Day 51

Went to the Job Search Focus Group today. Its a professional networking group that meets Monday mornings at the Hyde Park Methodist Church. This was my second time going, the first time you go through an orientation, then stand in front of the group give a thirty second introduction into who you are, what you did last, and what you want to do. On my second trip I was able to observe a bit more, and to reach out and meet a few people. The second meeting was far more productive than the first.

Ive noticed that there are four types of people who attend these meetings;

1) Newly jobless: These can be classified by a certain forlorn look that is something like a dog with it's tail between it's legs. This group seems to be holding it together on the surface, but cannot manage to go ten minutes without thinking to themselves "I did something wrong and am now being punished."

2) In concentrated search mode: This group seems to have the mentality "I have a job, and that job is finding a job." They are well adjusted, and not at all at risk for nervous breakdown. At least not in public. Some of these people are veterans of being unemployed. The veterans have seen all this before and know exactly what to do, what to say, and when to say it.

3) Prolonged jobless: These folks have been out of work for a long time, sometimes a very long time. They seem ok with it. Or at least they arn't bothered by the day to day anymore. There are two sorts of prolonged jobless, those who want something very specific, and those who have something that makes them hard to hire in this economy (too much expirence for their job level, not enough expirence to not be beaten out, or are just not that personable).

4) The vulture: There is one of these in every meeting. They are preditors. They are there to prey on unsuspecting jobless, convinceing people with a slick speach to come and work in their debt reduction business, or their time share selling business, or their "firm/agency" (either Ad, financial, or marketing). There are hundrends more types of businesses that these preditors use as a front for their pyrmid scams. The nice part is that this type of scum is easy to identify. They tend to be have their speach too well rehearsed, like they had done it thousands of times before. They seem to sprint through the crowd looking for a sucker, and they will not take no for an answer.