Note: This is the last post in the “Random thoughts I drafted but never posted” series! For now… ;P

4. UNEMPLOYMENT

One day many many months ago, I was waiting in the lobby of the service department while my car got an oil change, and I ended up watching parts of the Today Show on NBC. There was an interesting segment about the role reversal that some couples/families are experiencing in light of the economic crisis.

“Just as the women’s movement gave women choices, this downturn may inadvertently give men choices. Yes, you can be Mr. Wall Street, but now you can also stay at home.”

I’m not sure I think the economic downturn is just like the women’s movement, but I see their point. Boys are conditioned from an early age to believe they must be the breadwinner. What’s wrong with being Mr. Mom?

The Boston Globe also had an article titled “For now, laid off and loving it”:

As the ranks of the nation’s unemployed grows, more Americans are facing the reality of life without work. Despite the grim task of making ends meet (firing the nanny, bailing on Whole Foods, applying for unemployment), there is a newly forming society of people who are making the best of being laid off. They are rediscovering hobbies. They are greeting kids at the school bus. They are remembering what daylight actually looks like.

“There’s less of a ‘why aren’t you working attitude’ that is giving people some extra space and freedom to explore new directions and just take time off to do the things they’ve wanted to do, whether it’s spending more time with children, taking a class, or traveling around the world,” Challenger said.

Personally, I think it’s healthy for people to realize that there is more to life than work and money. That said, it’s also good for people to pay their bills.

In general, I think we’re moving towards more flexibility in the workplace. You can see it in the dot-coms: flex work hours, company sponsored bar, bouncy balls instead of chairs. The older generation is resistant to this because it goes against everything they learned about being responsible adults and productive members of the workforce. You can’t have fun at work! But the younger generation is all, PSCHAW. Yes you can! And you should!

However, the younger generation also needs to realize that the older generation got to where they did for a reason. It’s not all iChat and YouTube and Gmail. We’re a generation of multi-taskers, for better or (usually) worse. If we really want these flexible workplaces to work, we’ve got to learn how to focus and produce. Company sponsored bars aren’t cheap, you know. (The bouncy balls are, though. So if that’s all you want in life, you’ll probably be fine.)

Anyway, that’s a bit of a tangent from unemployment…