Opinion

The Dangers of being Unemployed

So you’ve found yourself with an extended period of time off, whether that be from work or education. The first month and maybe even the second will seem like heaven but once you’ve reached the third and you find yourself still sat in front of the television on a daily basis things may start to look a little less rosy.

This week I was sat watching Olympic horses dancing to a hypnotic tune; as I confusedly became more entranced by the unusual spectacle on my T.V screen in front of me I wondered – is this what has become of my life?

The dangers of being unemployed

The dangers of being unemployed

It is easy to get used to doing nothing, in fact having had a lot of practice over the long holidays between University terms, I find it surprisingly easy. But there always comes a time when enough really is enough; the daily routine of eating, sitting and sleeping needs a bit of shaking up.

This got me thinking about the important things to remember when you’ve got too much free time on your hands.

Firstly it is nice to have the time to relax and have whole days where you do absolutely nothing – a rare treat to most people. But these special days will soon lose their novelty (honestly!) if it is what you do every day.

If you are supposed to be looking for a job or course or next step of some kind, then maybe some days take a trip to the library or internet cafe to do so – simple perhaps but a change of scenery can help to keep you on the right side of sane.

No matter what your financial situation you should be able to find activities to take up some of your free time – whether that be joining a club, taking up a sport or just learning something new. Anything that gets you away from a screen and your sofa ideally!

Another thing I found important was not to get too used to staying in – the longer I started to leave it between leaving the house, the less enthusiasm I had for it. It was all too easy to stay curled up in my warm cosy bed of an evening rather than accept any invitations to go out that came my way. But if you continue down that path it won’t be long until the invites stop coming altogether!

The main thing to remember is that unless you’re retired, it is very unlikely that you are going to stay unemployed forever. It will always be a bit of a shock to the system going back to school, university or work but if you’ve used your free time sensibly you might at least be able to lessen the change.

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