For Those, Unemployed: A Self-Help Workbook Towards a Meaningful Career and Life (Student Edition): An ideal resource for service-workers, tourism-related workers, healthcare workers, or anyone experiencing job loss during major economic events!

For Those, Unemployed…

RETURN TO WORK BETTER THAN EVER!

For Those, Unemployed

A Self-Help Workbook Towards a Meaningful Career & Life

(Student Edition)

Dr. Robert J. Mullaney

An ideal resource for service-workers, tourism-related workers, healthcare workers, or anyone experiencing job loss during major economic events!

Copyright © 2023 Dr. Robert J. Mullaney

All rights reserved. No part of this book may be used or reproduced in any manner whatsoever without written permission of the Publisher. Printed in the United States of America. For information address LuLu Enterprises, LLC. Lulu Press, Inc., 627 Davis Drive, Suite 300 Morrisville, NC  27560

ISBN: 978-1-71698-390-0

[Student Edition]

Dedication

This book is dedicated to the millions of people throughout the world who have lost their jobs, are under- or unemployed, and who wish to return to meaningful occupational engagement. Whether paid or unpaid, it is with hope that you will find this occupational therapy influenced guide instrumental to getting you back up, reinvigorated for work, and even better than ever; the new You 2.0. Enjoy the journey.

For Those, Unemployed…

CONTENTS

For All the Unemployed in the World

For Those Who Want to Work

For Those Who Do Not Want to Work

Self-Worth

Showing Your Value

Coping and Your Mental Health

Engagement in Meaningful and Productive Occupations

Enhancing Your Personal Capacity (Physical, Mental, Spiritual)

Starting Over, Starting Fresh

Standing Out

Landing on Top

Maintenance

What’s Next?

You 2.0 Personal Plan Workbook

Author Biography

For All the Unemployed in the World

T

here are millions of people throughout the world who are considered newly unemployed, or, they do not or no longer work for an employer who regularly provides a steady paycheck. If you are one of those people, then welcome to the group. This is a group of people you are certainly not obligated to remain in and by the end of this book, you should be well on your way out of this group. Many people do not realize it, but when you work, and any kind of work that is, you are practicing healthy occupational engagement.

Yes, it is upsetting to be laid off, let-go, or flat out fired because it has been determined that your presence, your work, your efforts, your talents, and overall you are no longer needed or deemed as a valuable component of your previous employer anymore. Unemployment causes major disruptions in life’s roles, daily habits and routines, participation in meaningful social and community activities, and so much more. People, whether diagnosed or not, experience fear, anxiety, depression, uncertainty, boredom, social and emotional dysregulation, maladaptive habit formations (i.e., substance abuse), and so much more as a result of unemployment. Hopefully, you’ll find that within this book, an occupational therapy will help to bring balance back to your life and you will, soon after, find yourself in an even better, more enhanced life position.

The reality is, at the end of the day, no matter how sugarcoated the message is delivered, there are a finite number of reasons an employer has chosen to let you go. These reasons are simply based on your work performance being undesirable, no longer needed, or determined to have a negative impact to the organization, or the cost to keep you is not worth the product you produce.

Sometimes, an employer’s decision is not personal at all, and for some, external circumstances provide an opportunity to clean-house and decrease costs. The best reassurance an employed person can take is to ensure his or her value is clear and obvious, work records are clean, and work relationships are sound. If it’s not already too late, don’t give your employer a reason to consider letting you go. So, sometimes the decision is personal, and sometimes it is strictly a business necessity.

Your performance at work is watched by whomever holds your immediate supervisor’s role, and their supervisor, and on up the chain. If you are a high-level executive, there are groups of people you’ve perhaps too often heard from called the board of directors, regents, trustees, or the like. These people have expectations of you and these expectations were initially based on the match between what you’ve shared on your resume, your curriculum vitae, or verbally with them. At some point, discussions were had and it was determined that based on what you said and what they need, you were the perfect match.

The better the match you are, coupled with the higher skill-levels you possess and the more specific types of training you’ve had (setting work experience aside for now) and how badly the employer initially wants you on their team will determine the cost to have and keep you. Payment to employees can be hourly, salary (range of hours; often not counted), or either of these on a contract basis or right-to-work basis. Regardless, there is always a set of stipulations