“When life gives you a dilemma, make dilemonade,” says Danny Tanner of the popular 80’s sitcom Full House. Words to live by, they are.  Albeit a little cheesy, the message is extremely relatable to us, the downsized.  I was recently reading an article on yourhrguy.com, one of the best human resources blogs (according to the Fist of Talent rankings [here], which touched on 15 resources that give hope and help to the unemployed; Much to my chagrin, The 405 Club was included in the article (thank you again Lance for your kind words).

I’ve loved following the comments on this article.  For instance, here’s a response from an unemployed mother that just breaks my heart:

Thanks for the tips for help if you are unemployed. I worked for a company for 5 years and was let go last May. Iam a single mother and did very well income wise in sales. I have applied for all the things you mentioned but seem to fall through the cracks. I had a eighty thousand dollar salary and now my unemployment checks run $290.00 a week and I get $400.00 a month for child support. I was denied food stamps and medicade because I make too much money with unemployment and childsupport. The only help I got that wasn’t through family and friends was the Salvation Army helped pay half of my electric bill and since I got that I am not able to recieve any more finicial help through any community program. Iam now homeless and my daughter and I are living with a friend that just told me that her husband is not happy with the arrangment. What Iam suppose to do? I look at the money I made the past 5 years that paid for food stamps and medical care for people who were labled poverty. Yet somehow I am not able to recieve these benefits that I helped pay for. What makes me soo mad is my daughter is effected by this and does not understand why we can not go home!

I truly hope she can get some support in the future and even get back into the workforce.  It’s tough reading stories like that, yet it reminds me time and time again how important it is for support networks like The 405 Club to exist.

Fortunately, not all unemployment stories are as somber.  Career Coach Dave Kashen echoes these sentiments with his reply to the article:

Being unemployed can be a great opportunity to assess what you REALLY want out of life – what’s your purpose, what matters to you – and emerge empowered to create the life and career you want. While I know how hard it can be to justify spending any more than you have to during this tough period, investing in a personal coach or workshop can really help get you unstuck and moving powerfully toward what you want in your life. Most importantly, shifting your perspective on being unemployed from a setback to an opportunity will give you a renewed sense of focus and energy to get what you want – a job you LOVE, starting your own business, taking the rare opportunity to travel (on a shoestring budget if need be), etc.

As a personal coach, I’ve seen firsthand what a difference your perspective can make. In many ways, it comes down to that very simple glass half full / glass half empty issue -but that simple example seems to oversimplify the power of getting clear about the perspectives you have about different areas of your life. You can look at unemployment as a setback and wish it wasn’t so. Or you can look at it as a shakeup, a clearing for new possibilities. I invite you to choose whichever perspective empowers YOU!

If you’ve watched the video already you know where this is going.  If not, take a moment to watch the video from Guideposts.com above which tells the story of two members of The 405 Club who were laid off within a week of one another, just as they had bought and moved into a new apartment.  Without despair, Courtney and Chris followed their passion and dove into the food industry, starting their own catering business known as Uptown Comfort [link].  Within no time C & C weren’t worried about the music factory Courtney had left behind (zing!) and had whipped up a catering deal with St.Jude’s hospital through a connection made at a 405 Club event.  Since this video, Courtney has streamlined her focus with small business classes and Chris has become a 405 Club alumni, using what he’s learned in starting/growing a business and landing a great job in NYC.  The basic question here is, are you more employable and skilled now than you were when you were laid off? Courtney and Chris can clearly answer yes, as they’ve used their time “off” to really turn it “on.”

Have you thought about changing industries or starting your own business? The most recent Inbox 405 discussion asked this question — we hope you’ll join the conversation [here].

Before we wrap this up, we want to send a thank you out to Guideposts.com for including us in their “Laid Off Community Bands Together” article as well.

-By Garrett Dale, Founding Member, Music Industry Professional, Digital Marketing Expert and actively seeking employment opportunities.