22 Tips for Dealing With Unemployment During the Holidays
It seems all too common these days to be unemployed around the holidays. I’ve spoken with a number of people who were furloughed or laid off right before Christmas. Holidays are stressful under normal circumstances. Joblessness is hard enough, but it’s especially hard when it aligns with the holiday season. I know, I’ve been there.
Instead of giving you some slop content that tells you to update your resume, write a cover letter, and network, let’s get real for a bit. After all, I don’t have to tell you to do those things. They’re obvious.
Instead, let’s talk about what you could do when all those holiday parties and gatherings are happening while you’d much rather just stay sleeping in your bed through it all. And let’s share some stories about what has helped others who are experiencing what you are right now.
I’m including tips that will help you stretch your money, improve your job search, and help with mindfulness. Here we go!
Know That January is Right Around the Corner
John Gates, from Salary Coach, was unemployed during the holidays once. For him, it was about mindset. As a long-time corporate recruiter, he knew that many new things start in January. It brings a new planning year and a new budget for a majority of companies. This helped John relieve some anxiety and relax with his family during Christmas.
Knowledge is power. Knowing this will hopefully help you give yourself permission to relax a bit over the holiday - knowing that an uptick is around the corner.
This also aligns with my experience as a recruiter. The end of December may seem slow, but it’s usually full steam ahead in recruiting come January, which leads me to my second point.
Don’t Stop, Here’s Why
Whatever you do, don’t follow the majority of advice out there that says to slow down and spend the entire month revamping your resume and bushing up on networking skills. Those blogs have no clue what actually happens in many companies this time of year. December may not be the best time to land a job, but it is the best time to apply for jobs.
I’ve been in the recruiting space for over 10 years. I’ve worked with hundreds of different companies during that time. A good number of them will advertise jobs during the holidays. And even though you may not hear back from them during the holiday window, you can set yourself up for a successful January.
Because you know what will happen come January? We all start reviewing those resumes that were submitted back in December. And do you know where many recruiters start? Yep, with the first resumes submitted. I’ve worked in a number of ATS (applicant tracking systems), and the majority sort by date of application.
So if you wait to apply until January, you may already be too late. The moral of the story, keep hitting that apply button even if you don’t hear anything back right away. What you do now will pay off next month.
If you need help finding jobs, here’s a list of 102 job boards, many of them listed by industry.
Get a Part-Time Holiday Job
If you really need some cash, this is one of the best times to get a part-time holiday job. There is a surge in the need for holiday temps all across retail, distribution, and other industries. Some ideas include tour and travel guides for theme parks, package handling, delivery driving (someone’s gotta help Santa deliver all those toys), sales, customer service, and stocking shelves.
Will they pay big bucks? Some pay pretty well. Either way, it’s extra cash and that may help you feel better.
Set a Goal That Has Nothing To Do With Getting a Job
When I was unemployed around the holidays, I took the time to exercise more and lose some weight. Focusing on this goal and tracking my progress helped me find purpose and stave off job search depression. Crystal Conolly mentioned that she took time over the holidays to finally pursue affiliate marketing and start building an asset for herself.
Find that one thing you’ve been putting off and give yourself permission to do it. You don’t have to go all in, but set a reasonable goal and chase it.
Revisit Jobs From August Through October
Here’s a cool trick I learned from my agency recruiting days. A large number of new hires don’t work out. I’m sure you can look up the exact number in the latest SHRM survey if you don’t want to take my word for it. But trust me, it’s a good amount of people. Here’s how that goes down and why this matters.
When someone is first hired, there’s usually a honeymoon period where things go fine. But after the honeymoon wears off, many managers become frustrated with their new hires (trust me, I’m the guy they vent to).
However, the frustration is often not enough to cause them to go through the pain of hiring again. Yes, most hiring managers hate hiring as much as you hate job searching. But that changes when a qualified candidate lands on their lap and they don’t have to go through the whole process of reviewing resumes, interviewing, negotiating, etc.
Now, keep in mind that this is much more common with smaller companies or decentralized organizations. It won’t work with big bureaucratic companies as much.
What I used to do when I sold recruiting services was wait about 30-90 days after someone made a new hire (that wasn’t my candidate of course) and then I would casually (and gently), start reminding them of other candidates they may have liked that are still interested in their job or market them some new candidates that I knew were a fit.
You can do this too - especially for jobs where you were the runner-up. You have to be careful that you don’t look like you’re out for someone else’s job or trying to get them fired. But there’s nothing wrong with a gentle nudge that says, I miss you and I wish we were together. If you need help with messaging these types of things, I know some great coaches or you can even use the Ask Cole feature on the website.
Get Support
Get support if you need it. This goes for any time of the year, not just the holidays - but I think it’s worth mentioning here.
The things you will have to do during a job search involve skills, skills that most of us only use every few years at best. And let’s face the music, most of us aren’t good at most of these skills. After all, we don’t write resumes, interview others, and navigate job leads for a living. Why would we be good at them?
Most of us don’t even use skills similar to those of a job search. Yet, you’re going to have to develop them, and that involves finding support when you need it. If you need help, here are some places to start.
Resume Writing Services Reviews
How to Use AI For an Interview
Use Giving Trees
If you have kids, you can add their names to giving tree lists. School districts and nonprofits often have giving tree lists where families fill out “wish lists of what their children need. They then gather donations to help. It’s a great way to help provide Christmas gifts when you’re not employed and you’re low on funds.
Find Free Entertainment
The holidays are some of the best times to find free entertainment. Where I live, there is a downtown area that puts on a Festival of Lights. It’s free to enter and walk around. I’m not a therapist, but this always helped me feel better.
Patty Foster, a Senior Healthcare Recruiter, mentioned to me that she has free concerts and Christmas displays all around her town this time of year. If you don’t know what to do, Google “Free Holiday Events Near Me.” Unless you live in the wilderness, there’s a chance you’ll find some great free activities to lift your spirits. The holidays don’t have to be expensive.
Cole Sperry has been a recruiter and resume writer since 2015, working with tens of thousands of job seekers, and hundreds of employers. Today Cole runs a boutique advisory firm consulting with dozens of recruiting firms and is the Managing Editor at OptimCareers.com.
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