Elance - Whatevs
I have just re-activated my profile and placed a bid on Elance. It’s a simple enough project and I thought it ripe for the experiment. Urbie finds these wheezes a waste of time and I received a solid eye roll from him for even placing a well pedicured toe into these waters (the toes being well pedicured due to time available).
I understand the argument against. The tendency to undercut and competing with people who live in places with a lower standard of living, but right now, for me, it’s all about staying busy and not stagnating. To prove that I am employable. To vary the portfolio. To stay the hell out of my anxiety closet.
Having a birthday recently didn’t help me either. The thoughts of rapidly advancing age coupled with economic distress are not helping the sleep patterns - why not work on someone else’s website in the wee hours? At least it won’t feel like a total waste of time even though the whole gig is probably netting me 28¢ an hour.
And then there are the workshops on "Standing Out In This Tough Job Market." I went to one where I sat and listened to an hour’s worth of codswallop from a recruiter. Honestly. I knew I was doomed to lose a precious hour when she advised people to use the Return Receipt feature in email. It only went downhill with the advise to mail our resumes with a post it note message reading "This one looks promising" or some such phrase to make it look like it was forwarded on from Someone In The Know.
Both Urbie and I have come to the conclusion that it is just a matter of networking. Jobs in the near future will be word of mouth affairs and until then, we refrain from chasing our tails. I wish us, and everyone else who finds themselves in this position, luck and soothing vibes.