Dealing with unemployment - Part II

If you're desperate, DO NOT SHOW IT !

I know that second parts never overcome the first ones but I will try.

I left a few loose ends on my first Unemployment issue last time. I’ve also received a few supportive emails, thank you all for the congrats.... and for the nasty ones too.

The main issue I would like to tell you this time is about been flexible when you want to overcome unemployment, and please, please pay your taxes as you go when receiving your unemployment checks.

This next coming week, one of my dearest friend is moving out of the city of Angels and this reminded me of the hardship a lot of our friends, family members, neighbors, or just people we know are going through.

I am also a property manager in Mar Vista for a 50 unit building, so this last 2 years I’ve witnessed how almost half of my tenants just had moved out for different reasons.

Some time it is hard for me to witness things. I wish I did not but the nature of my job forces me to face it, deal with it and worse… tell people how to deal with things.

Like I mentioned on my first issue of Dealing with unemployment, I remind all my readers to remain “positive” but not only positive but be a “realistic positive” person.

Try to out pass your competitors, always !

I remember a couple of years ago the hardship of dealing unemployment myself… try to picture this… imagine yourself living at a friend house temporarily, trying so hard to get a job that just did not happened, been denied employment for having low credit score due to identity theft, not been eligible for unemployment… hard right? Oh, lets not forget having problems on both of my knees and needing surgery, and yes you guessed it, no health insurance neither.

I am a true believer of “things happen for a reason”, but lets go by parts.

And I also want to share this personnel experiences with you, so you see that if I was able to overcome that, so will you!!

I remember working on and off at accounting department of different property management companies for a few years (and choosing to overpay my taxes, ALWAYS), I have the most unbelievable stories on each place, but that will be “an entire different blog issue”. 

Prepare the best you can, and the world will be yours

I can say, that working at so different management companies gave me such a good outlook of this business, they all have so different management approaches, I think that was the good thing to rescue.

I was working in a real estate company at the time and entertaining the idea of going into construction management school, but for some reason I always have to delay it, reasons such as: one of my ex-roommates became literally crazy, not having enough time, working too much, not enough money, you name it.

Then the whole real estate crash happened, so no job, few months later, no savings, no housing, cero, and nada.

By then I have a pretty good understanding of the dos and not to do in that business.

Lesson #1: for me was “if a company wants to hire the best candidate” then “you better act, sound, look, walk, talk and smell like one”. At all the interviews I had attended, I noticed the interviewers were not well prepared, it was a quite rare the occasion that the interviewer was the person who will be my next boss, and usually the decision maker is the owner or the main manager of a company, not your future boss.

Be positive, do not despair, the sky is the limit

A friend once asked me “how do you manage to get all these jobs?”. When the economy started to go south, I had realized they were dozens and maybe hundreds hunting the same jobs I was looking for. So, not only you need to look, walk talk and smell like the best candidate, you need to have a little extra “something something” to bring to the table, and that is…

Lesson #2, “if you want to out due your competitors you better be FLEXIBLE”. If you not only look, walk, talk and smell like the best candidate, you will overpass all your competitors “by be willing to take a little less than what you expected”, and believe me, its much better get less, than nothing at all. And this not only applies to wages but everything else like benefits, job title, duties, larger commute, schedule, etc. I remember a couple of years ago having a friend who did not want to flex her job conditions… she is still looking.

There are work fields in the low right now, its not necessary to mention them, its not polite, well I’m not a polite guy anyway.

So, if you want to increase your chances to be employed you have to develop other ways to make money. I am telling you just the proven ways to escape unemployment, the ones that had worked with me. If you want to increase your chances then this is my next best suggestion…

Just me, cute am I ?

Lesson #3: “develop a second career”, another “source of income". I found all these extension classes at the local community college so helpful. You can find classes that could take your employability to new highs, and if you take classes in your current career it’ll definitely will make you look, talk, walk and smell like the best candidate any company wants.

This kind of boost not only works for the ones with an established career, but also for the ones looking to develop a new one. Here is my real life example… “a few years ago when I was in the low, I saw this ad at the local community college, this class cost was $ 95.00 + $25.00 for the book. And as of today the return of this class in a little more than three years for me is…. $40,150.00” the best $120.00 I EVER INVEST !!!

Pertaining to flexibility is willing to take more in your plate. I am not sure how to explain this one, but I think you get the idea.

Lesson #4:  "When you're right, you are right" if you are positive something good is going on, KEEP IT. Could you believe I had a few friends making fun of me when I mentioned I want to become a property manager? well just let me tell you they turn green of envy every time I mention how wonderful this second career turned out to be.. you meet new interesting people, you learn something new every day literally, you learn on how to multitask, I got a personal assistant, the nice people in the main office, etc ...  and the rent savings are just amazing    ;)

Well my friends, these are the main lessons that had gotten me rapid results. I hope and you find them helpful too.

And I apologize again for the delay on this issue, but as you may know I've been just drilled with tax preparations all day, every day and the weekends too.

