ERADAD - the JobSeeker's Acronym

I'm a huge fan of acronyms and the power they have as mnemonics. Many years ago, I can remember watching a comedy bit with Paul Reiser, when he was doing standup, and he explained the importance of getting a phone number that actually spelled something: "It's much easier to tell your friends, 'Don't forget, call me, SNOOPY5!' than it is when you're saying, 'Give me a buzz, SLURGFE!'"

One of the most famous acronyms is DABDA, which is known as the Five Stages of Grief. Those stages - Denial, Anger, Bargaining, Depression, Acceptance - have been adopted to all sorts of personal crises, including divorce, drug addicition and infertility.

(On a tangent, my first exposure to the concept of DABDA was not from a college psychology class, but rather, from the movie All That Jazz, a Bob Fosse semi-autobiographical film, which chronicles the life/final days of a cynical showbiz director. The finale remains one of the most shocking memories I have from media in my childhood (remember, I saw this film when I was about 10 years old). Set to the song, "Bye Bye Love," Roy Schieder and Ben Vereen sing "Bye Bye Life" - it's a more powerful finale when you've seen the whole movie, but for those who never intend to see it, I've attached the finale below --warning, it's not entirely safe-for-work, as there's a *very brief* moment of nudity):



On to ERADAD. I was thinking, does DABDA really capture what the jobseeker goes through, each week? And, I realized, it definitely doesn't. First, there's no denial. When you're unemployed and looking, there's no point in denial or assuming it's not happening to you. Such an effort simply delays the process. And, even more to the point, there's definitely no place for 'acceptance' - to accept the fate is to simply give up.

So, it was now important to come up with a new acronym. Thus, was born ERADAD, which truly captures the week-to-week emotional rollercoaster of the unemployed.

ENTHUSIASM: Each week, when I send out resumes, I'm the most optimistic. Look at all these great jobs! I would be perfect for all of these roles! It's just a matter of time until they call me, interview me, and realize that I'm absolutely the best person for this job. It's definitely going to be any day now.

RATIONALIZATION: Why haven't the jobs from last week called? Well, it's probably okay. Do companies really call people back that quickly? There's so many applicants, it takes time to get through those resumes to see mine. And, what if the hiring manager is on vacation? This is absolutely a minor setback.

ANXIETY: But, what if that's not the case. Did I make a typo in my cover letter? Should I have customized my resume a little more? How do I possibly improve my standing? What more can I do? Should I apply again? Should I go to the office? That has worked for other people, right?

DESPERATION: What is taking so long? Am I going to be unemployed forever? Should I apply to other jobs I'm less suited for, so that I increase my odds? Should I look into changing my career? What other mistakes have I made with my life?

ANGER: This is ridiculous. What is taking so long? How can these companies not recognize that I'm definitely the best candidate for the job? I know I killed during the interview, and I'm very interested in their company and the role. I don't see what the problem is. I have great references, and I'm a great employee -- loyal, proactive, creative -- what is taking so long?

DEPRESSION: I'll never get a job. Why do I even bother? I should just give up. I'm only prolonging the inevitable. Let me sell my house, and figure out how to make it the next 20+ years until I can collect social security (assuming there'll even be social security then).

Note - the amount of time from "enthusiasm" to "depression" can be as little as one day. There's definitely no place for 'acceptance' here -- it's vital that the depression wear off in time for the next week, so the process can begin again.

Along the way, you try and take your mind off things; cultivate your network, keep up your skills (I attended a social media conference last week, just to stay up-to-speed on tactics; even though most of the information was fairly beginner-level).

But, the cycle above stays pretty stable week-to-week. I do feel lucky that I've had the number of interviews I've had -- among my circle of fellow job-seekers, I've almost certainly had more than anyone else. However, while that keeps me occupied, I fail to see how that's necessarily a good thing (heh - look at that, in one sentence, we jumped from "enthusiasm" to "depression" ... that may be a record!)