A millennial who couldn't find a job for 4 years revamped his family's meal planning and childcare to make it work

Editor's note: In May 2024, Business Insider wrote astir Dan Colflesh and his trouble uncovering a occupation aft earning his bachelor's degree. Read much here.

During the 4 years Dan Colflesh struggled to find work, helium often thought astir his upbringing successful rural Appalachia.

Colflesh was utilized to "pinching pennies" arsenic a young person, helium told Business Insider. And arsenic his occupation hunt dragged connected successful adulthood, helium began actively looking for ways to chopped costs.

"It's the proposal you get erstwhile you turn up poor," helium said. "If you don't person a batch of money, you can't walk a batch of money."

Colflesh is 1 of galore Americans who person struggled to find work successful caller years. While helium landed a occupation past year, hundreds of others person shared their stories with BI astir their long searches and however they've settled for lower-paying roles. Although the unemployment complaint remains debased by humanities standards, businesses are hiring astatine astir the slowest pace since 2013, excluding a impermanent dip successful 2020. In response, immoderate occupation seekers person recovered creative ways to wage the bills, set their application strategies, and enactment motivated.

"It's easier not to beryllium stressed astir uncovering a occupation if you don't person to accent astir finances astatine the aforesaid time," said Colflesh, 43, who's based successful Massachusetts.

Cutting costs eased immoderate pressure

Colflesh said helium was fortunate that some his woman and mother-in-law — who they unrecorded with — person jobs, which helped easiness the fiscal unit connected the household. Still, his household made a fig of adjustments to chopped costs during his occupation search.

For one, they bought a heavy freezer, which allowed them to bargain successful bulk and frost meals that Colflesh cooked successful ample batches — a acquisition helium believes volition prevention them wealth successful the agelong run. ​​They besides grew immoderate of their ain nutrient successful a rootlike plot and smoke-cured store-bought bacon astatine location to chopped market costs. Additionally, the household decided to halt utilizing 1 of their 2 vehicles and dropped the insurance connected it — a prime that was feasible due to the fact that Colflesh wasn't commuting to work.

Colflesh added that YouTube videos helped him grip basal car attraction himself, truthful helium could prevention wealth connected mechanic bills. And due to the fact that helium was location more, helium was capable to assistance attraction for his children, which reduced his family's childcare expenses. Colflesh said taking these steps helped him consciousness little unit during his occupation search.

A affirmative mindset helped him persevere

In 2015, erstwhile helium was 34, Colflesh discontinue his occupation successful the lawsuit work manufacture to prosecute a assemblage degree, hoping it would assistance him with vocation growth. Six years later, helium held an subordinate grade successful physics from Holyoke Community College successful Massachusetts and a bachelor's successful governmental subject from the University of Massachusetts Amherst.

However, Colflesh said the further acquisition didn't look to assistance him overmuch successful the occupation marketplace and saddled him with pupil loans. Despite applying to much than 100 jobs, helium said helium struggled to find work, which led him to intermission his hunt for a fewer months astatine a time.

Colflesh said helium tried communal occupation hunt strategies, similar tailoring his résumé and screen missive to each role, but thing seemed to work. Then, past year, a person referred him for a occupation astatine a tech company, that would impact answering phones, scheduling, and triaging lawsuit enactment tickets. He said the referral helped him onshore an interview, and by May 2024, he'd accepted a occupation offer.

"This isn't truly what I was looking for, but it's acold from the worst occupation I've had," helium said.

During his occupation search, Colflesh managed accent by hanging retired with friends, engaging with his hobbies, and spending clip with his family. While helium felt discouraged astatine times, helium did his champion to clasp a affirmative mindset, which helium said was cardinal to staying motivated.

"Staying affirmative has to beryllium a prime the idiosyncratic makes," helium said. "Waiting for the concern to make positivity volition apt origin you to consciousness unmotivated and upset. You support moving guardant due to the fact that what different enactment is there?"