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volumes;
3) clothing, closet stuff - this is also a good time to take stock of outdated clothing, give it to charities and maybe find a few hidden gems that are still usable and comfortable, some of which may make you feel as if you went shopping without spending a dime.

USE WHAT YOU HAVE AND DETERMINE WHAT YOU NEED:

Contrary to many financial advisers, although expenses need to be carefully checked, you should not eliminate all arguable luxury items if some of those are important to your mental well-being and outlook.

So, if what relaxes you is watching good movies, do not cancel your Netflix subscription, but avoid paying exorbitant theatre prices - use the monthly plan that you already have to see good films at home.

If you thrive on sports, news, politics, what have you, do not cancel your cable or satellite service, but go back through each bill, determine which services you use, eliminate the others and maintain the ones you hold dear. At a time when you are resigned to a stricter financial fate, you will feel as if you have held onto some of what keeps you going and will appreciate it even more.

If you are a book-lover, you probably have countless great books around your place that you have not read - for the short term fix, visit libraries, not bookstores, you will be pleasantly surprised.

KEEP UP YOUR PHYSICAL HEALTH:

If you belong to a gym and have been going there, don't stop. If you have not been visiting the gym, you should decide whether that is part of your every day routine that you want to begin. If so, it will give you considerable focus and structure to your life and confidence as you see the results of your training; if not, drop the gym membership, but find some activity - running, hiking, camping, team sports, that keeps you fit and in the game, so to speak.

On my end, I took a large chunk of time during the midst of weekdays to train for a marathon, doing all of the prescribed training runs and eventually finishing the marathon in a good time and in very satisfying manner. This was one of those events that I knew would be difficult to achieve properly with a full time job, perhaps easier now having gone through it, and that I would always cherish for the rest of my life. Look for these types of activities: travel (hopefully affordable) to places difficult to visit otherwise, writing or starting a book, visiting long overdue friends and relatives - I'm sure you'll find an endless list.

In the long run, your mental outlook and state of well-being is the most important thing in your job search. You will need to feel good about yourself, your skills and how you spent your time away from work as you speak to prospective employers. Everyone will assume that you have diligently been looking for work, what they will not know is how well and productively you have spent your time away from work mentally until you find yourself speaking professionally and impressively to your next employer.

Best of luck all!

Learn more about this author, Pete Smits.
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