[alenart]

The wide majority of us have been unemployed at one point or another.

Was it annoying to hear my parents suggest I should just take a job at the supermarket when I was unemployed? Yes. Was it equally annoying when I'd be connected by a friend to someone who had a job but in an area I had no interest in? Absolutely!

When I was unemployed, what got me out of it were chance conversations with people. I doubt I would have gone past the small-talk stage had I lashed out or fumed about the annoyance of being unemployed.

In the end of my six-month unemployment stint, I sent out nearly 120 copies of my resume to various places. Yes, I counted out of curiosity as well as to keep track of status and follow-ups. Toward the end, I had two offers both out of chance/networking encounters because I rolled with these small-talk punches.

In short, unemployed folk, be patient and kind. Very kind. And don't listen to this drivel.

[ufmace]

I haven't been unemployed in a long time, so I may not really understand, but I think that people who give off the emotional vibe of being desperate and frustrated don't tend to make people want to hire them or otherwise associate with them. Which can put some unemployed people into a nasty vicious cycle - it's tough to just stop being desperate and frustrated when you can't get a job.

I have also tended to be a bit skeptical of getting a job by spewing resumes all over the internet. I doubt that this works well, unless you have some really impressive stuff on your resume. I haven't looked for a job in a while, but I would bet that it's more effective to meet people in person by going to whatever events you can find or even the offices of companies you might want to work for. For software people, internet links to things that you have actually built is probably better too. Of course, driving around and going to conferences can eat up a good bit of money too...