Woman Shares How Joblessness Makes Her Feel Useless, Sparks Discussion on Unemployment Struggles

Woman Shares How Joblessness Makes Her Feel Useless, Sparks Discussion on Unemployment Struggles

  • A South African woman took to social media to unpack how being unemployed made her feel
  • TikTok user @milzsunflower opened up about how anxious and useless she felt without having anything productive to do daily
  • Expert life coach, Penny Holburn shared advice on how the woman can navigate her feelings and dealing with being unemployed
  • The video struck a chord with many people who were in the same boat, struggling to find a job
A South African woman on TikTok, @milzsunflower, shared a video about the emotional toll of unemployment
A woman shared how being unemployed had her feeling useless. Image: @milzsunflower
Source: TikTok

A Mzansi woman posted an honest and relatable video about the disheartening reality of being unemployed.

Woman shares pain of feeling useless

Unemployment can be a huge source of stress, with the worry of finances and the feeling of not being productive taking a toll on your well-being.

TikTok user @milzsunflower shared a video in which she opened up about feeling useless as a young, unemployed woman.

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"Realistically I know that unemployed people are not useless. But there is a feeling of absolute and complete uselessness when you're not doing something on a day to day basis, Monday to Friday during work hours.
"There's an abject feeling of uselessness. It's like you're just nothing and it's a horrible feeling. I feel anxious and restless becasue what am I doing with my life," @milzsunflower said in her post.

Life coach offers sound advice

Experienced life coach, Penny Holburn spoke to Briefly News about how the young woman could better manage her anxiety and feeling of worthlessness due to unemployment.

"Try to have a realistic view of finding a job. It takes a long time—a very long time. We don’t like this because most of us need a job to earn an income and have food and shelter. But the reality is that it takes a long time to find a job. Don’t beat yourself up about this because it is not you; it is the way things are in SA," Penny said.

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Penny added that because job hunting can be very difficult and even soul-destroying, @milzsunflower needs to keep reminding herself of her strengths and achievements.

"This is not happening because you are worthless, it is happening because that is the state of the job market in South Africa."

Penny also advised the young woman not to lose heart and to keep looking for jobs available and applying.

"Build a network and keep building it. Talk to people in your network at regular intervals. Work on your CV and cover letter. Keep improving them. Finding a job is a numbers game to some extent, so you just have to keep applying," Penny advised.

SA shares unemployment struggles

The post resonated with many young Mzansi people, who flocked to the comments section to share how they could relate to not having a job despite their greatest efforts to find work opportunities. Others also opened up about feeling like a burden to their loved ones.

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Felix replied:

"My parents make me feel like a burden & think that I'm lazy, complacent & that I enjoy living for free when in actuality it deeply pains me to see my peers buying cars, houses & enjoying their freedom."

Sinegugukhoza said:

"It's worse when you stay at home. Your family starts complaining that you ate all the bread."

naddii reacted:

"I’m at work, but I feel the same ??."

Nyanisile commented:

“'What are your plans for the day' - nothing bro ."

Boity replied:

"It's comforting to hear somebody speaking about this because I tend to feel like I'm the only one in the world who's unemployed."

Lindy_Jan responded:

"Mondays and paydays are the worst when you are unemployed."

Bridget_cordget replied:

"Kunzima lana shem yoh."

SA woman quits her job to choose herself

In another story, Briefly News reported that one young lady shared her emotional journey of quitting her job, and people were touched by her story.

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Woman who shared how her first week as a "baby lawyer" went impresses TikTokkers: "Let me study!"

A young lady melted hearts in Mzansi with her story. The lady who goes by the TikTok handle @honeyvundisa2 opened up about leaving her workplace.

The stunner revealed in her video that she had resigned with no plan but had to choose for herself instead. @honeyvundisa2 went on to explain that while working at her previous job, she began to fall ill due to "stress," hence why she left.

Source: Briefly News

Authors:
Nothando Mthembu avatar

Nothando Mthembu (Senior editor) Nothando Mthembu is a senior multimedia journalist and editor. Nothando has over 5 years of work experience and has served several media houses including Caxton Local Newspapers. She has experience writing on human interest, environment, crime and social issues for community newspapers. She holds a Bachelor’s Degree and an Honours Degree in Media Studies from the University of KwaZulu-Natal, obtained in 2016 and 2017. Nothando has also passed a set of trainings by Google News Initiative. Email: nothando.mthembu@briefly.co.za

Penny Holburn avatar

Penny Holburn (Founder of Penny Holburn Coaching) Penny Holburn is a life, career and business coach running her own coaching business since 2010. She has spent 20 years as a consultant in psychological assessment, organisational development, personal and business change, leadership development, coaching and counselling. Penny has majors in psychology and industrial psychology and an MSc Cum Laude in psychology and has completed a Senior Management Development Programme through Wits Business School.

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