Non-Job Searching Ways to Pass the Unemployed Days!

It's easy to get the unemployment blues. Trust me. I've been there. It's easy to throw yourself a perpetual pity party that nobody (and I mean nobody) except yourself wants to attend. It doesn't even matter if there is a pinata. Nobody wants to come. I had to start finding ways to keep myself occupied and ward off those feelings of failure, self loathing, discontentment, & boredom. I wanted to use this time I had productively.

What are your favorite things to do to pass your unemployed days? (Past or present)

1. Read! I've always been a reader but I've been spending alot of my days reading. I read pretty much read anything. I've been knocking out some classics, some "fluffy" light reading, memoirs, self help, and of course reading related to the field I want to get in. I like to read outside when it is nice, in a cafe, a bookstore, a park, etc. I'm pretty addicted to Goodreads . I even started an online book group for College Students that is extremely active and has almost 800 members! It's a fun group. It's been fun to use all the things I know how to do for something I love (organizing, starting discussions, marketing the group in different ways, planning events and book giveaways, etc.). I'm all about stimulating my mind while I'm unemployed.

2. Vocab Sushi: I promise you I'm not a nerd. Ok, well, I can't promise you that. Anyways, has become my latest obsession. You take a little test and then it figures out where you stand vocab wise and then gives you an appropriate list of words to learn. You can see the words used in articles and sentences and do little word games. It's a really great way to keep your brain stimulated, build for yourself an extensive vocabulary, and, hey, you might even be able to through in a $3 word in an interview and sound extremely smart! Just make sure you are using it properly! :)

3. Learn How To Cook: I have considered myself one of those people who can cook or bake. I had never really done it before. Unless you count my little stint with my Easy Bake Oven as a child. However, through my own attempts out of unemployment boredom (and a little lesson from the movie Ratatouille) I soon learned that "anybody can cook!" Cooking can be expensive but luckily for me I still live at home with my stepdad and sister, neither of them who like to cook, so I'm given the money to buy groceries and they get a home cooked meal! You can find recipes that aren't too costly when you go to the grocery store. Always be on the lookout for specials going on and cut those coupons! Anyways, I just started picking things from allrecipes.com that sounded good and after my first experiment in cooking was a success I decided to keep trying. It's been fun and it feels really nice to cook something good for other people. It's also a nice skill to have for when the boyfriend and I get married! :)

4. Blog: I like to write so blogging is pretty fun for me! I have a few blogs that I write on and I've been enjoying the process. If you are passionate about something that relates to your particular career, blog about it! If you are into fashion, create a fashion blog. If you are a photographer, blog about the photography world and share your own shots! You never know who is going to stumble upon your blog. And at the end of the day, it's really nice to have documented your life.

5. "Spring Clean" Your Room/House: : I loathe cleaning. However, I have found that really tackling my room has been a productive and useful way to spend my day. I have been purging my room of clutter and trash and things that are no longer used or useful. Then I start organizing like a mad woman. It's just really nice to have an uncluttered headquarters here at camp unemployed. I've found some great tips and methods on a few blogs and websites. Let me know if any of you are interested in the links!

Anyways..those are just a few of the ways I've been spending my unemployed days. More to come!

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