Funemployment: is it for you?

by Kate Willoughby Hall, Richmondmom.com Founder & CEO, perpetually Funemployed.

When I first heard the term “Funemployment” the movie Office Space immediately came to mind. Even though the hero in this movie chooses to leave his own job at the threat of being laid off by “The Bobs,” his story resounds with the cubicle-contained everywhere. This cult-classic even has it’s own fan site, which will remain nameless because, hey, this is a family-friendly forum. Conjured images of an office professional & his colleagues going gangster on his copier? Priceless.

But this term—Funemployment—has come to light in a very different way. According to an extremely credible and highly academic source—The Urban Dictionary—Funemployment means:

-a happy time in one’s life when one is not employed and is not wanting to be employed

-the condition of a person who takes advantage of being out of a job to have the time of their life.

or, my favorite:

-state of unemployment where one is not looking for a job either because they’re on unemployment or cause their sugar daddy/momma is paying their bills

Fox news reported “a growing group of jobless across the nation are joining a self-proclaimed movement: ‘funemployment.’ It’s a group of jovial unemployed who say they’re finally doing what they’ve always wanted to do - whether it is blogging or starting a nonprofit. The LA Times says, “the funemployed do not spend their days poring over job listings. They travel on the cheap for weeks. They head back to school or volunteer at the neighborhood soup kitchen. And at least till the bank account dries up, they’re content living for today.” Sounds cool to me.

It appears that Funemployment is a veritable state of bliss in which one does not have anywhere to report, no person under which to be micro-managed, and, oh, no paycheck. (cue sad song). According to the Funemployment blog “because not everyone is lucky enough to work at a job they can’t stand” (best tagline EVER) the Funemployed may pop on this site to join a similar group of smart—yet drifting—individuals with which to chatter until they find a job.

Man, I wish I’d have found that site when I lost my job in November 2008. Oh wait, I was working on this site and looking for a job. Yeah, it ain’t all it’s cracked up to be when you’ve got a big ol’ mortgage, three kids, six weeks till Christmas and three weeks’ severance. But, hey, it was “fun” while it lasted.

ps. if you’re really Funemployed and would actually like to work, the girls at Momentum Resources can help you. They’re advertisers of this site, but they also rock on a personal level.

Comments:

Georgia Blair on 07/20 at 08:09 AM

Great to discover a term for the condition I’ve experienced since closing my store last August. Although I still teach an etiquette class now and then, and even stage a child’s birthday party here or there, I am tethered to no schedules, no commitments, no headaches—and, of course, no paychecks. It’s been a great year for sleeping in and family outings. At long last, we had the time to add a puppy to our mix. Changed my eating habits, embarked on a new fitness endeavor and shed 20 pounds. I’ve done an awful lot of thinking, mostly to decide what I want to be when I grow up. Gee, I really hope I figure it out before the dwindling funds disappear altogether and take all the “fun” right out of “funemployment!”