Being unemployed has such a negative impact on one, so much so that the only reason I’m getting up is because I have a child that is my responsbility to get to school. However, because of that I decided that actually I’m going to look at things I can do, because my house is spotless and there’s only so my drawers and cupboards I can re-arrange!
I feel like I’ve unlocked the rare life mode where every day is technically a weekday, time becomes meaningless and my biggest daily decision is whether to “job hunt” or “accidentally sit and looking like I’m watching day time TV whilst scrolling social media and laughing at cat videos.”
The good news? I know I can absolutely pass the time without spending money. The bad news? I realise that I will develop a strange relationship with daylight and start measuring my self-worth in how many tabs you opened on “jobs that don’t require experience.”
I’ve looked at some deeply budget-friendly survival strategies with the appropriate level of sarcasm and emotional support denial.
The Library: Where You Go to “Become Smarter” but Mostly Just Whisper and Panic Quietly
Ah yes, the library. A magical place where you go to “improve yourself” and instead spend 45 minutes pretending to understand what book you should be reading while secretly googling “how to become employable fast without crying.”
Libraries are brilliant because:
- They are free
- They are quiet
- They make you feel like a productive Victorian scholar even if you’re just reading Wikipedia-level explanations of quantum physics
You can learn literally anything. Want to become a coder? There’s a book for that. Want to understand economics? There’s a book for that. Want to emotionally recover from unemployment? There is probably a fictional novel where someone else has it worse!
And the best part? Nobody judges you. Well, they do, but silently, which is the British way.
Walking: The Ancient Art of Pretending You’re “Clearing Your Head”
Walking is fantastic because it’s free, mildly healthy, and gives me something to do while my brain replays every job application you’ve ever submitted and every email you regret.
I tell myself:
“I’m going for a walk to get fresh air and think.”
What I am actually doing:
- Rehearsing fake interview answers out loud
- Mentally calculating how long you can survive on £3.42
- Judging squirrels for having stable employment
- Pretending that none of this is actually happening
Still, walking is excellent. It makes you look like a person with purpose, even if that purpose is “avoiding existential dread indoors.”
Free Online Learning: Because Nothing Says “Self-Improvement” Like 47 Open Tabs
Ah yes, the digital university of “I will definitely finish this course.”
There are endless free platforms where you can learn skills like:
- Coding
- Marketing
- Graphic design
- “How to be employable in 2026” (still no answers)
I always start enthusiastically. I take notes. I will at some point begin to feel intellectual superiority for approximately 22 minutes.
Then you will open another tab and suddenly be watching a video titled:
“Why medieval peasants had better work-life balance than you”
Which, frankly, feels personal.
But hey—technically, I am learning and I’m just learning in a non-linear, emotionally chaotic way.
Job Applications: The Full-Time Job That Pays in Rejection Emails
Let’s not ignore the obvious: job searching is a job.
A very special job where:
- You tailor CVs like you’re writing love letters to companies that will ghost you
- You refresh email inboxes like it owes you money
- You become emotionally invested in job descriptions that use the word “dynamic”
And every now and then, you get the joy of:
“We regret to inform you…”
Ah yes. The corporate equivalent of “it’s not you, it’s also you, but we’re being polite about it.”
Still, it’s free entertainment. Think of it as a slot machine where the prize is “a chance to pay the mortgage or rent.”
Cooking Experiments: The Art of Turning Basic Ingredients into “We Have Food at Home”
Unemployment does wonders for your culinary creativity, mainly because you’re trying to avoid buying anything new.
This could potentially lead to experiments like:
- “Pasta but with three random sauces mixed together”
- “Rice again, but emotionally different”
- “Eggs, because eggs are always high in protein but don’t fill you up”
I will become convinced that I’m “getting into cooking,” when in reality I am just trying to avoid spending £4 on a sandwich.
Still, there is joy in it. Occasionally you will accidentally create something edible and feel like Gordon Ramsay would mildly approve before immediately shouting at you.
Exercise (Without Paying for a Gym, Because Obviously)
Gyms are expensive. So instead, so I have entered the ancient discipline of “home fitness denial.”
Options include:
- YouTube workouts (I will quit halfway)
- Stair climbing (I will resent my house)
- Stretching while questioning life choices
- Randomly lifting household objects and calling it “resistance training”
You’ll also develop a strange competitive relationship with yourself:
“If I do 10 push-ups, I am basically employed again.”
This is not scientifically accurate. But emotionally? It helps.
Becoming a Professional Overthinker (Free, No Qualifications Required)
Unemployment gives you time. And time gives you thoughts. And thoughts give you… well, too many thoughts.
I have been analysing:
- Every career decision I’ve ever made
- Whether my CV font choice is why I’m unemployed
- If pigeons have jobs (they seem stable, honestly)
- If there was a job where I test out furniture (potentially beds!)
This is normal. Unfortunately.
The key is to occasionally interrupt this process with something productive, like making tea or staring at a wall in a structured way.
Final Thoughts: I Am Not Lazy, I Am in “Low-Budget Character Development”
Unemployment can feel like you’re stuck in pause mode while everyone else is on fast-forward. But in reality, you’re just in a very unglamorous chapter of life where your main achievement is “kept going.”
And the truth is, there are plenty of things you can do without spending money:
- Learn something new
- Move your body
- Read things that make you sound intelligent
- Apply for jobs that make you question reality
- And occasionally convince yourself you are thriving
Because one day, I hope that I won’t be unemployed anymore. And will ook back and think:
“Wow, I really did 14 ‘productive’ things a day while emotionally held together by coffee, sugar and hope.”
And honestly? That’s a skill set too.
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Adulting: an unfiltered and occasionally functional mum, wife and walking wikipedia 
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