Turn the television off - It will BOOST your career!!!

June of 2009, I became unemployed!!! Needless to say, it was devastating! For months on end I applied for job after job after job, receiving one rejection letter after another.

Statistically, I joined the ranks of many of the unemployed; those with a degree, but without a job and no savings to speak of. I really didn't know what to do or where to turn.

I turned to DHS and they behaved horribly. I mean really, if I don't have any money - how can I help YOU pay for my lights and gas?

In between reaching out to other organizations, and being depressed, I watched A LOT of TV and movies on DVD. I used both as mechanisms of escape from my devastating reality.

Well, in seeking additional employment counsel on what to do next, I was referred to the Ferndale Career Center. I took a couple of classes - 1 for Facebook and one for Social Media (with Heather Coleman & Kay Lemon). That was approximately 1 month ago. How does all of this relate to turning off the television?

Glad you asked! Once I started using Facebook and LinkedIn, I saw how networking could provide new career opportunities. Not just by asking for a job and not just by making friends or connections, but by all of the entrepreneurial interactions I was having with people who were both employed and unemployed. It got my intellectual juices flowing and helped me to take the courage to approach a business opportunity that I was once too afraid to explore.

Without turning off the television and deciding to go to the Ferndale Career Center, I would still be watching my 23rd replay of "Man On Fire". Now, I am busily promoting my own business and bidding on government contracts. Now, I am seeking to hire people to work for me.

Soooo, turn the television off and pursue your next career opportunity!!!