...you can clock out any time you like, but you can never leave.
Easier to get a job if you have a job. Probably should use the earnings to see a therapist to deal with the job application anxiety.
That's exactly what I did.
Got an underpaid shit job that was forced to take anyone.
Went to therapy for a year to overcome application anxiety.
Started a job application marathon.
Landed my dream job half a year later.
Wow you are the success story I needed to hear. I've been struggling with depression and unemployment for more than a year, and recently got a plebe job at Famous Retail Chain. I did some therapy and it helped but I'm now running out of government support for it so I won't be able to afford it anymore. I'm considering a psychologist online in my country of origin which would be substantially cheaper.
Took me nine months of applications. Nothing for 7 months, suddenly 3 offers in a month. I got a hell of a good step up from my part time IT gig though, so it was worth the trouble.
That's really great to read. Congrats! I'm very happy for you.
We are all just prisoners here
Of our own device
I knew a woman who took a job in a porn shop while she worked on her book (a children’s book), and depression set in when she realized she hadn’t touched her manuscript in 2 years and her career was being a porn clerk.
She ended up becoming the manager of three stores.
Edit: This was back in the ‘90s, when people bought porn in stores.
Did she ever finish her manuscript?
The last panel caught me by surprise and got a good laugh.
Taking initiatives ... It's hard for most of people.
That, and society does not like it when you do so, and the more you get off the beaten path, the harder it gets.
When I was working my way out of retail jobs I took a job at a callcenter making a pittance. It beat retail and came with actual responsibilities and expectations which I liked. A few months in some management type shared a random feelgood blogpost by someone who stated they've been working in a callcenter for 6 years. I remember commenting at the time "yikes why would you keep working in a callcenter for that long?" (I think at the time I hadn't even been an adult for 6 years)
3.5 years later I put in my notice from that job and started rocketing my career upward. I spent my last year working part time while I worked on an IT degree, and had become very relied upon at the callcenter. My old boss from there actually keeps asking me to let her get me a job on their IT team, but I know that I can get better pay and benefits elsewhere. But most importantly, I kept my initial horror at the idea of working in a callcenter for 6 years in the back of my mind and made sure to get out long before reaching that point myself.
In my current job I encounter people in similar positions. They're underqualified and living in small towns with limited employment options so they put up with pretty nasty working conditions in (for example) meat packing plants in order to take home the best pay and benefits they can. I heard one of the field employees I support mention that they haven't been home for over 6 months, and they said this to me whilst I was sitting in my cushy office job working from my own home while my toddler slept in the next room not 8 feet away.