Permanent Unemployment

*Charlie composed a message to his LIT 101 online class*
"Dear Fellow Journeymen:
One last lesson:
Fuck these ridiculous essays.
FUCK the readings.
JUST WRITE ME SOMETHING HONEST."

"These assignments--they don't matter. This course doesn't matter. College doesn't matter. These amazing, honest things you wrote--they matter." --Charlie, The Whale (2022)

Today's blog is posted at Innovating Common Knowledge and Finding Raymond Mar. Today's blog or essay is inspired from the two quotes above from the movie The Whale (2022). I choose Permanent Unemployment as the topic.

I speak for some long-term unemployed people. The job market has been rough for years. I experience phone interviews, person-to-person interviews, incorrect position interviews, mismatched skills and mismatched experiences interviews, 11th hour job offers rescinded, and another candidate was hired. The job market is harsh today and tomorrow regardless of a good economy or bad economy. The number of job candidates increases at the end of every academic year. The number increase applies to all education levels and all job openings. There are not enough blue-collar jobs and not enough white-collar jobs for the too many job candidates. The demand is greater than the supply.

Further, artificial intelligence (AI) replaces human jobs. I'm not a software engineer. Give it time. AI never stop innovating. A rational executive saves money replacing human labor with a 90% success rate AI. AI can replace outpatient doctor consultations, accountants, and data analysts. I'm not a robotics engineer. AI may not replace a plumber; although, a robot may.

A rising tide raises all boats. More jobs require additional skills and addition experiences. Education is expensive. Training is expensive. Knowledge is more technical; for instance, a Kohl's employee didn't know how to use its proprietary tablet scanner when I picked up an online order. More time is required to learn. More time is required to train. Higher incomes are earned for people who succeed in acquiring the additional skills and additional experiences. Job security is stronger for people who master their responsibilities.

Timing and luck are part of finding employment. Qualified candidates are subjective. Qualified candidates are relative. A job candidate may be a top five in one position. The same candidate may be in the bottom hundreds in another position. It depends on the hiring manager's expectations. It depends on the company. The qualified candidate found the position immediately. He or she is an early job applicant. Conversely, the qualified candidate found the position days later. He or she may be rejected because too many job applications are submitted. Moreover, networking is overrated. Networking does matter; however, imagine a scenario where a hiring manager receives dozens of qualified resumes for the hiring manager's dozens of networks. I remember a conversation with a friend decades ago. If we were educated in the same field, then why help each other find jobs. We want the job. We need an income. The bottom line is everything matters.

Unemployed Me

I'm doing the best I can. I self-train new skills such as Python, R-Studio, Power BI, and Linux. I review existing skills such as Excel, SQL, and data analysis. I'm catching up what I missed in previous jobs. I'm catching up what I missed in my younger years. Also, I learn life skills such as tying rope knots, folding paper airplanes, and using a navigating compass. Never stop learning. The clique wisdom is emphasized in today's Information Age. Never stop innovating.

When am I going to quit job searching? When am I going to stop learning? The quick answer to the two questions is not today. There's no reason to quit searching. There's no reason to stop learning. I'm unemployed. I live with my parents. I'm the George Costanza in the family. There is too much free time. I learn indefinitely. It's better than watching TV and playing video games eight hours a day. I stay sharp because a miracle can happen. Timing and luck favor me. I found a new job. I read books, exercise, cook for my parents, maintain the household, write blogs, and watch a weekly movie when I'm not being a self-professional. I'm fortunate there is family support.

The long answer to the two questions is I stop when I'm permanently unemployed. Age is a factor. Resume gaps are a factor. Weak working experience is a factor. Missing skills are a factor. A benefit to job searching is knowing what skills are required for my profession. These factors are not excuses to stop searching and stop learning.

The statements, "a rising tide raises all boats," "more skills are required," and "higher expectations" are valid when job candidates read job descriptions. A cash sweepstakes or a prize contest disclaimer "many people enter, few people win" applies to job candidates applying to multiple job positions. I'm not dumb. People are not dumb. Life is too hard.