You Lost Your Job - Now What?

OK, part three coming at you, in a series I started a couple of weeks ago. If you missed it, go back to part one HERE. These are some helpful tips to keep you going while you are also involved in your job search.

In part one we looked at how to sit down and really figure out your money situation. Part two was looking at some possible ways to increase your incomes during this unemployed season. So with this part, we will begin looking at ways to trim back expenses as much as possible.

We have two things against us at this time. The economy is doing pretty badly, but also, at least for most Americans, we have a high pleasure factor in life. We tend to have more than we really need and we are somewhat spoiled with all that is available. So, for that reason, being unemployed can be even worse, as it requires pretty drastic changes in living styles.

Trimming back a little may be easy, but trying to get by for any length of time with little to no income, a heavier, more drastic trimming is needed. Truly, trimming really needs to begin when you have a job, in order to prepare more easily for the prospect of the economy affecting you in the future. The goal is to get your expenses down to a point where you can cover them with a very small portion of your income - or where even a minimum wage full-time position would be adequate.

Getting by like that is very tough without a major overhaul of the household cost structure. It is important to start considering these things before it gets to the point of losing your utilities or being put out on the street.

Take a look around at all of your "fixed" expenses; things like mortgage, insurance, utilities, etc. These are things that will probably never go away. When you consider all of those type of payments, do they exceed what you could be spending on low-cost housing somewhere else in town? Home ownership is nice, but not if you find yourself unable to maintain it. Cutting back by cutting lose of these things may be a necessity in order to keep your head above water while the economy is what it is at this time.

If the possibility of moving in with relatives is an option, it can be a big help. You may view it as being defeated by the world and forced to run home to family, but with the way things are these days, you need to just view it as temporary until things settle and you can get back out there. If you can spare a little income to help them out, that may meet their need too. If no relatives are available, look at other options, like taking in a roommate, or renting out a room to cover some costs. None of these options may be the most desirous to our current lifestyle, but, if you anticipate losing your job soon, or have already, things become more of a necessity.

If you own a car and have no monthly payments, then it might be good to keep it for those things that cannot be accomplished with other modes of transportation. However, even with owning a car, you still have fixed fees like insurance, tags, licenses, inspections, etc. Are those costs more than you can currently handle? It might be time to temporarily let some of those things expire and find other transportation, like a bike or public transportation.

Take a hard look around and weed out those things that are not absolutely necessities. Look for alternatives for those things that are. The more you can trim back, the easier it will be while unemployed.

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Jeff McCormack resides in Virginia Beach, VA. where he works as a web designer by day. In his off time he is a husband, father, mail order book store manager, and musician. Aside from being a freelance writer for this Utilities Jobsite blog, he also seeks to assist in career choices and information by contributing to other Nexxt blog sites.

You Lost Your Job - Now What? - Part 3

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