Tuesday, June 21, 2016 - It's a real challenge to remain positive when there's negative energy around you. I left the house feeling good and ready to be productive as I headed to my "Enhanced Re-Employment Services Orientation". Fresh notebook in hand, lists of questions to ask and feeling good that I'm keeping the ball rolling.
The staff at the State office was very friendly. A woman at the desk quickly spotted I was a "First Timer" and got me into the proper line then waiting area for my orientation to begin. The waiting area was filled with people waiting for various sessions to begin. Considering everyone waiting was unemployed the mood was surprisingly happy. You could see than a few friendships have formed between the regulars and some even seemed to have formed relationships with the staff.
When my session was called, the woman at the desk gave me a "that's you" nod and I followed the group of about 8 people up the stairs and into an obviously mothballed corner of the building. There was no air conditioning running but windows were open. AV equipment in obvious disrepair and dark computer workstations.
The leader apologized for the condition of the facilities and explained that they are in the process of shutting it down and that this session will be merged with another. He also explained that the session length will be much shorter than we were told and that basically (with a wink and a nod) that they were just going through the motions so they can maintain their funding.
The main scope of this session was to ensure that everyone knew how to search for a job and that it is no longer a matter of looking at the "help wanted" section in newspapers. Once he knew I was technologically capable and aware of the online search tools I was set free.
As for my questions... well.. They are Federally funded but state run. While they don't discourage job searches outside of the state they have no inter-state database that allows you to search beyond the state.
They do have "something" about small business startups and entrepreneurship but I would have to attend a session called "Career Services Information" which will give me access to someone familiar with all the various options.
So in other news. My fiance is now working. Alone that income isn't enough to run the household but along with my savings and unemployment eases the stress just that much more and is giving me a little more time to figure out what to do.
While I still feel very optimistic about finding "a job" it does appear that it may be a bit more difficult that I had anticipated to find that great second career that can feed my spirits as well as my bank account.
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