by Laurie Childree

Created on: August 10, 2009   Last Updated: June 19, 2010

When you first become unemployed you might feel a sense of panic as you begin to worry about your financial well being. There is no need to panic, just step back and take a deep breath. You can survive being unemployed with some careful attention to detail and budgeting. So how do you survive being unemployed and keep what you've worked so hard for? There are some things that you can do in order to make the time you're unemployed easier on you.

Calling all of your creditors is the first thing that you should do in order to be sure that you have everything in order. Often if you call your creditors when you first become unemployed and before you fall behind on payments they will work with you. They will be more willing to work with you can cut down on your payment amount when you call them before you can't make the payments anymore.

Once you have called your creditors you need to look over the rest of your expenses and find all the areas that you can cut back in. You're going to need a phone for potential employers to call you on but do you need two of them? Cutting off the land line can save you $40 a month, check your cell phone bill and see if you can reduce it. Only pay for the actual amount of time that you need on it each month. If you're making your job contacts in person then you won't need that much time for potential employers to call you and set up interviews.

The light bill is an area that you can easily reduce. Conserve energy by turning the lights off that you don't need and unplugging anything in the house that you aren't using. Reducing the bill for utilities will help to make the time that you are unemployed easier on you. Any other bills that you can reduce will be a big help. You might want to consider turning off the cable and Internet during the time that you are unemployed to save that money as well. You can go to the library to take advantage of the Internet connect there in order to check email and even read the classifieds online. In addition to the added ability to pick up movies at no costs to watch before bed or on the weekends when you can't actively search for a job you can fill out job applications or rewrite your resume in air conditioned comfort that you don't pay the bill for. 

Sticking to the basics is a good idea when you are unemployed. Shopping for the things you use in the house while they are on sale can save you a lot of money. Keeping the groceries to the basics and learning to stop eating out will help to stretch the unemployment you are hopefully receiving further. When you're going out for the day to look for work pack a small cooler with some food, drinks and reusable towels to ensure that you don't spend money on eating out while you keep your clothes crumb free. 

When you are unemployed you might want to look into alternative methods for earning money. Something such as recycling aluminum cans that you find can help to put enough gas in your car to get you to your next job interview. Who knows you might be able to recycle enough to help you cover a bill and add a small amount to your savings account once you're put gas in the car. Avoiding waste and finding ways to reduce your bills to half will help to make surviving unemployment easier.

When you find yourself unemployed there is no need to panic but there is a need to get organized. You will also have to show more financial responsibility and attention to detail for those tiny things that you take for granted.

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