Being out of work felt like employment purgatory, some kind of in-between state betwixt work and permanent slackerdom. Fortunately for me, this state was short-lived and I’m happy to report that as of yesterday, I’m back in the fold of gainful employment. Actually, I’m on a roll, as it looks like I’ll be working not one, not two, but probably three jobs, or at least managing three disparate income streams.

With an economy continuing to bump along and where there are fewer jobs than people willing and able to fill those jobs, finding a new position takes effort and determination—maybe even a little luck. While my initial goal was to find something that was a solid fit for my skills, as well as something that could leverage the knowledge and network I’d developed over the past six years, at some point, I would have gone the staffing route (as this employment guru suggests) rather than weather any more time being pushed through the sausage grinder that is unemployment.

I became fascinated how, despite knowing (intellectually) and having observed the way unemployment causes people to lose their edge over time, which makes it increasingly difficult to gear back up for work—I was surprised at how quickly I was beginning to slide down the slope of adapting to not working.

There’s a lot more I could write about this. Perhaps our manic schedules and the cycles of work actually move contrary to our body’s rhythms. Or maybe most of us would rather have more free, unencumbered time for ourselves. I certainly enjoyed being able to hop on my bike and ride for two hours each day. Actually, this was a necessary constant that I built into my down time and used it as a way to orient my day around and give it some semblance of routine.

I’m not sure about the deeper issues concerning work and human beings. I know I’m not well-heeled enough to coast through life without having to work. Being able to find work that feeds some sense of well-being is a compromise I’m willing to make and glad to have the option of accepting.

My new position will be in the realm of workforce development. I’ll be working with some great partners, and once again, I’m spearheading what I think is an important initiative for Maine.

I’ll be connecting with some of you soon, and I’ll have more to share as I become fully immersed in my new work over the next few weeks.