Any ideas for career turnaround?

Question

I have a dear friend whom I am trying to help. He is 47 years old, lives in Baltimore, smart and good looking guy. Married with young daughter (and a mortgage...). Currently unemployed and almost broke. He always been a "loser" (his words) and although he was a good student and almost finished a degree in the university he never seemed to find his direction to a good and successful career. Any of you good people have a good and specific advice of the best way to act to turn around my friend's life and career(?)Something like short proffesional course etc' ("I hate my life" he says all the time and I can't blame him). Bless you all good people out there!
I would love ideas from similiar cases who "made a comeback" or anyone else.

Answer 1

Step 1: Have him make a list of what he likes to do.
Step 2: Have him make a list of what he is good at.
Step 3: Cross off any that don't match.
Step 4: Now make a list of jobs available that match this shortened list - and apply for those.
Step 5: Sort the jobs by ones he has had most experience doing. These he should interview for first.

Applying for a job is a numbers game first and a personality contest second. The numbers look like this:

100 emails with attached resumes = 2 phone calls.
10 phone calls = 1 in person interview
10 inperson interviews = 1 job

Also, once he gets a job, if he is there for a year and does not like it, then BEFORE he leaves that job, start looking quietly and applying quietly for a new job.

Hope it works out.


ps: One other thing > The brain is a neural network that make chemical and physical wiring connections based on concious, sub conscious and physiological input. When your friend says over and over that "he hates his life", then his brain will wire that in and he WILL hate his life. He needs to say over and over - even if he does not believe it at first - I love my life. He needs to do this 10 times a day - put notes around the house to remind him, etc. Sounds dumb, but it works.

Answer 2

I think asking him to pick up study again at this stage will only add on to his liabilities, tho' it's a good move,but maybe after he secure a stable income and wanting to progress further.

I do not know if your friends has a lazy bone or simply has a problem holding on to a job OR just plain unlucky, but perhaps he should find out what he is passionate about and try making his passion into his job. One thing very true is - If you are earning a living out of what you are most passionate about,you tend to put your heart and soul into it and the job lasts longer.

If he wants a simple job to start with, there are so many:
1) Making lunch boxes for the children in the estate for a small fee.
The current society is so busy and parents hardly have time for their kids. Although it's a sad scene,but I'm sure there will be people willing to pay for the service.
2) Door to Door car wash.
Another business idea created for the lazy people in the modern world.

There are thousands of job idea awaiting your friend to explore. All he needs is to move and DO IT.

All the best!

Answer 3

Anyone can make a comback as long as they have a positive attitiude and are willing to move forward and not look back.First things first, you friend has to change his attitude. As llong as he has negativity around him, it will breed more negativity.

he needs to make a list of likes and dislikes.

Needs to set goals. Short term, mid term and long range. These need to be realistic and obtainable. The short term ones should be milestones he can reach rather quickly. Even if is just taking a refresher class at Adult Education or the Community College. it is a great way to network and meet other people that can lead to opportunities.

Listing what he likes will help him determine what he would rather be doing on a day to day basis. If he likes to cook, maybe a job at a restaurant might be in order. If he likes to build things, then a job as a carpenter. If he likes to teach, then maybe volunteering somewhere may open up leads.

The degree he almost finished might be a start. he needs to complete obtainable goals. Student loans may assist while he takes courses to update his skills. A daily task list that has goals has to be in writing and he needs to check off things on a daily basis. It keeps the mind active and keeps the organizational skills working. It will give him a sense that he is doing something and at the end of the day all he needs to do is look at his journal of activiites to see what he has accomplished.

Answer 4

Sounds like the man needs to start his own business.

The man needs to stop feeling sorry for himself and look to his little girl for inspiration. He needs to get off his a** and get a job. Meanwhile, he can take a class at a community college or through community ed on starting your own business (how to write a business plan, get financing, etc). Then he needs to come up with an idea for a business (usually some product tor service someone always wish they had but no one has started yet) and get to it. Necessity is the mother of invention.

Answer 5

When you get a good answer to this question please share.

I have the same problem.

Almost but not quite desperate!

Have fun but be safe!