Hard to stay motivated in job search

Hello! I was laid off over a year ago after 20 years at one company - one of the most difficult events of my life. I was very depressed for about 6 months. Now my mood has lifted somewhat, or at least it is more varied. Sometimes I still feel abandoned and hopeless, and sometimes I feel excited about new possibilities, but I often have a hard time feeling focused on the job search. There are very few good jobs in the area of West Virginia where I live, so I want to work remotely as a freelancer, but that is a new ballgame with a steep learning curve, it seems. There are so many online options, but hard to know which ones are good. I am using freelancing services like Upwork and Guru and Freelancing.com, but still trying to get my portfolios in place to start applying for work.

I guess my point is that it's hard to start your life over again when your situation just makes you moody and depressed and you keep losing your hope and focus. That's why I'm here, I guess.

Anyone else going through something similar? Navigating the crazy world of freelancing or just looking for a plain old brick and morter job, so hard to find with good pay these days!

Thanks for listening!

Hello and welcome to psych central

Thank you! Happy to have found this active, supportive community!

Welcome! I've been looking for a job for a year! It's an endurance test, to say the least. Just work on a little each day, then put it aside and take lots of breaks! It takes stamina and determination to get a job... and is not easy process, so I get it. Sorry you lost your job after 20 years -- that's rough. But as you said, it's an exciting new opportunity! Best wishes. (((hugs))))

Thanks! Yes, it certainly is an endurance test. I feel very vulnerable at times, and elated by my freedom at other times. But I have to pay the bills, so reality sets in more often than not.

The job market is a whole other world compared to 20 years ago! Good luck to you and thanks for the advice!

Love your Bob Marley quote, by the way. So true!

Another piece of advice is to put up your own advertisement on Craigslist as a freelancer. That's how I landed one freelance position -- it was quite easy! I posted in the resume section I believe....

I know.. the market must have changed a ton since then! It's an adjustment for sure, but keep at it, and you'll land something good!

And thanks for the well wishes! Keep us posted!!!

Thanks!

I'm trying Upwork and some others, but I wasn't sure about Craigslist, although I know they take that sort of thing. I will definitely give it a shot. Thanks for the tip! Are you a freelance writer?

Also, how do I know when I have a forum response on here? I just looked at this thread again by chance and saw you had replied...

Yes,

I'm going through the same thing pretty much. One minute I feel hopeless, then when I see a free class of resume, networking, or go to the local career center in my area, I go to those. Sometimes I feel like they can't assist me either. I feel like anything I do is not good enough.

Yes, and there's paid sites too, like Flexjobs.com and virtualvocations.com, though I am not sure if it's for freelance writers as well. You can always check them and see. I am in digital marketing myself.

Craigslist is hit or miss -- I just got lucky.

I only just check the threads... there should be a notification when someone responds, but I don't think there is.

I did a search and if you go to your profile, then click "settings and options" and then "edit options", you can get emails when you have replies to your posts. There are many other options to pick from as well.

I tried FlexJobs for a while, but they don't have very many remote jobs compared to Upwork, Freelancer, and Guru. I plan to hit these three full force, but I have to get my writing profile together first.

I tried admin jobs in my local area, but I had no idea the pay was so low! They don't care if you have a lot of experience; they just offer entry level salaries because someone will take it!

Great talking to you and have a good day!

I keep trying different things too. When I was laid off, my company offered me no help in finding a job, so I was left to my own devices. The hardest thing really is staying motivated and to keep looking. I've read a lot of stuff saying if you stay positive, practice being resilient when things don't go your way, that eventually things WILL go your way, just because you keep trying. I know it's easier said than done, and I know just how you feel. I'm glad we have a group like this to support each other. Hope you have a good day!

Not for everyone maybe, but I'm teaching myself some computer programming, things like Javascript, HTML, and CSS using websites like Khan Academy and the really cheap courses on Udemy that are wonderful! I hope to add these skills, in a few months, to my writing and admin skills to (hopefully) get some good freelance work or a full-time remote job. The tricky part is many companies don't want to hire someone for remote work, if you've never done it before. I haven't, in a sense, but I have job hunted and taken classes from my home office for over a year - to me that proves I can do remote work.

Oh, awesome, thanks for the instructions!!!

Yes, admin jobs can be low paying, except perhaps executive assistant. I used to be an admin for years and earned a pretty low salary. Discouraging. :/

But, GOOD for you for your determination!!!! That's the way to be.. determined and stay the course!

Great talking with you, too, and have a fabulous day ahead!!

I was actually a buyer in the last 4 years of my 20 year employ, before that an executive admin and sales admin. The buyer part paid well, and I had been getting steady merit increases through the years that added up to a good salary. But you can lose so much of that when you have to start over. My area doesn't have many buyer jobs; I would have to move to a bigger city and I don't want to leave. But I've always wanted to be a writer and I'm learning computer programming, so hopefully I can put all that together into something worthwhile. Thanks and talk to you later! : )

Sending a BIG kudos to you for pursuing your heart's passions and a big toast to your new endeavors. You're going to kick butt out there!!!!! Go for it!!!!

Yes its hard to stay motivated. Right now I'm going 4 a lead position at my job and still looking for another job. I still get offered less money no thanks I'm asking for more.

I'm in AZ so many contract jobs I may have to roll the dice and take one. I'm getting other offers I'm gonna need to ask recruiters even though I have a lot of transferable skills and don't have the actual experience in xyz what's the possibility of being hired? Would they be willing to help me succeed and advanced my skills?

Hi I don't freelance. I started my own firm over a year ago. Really thought I was going to get some contracts; did not happen. I use www.thumbtack.com; it took a bit, but started getting clients.

Perhaps try a temp agency or a head hunter that has contract positions. Also put a business page on Facebook and LinkedIn. they are free. You can show your work and write articles, etc. to get noticed. Having a website helps too.

Best of luck

Good luck with the lead position. Yeah, more and more jobs seem to be contract now. That's probably what I'll end up doing too.