FiredForNow's Blog
FiredForNow
- Bio
- Four months after becoming an ad industry recession stat last year, I found myself in a job that was in many ways far better and more fulfilling than my last. I'm making less money now, and I'm in a less senior position. But instead of my work being used to sell cars, computers or potato chips, it's being used to help nonprofit clients become better agents of social change. This recession has helped me reexamine what's important to me, and rediscover some things I'd lost. Now I just keep finding more.
MY RECENT POSTS
- The anti-petition: Hollywood
speaks out against Polanski
October 05, 2009 09:21PM - Losing my job was a gift to my
kids
April 25, 2009 11:29AM - Canadian Banks: envy of the
world, eh?
April 15, 2009 10:09AM - Say NO to the Fox new reality
show: It's Gotta Go!
April 13, 2009 03:02PM - One family beating the
recession by traveling the
Americas
April 11, 2009 03:59PM
MY RECENT COMMENTS
- “Alan, I just saw the
film. Throughout, I kept being
reminded
of Alice Miller's
bo…”
January 03, 2010 07:17PM - “The devaluation of the
written word may have as much
to do
with the consumers
of…”
October 28, 2009 11:36AM - “There seems to be some
speculation that if the
courts
concluded that there
had be…”
October 07, 2009 01:06PM - “Hi M -- I'd be happy for
him to simply face whatever
outcome
is determined by
the…”
October 06, 2009 08:27PM - “I agree with IronMan
here. While Besson may have a
preference
for romance with
yo…”
October 05, 2009 11:59PM
FiredForNow's Links
The anti-petition: Hollywood speaks out against Polanski
Immediately following Roman Polanski’s arrest in Switzerland last week, a pro-Polanski petition instantly surfaced with dozens of signatures from the A-list of Hollywood. Ridiculous public declarations followed – Whoopi, you know who we’re talking about. Chris Rock seemed… Read full post »
When I was laid off, my children knew right away. I’m not
good at hiding things and I sometimes wear my heart on my sleeve
too much for my own good. Plus, my kids are big. Like young-adult
big.
So when I lost my job, I felt a deep sense of… Read full post »
Canadian Banks: envy of the world, eh?
If you’ve read some previous posts of mine, you may know
I’m Canadian. Don’t hold it against me. As it turns
out, we may finally have something to be envied by others: our
banks.
For as long as I can remember, Canadians have had a rep for being
conservative and… Read full post »
Say NO to the Fox new reality show: It's Gotta Go!
When I got wind of the stomach-churning news that Fox is mounting a
new reality show called "Someone's Gotta Go", I hoped they'd start
the first episode in the C-level offices of Fox -- and decide which
Fox exec should be the first to be… Read full post »
One family beating the recession by traveling the Americas
One way to deal with the recession is to ignore it altogether. In one sense, that’s what Philly Markowitz and Myke Dyer are doing.
Philly and Myke are married to one another, have 2 kids aged 10 and 13, and when Philly lost her job two months ago, it was… Read full post »
Lululemon is pop culture’s answer to wearable spirituality. You don’t have to be spiritual. You don’t even have to do yoga. Pull on a $200+ Lululemon yoga outfit and voila – you’re surrounded by an aura of faux enlightenment that Lululemon parades on its shopping… Read full post »
The idea of keeping up with the Joneses goes back long before
the comic strip of the same name that popularized the phrase back
in 1913. Comparing ourselves to others is a core part of
forming our self-image.
And I can tell you one thing. I’m finished with it. Or, I… Read full post »
Organizing your job search: An invention of the recession
Applying for jobs can be a numbers game. But what do you do to stay on top of the numbers?
When you start sending out dozens -- or hundreds -- of applications, it can be an organizational challenge to keep track of them all.
A couple of days ago, a reader… Read full post »
Stats: the obscenity of executive compensation in America
There’s a lot of AIG outrage in the air right now. But while the pundits, politicians and legal scholars debate what kind of recourse there is to rescind the bonus payouts to those disgraced execs, there’s something I’m not seeing a lot of discussion about.
It’s that the overa… Read full post »
I confess. I caved. I went to a movie!!
Last night I did something I haven’t since losing my job
last November. I saw a movie in a theatre. From all the
second-guessing I did beforehand, you’d think I was about to
head to a GM dealership and buy a car.
