB, this one is right up my proverbial alley. I got this one guys. I recently stumbled upon an article from downloadsquad.com’s Lee Mathews who compiled over 35 sites to download free music, legally [here]. While this definitely won’t help my former industry (in the short term that is - long term is debatable), which...