Are you looking for work?

Do you know someone looking for work? You are not alone. With unemployment at 13% in RI and 9.3% in MA, there are lots of folks out of work and looking.

There is a heavy population of those 40+ looking for work. There is also a significant number of recent college graduates out looking for work.

In the course of my own job search effort, one thing became evident: the power of we. Who you know is as important as what you know. By talking with each other, sharing our experiences, sharing what has worked or didn't work. By networking with each, sharing our connections, who knows who, we can help each other get a better connection to the next position.

With as many resumes being submitted for each job posting, the pile for the hiring manager is overwhelming. How do you get out of the pile? Your network!

A core group my connections who understand the "power of we" are working hard to put together the LaidOff Camp. The camp will facilitate the best practices of the job search effort. In one afternoon, over the course of four hours, you'll be able to participate in a session to help your own individual job search effort. Sessions on networking, using LinkedIn, interview tips, a practice interview session and others are being planned for this event.

This is a non-profit effort. The $10 charge will simply allow us to cover the facility fee and provide some refreshments during the afternoon.

For this small dollar cost, you will walk away with more knowledge, more connections and hopefully more confidence in taking the next step in your job search effort.

You should visit the LaidOff Camp website to register.

You should tell whomever you know that is looking for work about this event.

We are in this together and the 'power of we' can help us achieve success!


Register for LaidOff Camp Attleboro/Providence here

Register now, please!

There is no such thing as a free lunch! The economic wisdom of TANSTAAFL is well known and accepted. Someone needs to pay directly or indirectly.

Your LaidOff Camp Attleboro/Providence is a perfect example of this. The facility to hold this event costs money. The Living Waters Church has been very gracious in providing a very aggressive price for this event, especially because of the cause and their desire to help.

If we could hold this out in some open space that would be one thing but the nature of the discussions and presentations require something to cover us from the elements (nevermind this wonderfully unpredictable New England weather!)

So you get to contribute and sponsor this event with your $10 registration fee. By the time the Eventbrite and credit card processing fees are subtracted from the $10, the team ends up with 8 dollars and change. This is budgeted to cover the facility and refreshments for up to 200 folks.

There is flexibility in the budget if we don't need refreshments for 200 but we still need to cover the facility fee. Hence, the plea for your registration before the event. We will need to make a go/no-go call around mid-week.

The team is composed of volunteers contributing their time and effort for this worthy event. We can't afford to sponsor this from our pockets. Most of us have been looking for work for sometime. We are in the same boat as you are.

You can help make this event a success in two ways:
1 - register early
2 - be an active participant when you arrive

You should leave with more knowledge about the job search, more connections and hopefully an extra dose of confidence to add the spring to the next step in your job search.

All this for $10!

Can you get a better deal elsewhere?

Register for LaidOff Camp Attleboro/Providence here


Note: a full accounting of the event budget will be made available to all.

Vulnerable is beautiful!

So you were laid off. It may have come as a shock. The economy is not so great right now. It is hard to keep looking. It is hard to keep up your spirits. The financial pressures are starting to mount.

You are not in this alone. The recently released JOLT numbers said that there were 2.4 million jobs posted. It also said that there were 15.1 million people looking for those jobs. Tough competition, yes.

You are not in this alone. You can stay alone and looking.

Or you can admit you are looking and job a networking group. Over the course of their meetings (whether weekly or monthly or?) you'll get to learn something from a guest speaker and network with others.

You can also come to Laid Off Camp on November 7th. For the one afternoon, for the cost of only $10, you'll get to share your tips and tricks of the job search with others.

Gain confidence in sharing what you know. Learn something new. Network with others.

And leave the event with more confidence, more knowledge, and a greater network behind you to take your next step in the job search!


Vulnerable Is Beautiful from Rachael Maddox on Vimeo.

Why wait, why not register now!

Vulnerable is beautiful. Especially when you are in good company!


Many thanks to Amy Palko for pointing out this video clip for me. Timing is everything.

LaidOff Camp Registration

The registration is now open.

Your cost - $10.

Why $10? The small charge covers the facility fee and provides for some refreshments during the afternoon.

Your benefit -

“LaidOff Camp participants will not only acquire dozens of new LinkedIn connections. More importantly, they will share experiences and ideas with their peers, make potentially valuable new contacts and refine their job search skills. And at the end of the day they’ll return home more confident and motivated to pursue new opportunities.”

Note: The capacity of the event we are planning for is 200.

What to expect by participating in a LaidOff Camp

What should you expect when participating in the LaidOffCamp Attleboro/Providence? Here are a few tips:

Preparation for the event

• Pre-register for the event to give the coordinators a good idea as to how many people are coming.

• Come early, but not too early - Showing up at the announced starting time will be fine. Show up earlier, and you'll get drafted for setup work (much appreciated!). Show up later, and you'll miss some social activity and the session scheduling.

• Be ready to participate - come with an idea for a session you can lead. You don't have to be an expert at your topic; as long as it's not too specific, there'll probably be someone else present who can help you out. You can also contribute to the conversation during a session. This is a great way to participate, since it spreads knowledge from everyone, instead of just the leader.

The day of the event

• When you arrive, go to the pre-registration table, where you can claim/make your nametag. Make your way into the gathering place, where you should find lots of people to network with.

• We plan to start by gathering together in the Assembly Hall. We'll review the schedule for the afternoon. If you see that a session you're interested in is not being offered, check with some neighbors to see if they would be interested, and then approach organizers. We will have some open slots for ad-hoc sessions to be scheduled the day of the Laid Off Camp.

• We plan on having time slots of 45 minutes for sessions. This should allow for a brief presentation and plenty of Q&A. We will allow for 15 minutes between session for follow up and additional networking. We are planning for refreshments to be available.

• As you finish the last session, please look around the room and pick up any trash. We want to leave the facility in as good and clean a condition as when we walked in. Every little bit you can do will help the overall event. 


Note: the starting points for this posting came from the LaidOff Camp wiki

Hold the date - Nov 7th!

The Attleboro/Providence Laid Off Camp Team is bringing the unconference peer-to-peer learning format to the unemployed. Hold the date, Saturday Nov 7th, from 1:00 PM to 5:00 PM.

Who should attend?

• Are you unemployed 
• Are you exploring entrepreneurial activities 
• Are you currently employed and willing to help

If you answered yes to any one of these, then the LaidOff Camp is for you.

The peer-to-peer learning format of the unconference will

• facilitate sharing the tips and tricks we have all learned while looking for work 
• provide additional networking opportunities 
• empower the unemployed to take the next step in their job search with more knowledge and confidence

Additional details and the registration process will be available by October 12th.

Welcome!

This is the blog for LaidOff Camp Providence, RI.

Our wiki page can be found here

If you create content or conversation around LaidOff Camp Providence, please use the tag "LOCPVD".