I cut out almost all indulgences when I was… Read full post »
Holy poop! RIM is hiring!!! (aka Blackberry!)
I’m sure you heard of the smart little Canadian company
called Research In Motion.
No?
Okay, I know you’ve heard of the Blackberry. Yeah, that
little smart phone President Obama won permission to keep in his
pocket.
The Blackberry is made by the Canadian company RIM (pronounced
rim,… Read full post »
Beyond shame: the new honesty about getting laid off
Let’s go back in time. Let’s say a year ago. And
let’s say, just hypothetically speaking, your manager has
just asked to meet with you.
You head to the meeting room and already sitting there is the HR
manager. After about 2 seconds, you know this is not good news.
You’r… Read full post »
I’ve never been a good negotiator when it comes to salary
and compensation. Or a car purchase. Or even a 20-year-old lamp
sitting on the lawn of a garage sale.
I hate talking about money. It makes me uncomfortable.
And more than talking about money, I hate asking for it.
Of… Read full post »
Twitter shows the real unemployment stats
There’s a living document of the recession playing out in
real time. It’s not the numbers plastered across all media
outlets today showing a 25-year high in the unemployment rate and
more than 650,000 jobs lost in the U.S. last month.
It’s Twitter. A quick visit will give you an alar… Read full post »
Am I just small-minded and petty? Or do I have a legitimate
grievance?
I just learned that Google yesterday reported paying out $6.3
million in bonuses to their senior management team. For last
year’s performance. For the year that ended in the first-ever
major layoffs Google had to make. For t… Read full post »
Have a good day at (LaidOff) Camp!
Today launches the first-ever LaidOff Camp taking place in
San Francisco. And yes, it's free.
The one-day event promises to be a morale booster and network
builder not simply for the unemployed, but for the alternatively
employed looking to start non-traditional ways of earning a living.
Tha… Read full post »
I read a sobering article this morning that appeared in
yesterday’s
New York Times. If you’re a boomer, be forewarned.
It may not be pretty reading.
It’s about a job fair that was held in New York this week
that saw more than 5,000 people show up at a venue able… Read full post »
The interview. Again.
Job interviews are not pleasant. Anyone out of steady work is
instantly buoyed by the possibility of a job offer, but I
don’t know anyone who looks forward to the actual
interview.
The entire task is to convince someone that you’re competent,
talented, motivated, intelligent, a go… Read full post »
Useless advice for the laid-off
There’s an article floating around the web.
Actually, it’s not just one article but one theme with about
10,000 variations. These articles are usually called something like
“What to do when you’re laid off”.
And here’s the thing: I think they're written by so… Read full post »
9 signs the recession has hit the Oscars
1. The pre-Oscar spike in non-surgical procedures at Hollywood plastic surgeons is down. Watch for a few more lines and thinner lips tonight. Except on Angelina Jolie.
2. The usual line-up of stars will be missing from the pre-show red-carpet gawking. To boost r… Read full post »
I passed my next job hurdle. I hope.
I’m now half-way through my 3-month job contract. Aka my 3-month let’s-see-if-we-like-you-and-your-work-cuts-it-and-we-might-keep-you-longer contract.
Today was another hurdle passed. It’s called the Client Presentation. In advertising terms, the Client Presentation is a big deal.… Read full post »
It is such an enormous decision that I've been coming to
it slowly. But I realize now I can’t avoid making it.
I’m going to sell my house. Of course, I’m lucky to own
a house. Well, me and the bank. And that’s the problem.
I moved into this… Read full post »
New Yorker Layoff Retrospective
A collection of cartoons from The New Yorker dating back
to 1992. Yes, we've been here before.
2001
1996
1994
1996
undated
1992
2002
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p.s. If you have a story to share about the impact of… Read full post »
Essential Viewing for the Laid-Off
TOP 10 THINGS I LOVE ABOUT TORRENTS
1. I get access to obscure documentaries I won’t find on
the video store shelf
2. I’ve been saved from reading bad books all the way through
(and watch bad movies instead)
3.… Read full post »
It’s a nice gesture for a fast-food chain, but my “is-this-really-altruistic” antennae is way up. California Tortilla (with locations in Washington D.C., Virginia, Maryland, Delaware, West Virgina and Pennsylvania) is offering a Burrito Elito card to anyone who’s been… Read full post »
Kerry Lauerman
Joan Walsh
Salon.com