I hope and this issue was more helpful than the first one. Feel free to email me and ask all the questions you want, I'll make sure you get the information you need.

Dealing with Unemployment...

This is a big issue. Just last year I have helped a lot more than usual new (and old) clients file their income tax returns who are dealing with unemployment. It is not a secret that unemployment had raised to a record high since the great depression. Some states have it harder than others.

As long and taxes were paid by your last employer then you should qualify for unemployment for six months, then you can extend it "if you qualify," and later get the federal extension "if you qualify again". Up to now, nothing new.

But with anything in life, I do suggest you plan for this "unsuspected events". I'm not saying you have to plan to be unemployed, no, what I'm saying is that "you want to have a plan B ready just in case anything happens".

With this troubled times, is best to have a plan A, plan B, plan C, plan D, plan E. and stick to it, meaning hope (and work hard, very hard) for plan A to happen, but in the mean time put in place plan B until you are certain plan A can take place.

People who know me can say: "Enrique is a very pragmatical person," and I'm not going to give you that "hope crap" that a lot of people bought a few years ago. "Things in life do not happen just because your desire for them, or just because you want them, no, things in life do happen when you work for it and make it happen".

Since I don't want to give you real examples from people I know "I do not want to get face a lawsuit," I can tell you what happened to me instead.

I planned for my plan A for about six years, but when things seemed to "ignite" my plan A, then the whole real estate crash began. Back then, I did not have a plan B. plan B came to me just as another choice, whether I was unemployed and I "hope" for plan A to happen, or I take plan B, stick with it until times get better and plan A is in the "cooler" for now

I can also tell you by experience "if you are going to have a plan B, it better be something that you enjoy almost, or "at least you like" as much as you enjoy/like plan A". Some people have called it a second career, and yes I would say that too, but I like the word plan B better. "It's all about choices."

It is not a secret that this whole thing about the record unemployment started with the collapse of real estate and construction, we all know that quite well, and coming from someone who use to work in those two fields at the same time, just when all these started “not fun” let me tell ya.

I have a lot of friends in the construction field, real estate as well, seems to me that the ones in real estate are dealing better with this mess. But not only these two had been affected, but also whole economy. Everywhere you go somebody you know had been touched by a sudden pay cut, personnel reduction, been fired (employers like to call it "laid off") is the same thing!

It is very common to find people who had been laid off. I had changed jobs (my day time stable one) a few times myself. Companies tend to hire over qualified people nowadays just because it is cheaper and because they can (just like purchasing real estate deal) but that itself can be "another blog."

Going to the point. While unemployed I would say the most important thing to do is "choose" to have your taxes taking out of your weekly pay checks; Why? Simple: because you don't want to have "another bill to worry" when the time comes. And chances are "you will be short of money". Who wants to owe money when you have no funds to pay for it? So, ALWAYS pay as you go.

Just keep in mind that Taxes are not (it won't be) wiped out by Bankruptcy.

My second suggestion is to develop another source of income while unemployed, how? I would say start your own business when your unemployment just kicks in, why? Because chances are "you will have a lot of time in your hands while receiving a secure pay check at the end of the week," they're just "2 best things you can do with that time" first choice is "develop an extra income" or "study something that will lead you to what?... another income".

You will get your money back anyways... whether with your business losses (lowers your tax liability and makes you get a bigger refund) "nobody is expected to make a great income when you started a business," or you will get an "education tax break" that should be up to $ 4,000 for 2011 if it stays the same as 2010. Don't wait until the last unemployment extension to make a "realistic decision" PLEASE!

Another choice is to gain experience in something you want to pursue while unemployed. In my case I'm "volunteering" in a job field I want to develop for the near future, but in my specific case I'm doing it while I'm fully employed, "secured pay check at the end of my week," but in my case this is "income: "money earned," unemployment is not income, but still fully taxable.

I'm don't want to be rude, but I have to let it out: "BE REALISTIC ALWAYS". I've seen some people just going deep into some financial mess by just living in "La la land". Some waited until the last minute to make a realistic decision "usually when it is way too late. Or worse by just wasting it".

A piece of advice for you: do not waste this money! Wasting my unemployment money? How? Taking trips, eating out, going shopping, taking pottery classes, etc. I know we all deal with problems in a different way, but just wasting this little money just to keep your mind away of the problem will just make matters worse at the end of the rode.

I've seen people just wasting their secure pay checks while pursuing "nonsense dreams," do you want me to mention some examples? Even though you are dying to hear it and I'm dying to say it, I rather not.

I would like to tell you several more options, but probably it won't make any sense to you, different tax breaks applies differently to different people, and to different situations too.

As a tax person I would say: “as long and you pay your taxes with every pay check, you should be fine.” and ofcourse, DO NOT GIVE UP HOPE, "a realistic hope", I think that alone is the most important.

I wonder, if they are millions of undocumented wokers working "and paying taxes", if they could find a job, kept it, and made a living out of it, SO DO YOU! you have all your papers in order, so go for it!

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