You think your job defines who you are and it's something that is required for mental health? Does having a job make one feel "needed" and necessary in this world? - Do you need a job to maintain a certain degree of self esteem?
For men in our country, I think that's absolutely true. Think about it anecdotally for a sec. How do you introduce yourself to someone you have not met? Obviously, a handshake and you say your name, but I think in the course of small talk, saying what you do for a living usually comes right after that. Provided that we work full-time, our lives largely revolve around the office or the workplace, so it's only natural that we would get so much identity from it. On top of that, if you're good at what you do and it gets recognized by others, that's a powerful source of self-esteem.
I think it's all in the marketing. Even for me, someone who has spent way too many years in school, part of my pitch is being able to talk about what I study, how I got to Tucson, and my career aspirations. Other than that, you'd get my name, my ethnic background perhaps.
Not counting summer holidays in college, I have been unemployed twice. Before I moved to Tucson, at one point, I was working three jobs: at a behavioral health care clinic during the day, at a factory for the graveyard shift, and picking up a couple shifts at a restaurant waiting tables. The factory wouldn't give me the time off to do a visit in Tucson (before I accepted enrollment), so I had to quit that place. (It was okay; I got to sleep like a normal person.)
I worked at the healthcare place for a year. We were bought out by another company, and despite having over a year experience, they wouldn't give me the raise they promised. So I quit. My boss at the restaurant let me work full-time and she was really cool about it. Unfortunately, our restaurant shut down in the middle of the summer. Now out all my jobs, I had to leave Lexington and move home with my parents. It was temporary. I just thought of it as an extended vacation before moving away.
This summer, I learned just how hard it is to find work in Tucson. Half the city up and leaves to get away from the heat, and all across the board, people aren't hiring. I have a temporary consulting gig right now, but it only helps me pay for groceries, gas, maybe a couple bills. If I hadn't saved up some money from the school year, then I'd be toast!
The fact is, for unemployment to be
funemployment, you have to have one hell of a safety net beneath you. Even when I collected unemployment benefits before moving out here, I could
maybe get by on it but it would be incredibly difficult to do so with all the bills I pay each month. That, and if you're not working, your mind is left to wander. I got bored really easily. Yeah, I had fun playing video games and reading here and there and hanging out at the pool, but those days got old fast. On top of that, the struggle to find a job weighs heavily. You look for work,
want to work, but being broke can't get the bills paid, plus you start doubting your skills if people don't respond to your applications and such. It's a real burden.