Today’s national unemployment report is grim: jobs flat, unemployment at 9.2 percent, millions job-hunting more than a year. Bay Area commentator Dick Lepre probes a bit deeper. Zeroing in on journalism, a recent report says the number of scribes working in the Bay Area declined 43 percent over the last decade. When and what turns things up?
Patience, persistence, low overhead, lowered expectations, a renewed commitment to hard work and faith — could be your vision, your family, your God — these are the virtues demanded by the times. It should be obvious that this is not like other post-World War II recessions — even the tough years of 1980-82 when I foolishly started a business.
That business succeeded, incidentally, thanks to the aforementioned characteristics and some luck of the sort that favors the prepared mind.
Over the Fourth of July weekend I was reminded of the value of persistence when I met Adriel Hampton, a former journalist who is now the evangelist for NationBuilder.com, which creates online platforms to empower civic and political activists.
While chatting at a party thrown by social media pioneers Chris Heuer and Kristie Wells, Adriel told how he landed the gig: by two years of blogging and podcasting on the topic, essentially creating the opportunity.
Not everyone will have to campaign for two years to find work. Millions of jobs get filled every month and if you’re looking may you get one.
But if not, attitude and behavior are the variables you can control. The journalism report I cited alluded to this: “A good start would be a 12-step program for recovering journalists.” OK, well maybe that’s gallows humor but the future is not going to be like the past, and recognizing that is the start to finding the next opportunity.
