My Year Of Being Jobless

Four days ago I celebrated my first year of unemployment. 


I remember running out of the office building last September, clutching the exit letter to my chest. A colleague spotted me and, not knowing that I was leaving the office for the last time, called out: "Where are you off to Alicia?" 


It was a simple yet complex question, like are you religious or spiritual? So I told him I was going to the post office.


I walked away from a great job as global head of communications for a market research firm because a) my boss, the best boss in the world for whom I'd walk through fire, durian and a hail of bullets, was retiring and b) I wanted to lie down. Seriously. 


The years and frequent travel had taken their toll. My mind wasn't fresh anymore. I was tired of being tired. And curious whether I could make a go of it outside the protective corporate cocoon that had been my happy home for 12 years.


It's the first time since I was 22 that I've enjoyed a 12 month holiday. If you had told me five years ago to leave a secure, fabulous job in the middle of a recession, I would've laughed in your face. 


How would the bills be paid? What would I tell people when they asked what I did? How would I buy Jimmy Choos and grande sugar-free hazelnut soy lattes?


If you've ever thought of leaving a secure job but were too scared to think of the consequences, not only did I live through being jobless but it's been The. Best. Experience. Ever. Everyone should do it at least once in their lives. 


Some practical questions, tips and advice to consider before you start typing that resignation letter in joyous abandon:


What are you going to live on? Think of your financial obligations, what funds you have available and what you can do to live frugally. For me it involved giving up the Choos, moving into a smaller apartment and cutting down on restaurant meals. 


Be prepared to have half of your friends disappear. We form many of our relationships professionally and these morph into personal bonds. Very few of them survive when the professional glue is gone. I wouldn't worry. They were good for a particular time and place. It's time for you to move on.


You're not what you do. If you're used to swanning into a party and impressing everyone with your fancy title or famous company, be prepared to get a less than ecstatic reception when you become Joe Bloggs. 


What would you say at networking events where snotty, boring people ask you to 'describe yourself in five words or less'? (My stock answer was "Alicia Kan: Sleeping for America.")


Being jobless is a good test of your faith in yourself. Once you've stripped all the labels away, are you still happy you're you? 


Use the time to do what you truly want to do. When we're working we bitch and moan about not having time to spend on family and passions. Well now you have the opportunity. Don't waste it.


I spent my year catching up on sleep, networking, learning more about new media and selling off my work wardrobe. Most of all I dreamed. It was luxurious, liberating and intoxicating to finally have the time, the space to dream.


Finally, don't overthink it. You're not going to be the sad lady pushing the shopping trolley with her possessions down the street. You're taking a year off. If you've prepared financially and mentally, and are determined to make it work for you, it will be the best year of your life. 


I know it was for me. 


You can see more of Elyse's first birthday on Sarah Cady's Flickr photostream.