Previous entry: 
Next entry:
How I survived my first recession
It ended the year before I my college graduation. There was an overhang that was difficult.
Unemployment in Florida that year peaked at 9.7 percent.
In addition, everyone wanted to be a journalist. The inspiration of Watergate and Woodward & Bernstein hadn't yet worn off.
So off I went. Driving around Louisiana. Because in my hometown of New Orleans, the newspaper wouldn't hire beginners.
I drove from one town to the other. I handed my resume to receptionists. I drove back to New Orleans at night and mailed out job-hunting letters. Then I'd show up at the newspaper and ask to speak to the publisher. And I'd hear how they had hundreds of resumes for reporters' jobs.
Eventually, I talked my way into a job. In a town so small that it didn't even have a hotel for me to stay in. I got a room over a friend's grandfather's garage.
I went to work every day at 7 a.m., stayed until the politicians stopped yammering at night meetings, and got two Saturdays off a month.
Today, unemployment is far lower, at 5.5 percent in Florida.
Inflation is far lower (It was on its way to double digits back then.)
And I guess a web site and a video are more essential job-hunting tools than a Volkswagon and a stack of paper resumes in the back seat.
I remember it was work, finding a job. I just don't remember that as anything unusual. I'd never done it before, so I didn't expect it to be easy.
Harriet Johnson Brackey, the personal finance writer for the Sun-Sentinel, has been an award-winning business...
Comments
Hey Harriet,
Great post and I agree with you 100%, I don't know what all the fuss is about. We haven't experienced anything yet that would make me fear this recession is different than those kicked off by the Enron/Worldcom Bankruptcies, the tech crash, the S&L Scandals, or the energy crisis of the 70's.
Very strange, I think a lot of it has to do with media coverage. They're trying so hard to sell stories that objectivism is just thrown out the window. We wind up with scare tactic reporting and advertising and, as a country, we seem very susceptible (gullible?).
No worries, like every other recession we've had for the last 50+ years, eventually comparisons will start to look pretty good. You get to a point that, even if things are still bad, they certainly are better than last month or last quarter. There's no reason it will be any deeper or more painful this time around. We have sound fiscal and monetary policy in place, we just need to work through the subprime, oil speculation and commodity price increases.
Enjoyed reading,
Odd Lot
www.Money-and-Investing.com
Posted by: Odd Lot | June 27, 2008 5:49 PM
What is disappointing is that we have gone through more than a few economic disasters over the past 30 years, yet we have learned nothing, regardless of all the journalists. People squawk about the oil bubble, and everyone scratches their head at the pump. Millions of words are written and there are no answers. There must be more to journalism than simply confirming the price of gas went up ten cents.
Posted by: Bud | June 28, 2008 12:31 PM
Hey, thank you,
The one thing people seem to forget is: These things end. And usually, after not too long.
On the media issue, I agree that pessimism is high. I think it does have to do with people have access to news round-the-clock and having the desire to always be in touch with the latest. No wonder things get said and repeated and said again. That is the one thing that does seem different this time around. People are obsessed. -Harriet
Posted by: Harriet | June 30, 2008 9:58 AM
I think that one of the most important things to remember is to safekeep what you have..like your good credit. Credit is extremely important in these economic times. Crimes like identity theft are on the rise. There were 10 million people that were victims of identity theft last year. Although identity theft is not funny, I came across this funny video. http://youtube.com/watch?v=bnNfgT76D3U
Posted by: John Tuman | July 1, 2008 4:50 AM
The recession really is affecting everyone globally. Everyone should be helping each other to make it through, specially the government. I hope the recession ends soon.
Posted by: WoW Gold | March 2, 2009 4:31 PM