Pay it Foward

I don't know about the rest of you, but I have been underemployed for over one year now. I choose to use the word underemployed instead of unemployed because I continue to work part time in the film & TV industry. Part time work is better than nothing and usually more lucrative than unemployment. Our industry was hard hit before the recession due to runaway production to states and foreign countries that offer tax credits and rebates. Resourceful state governments in hard hit areas like Michigan, New Mexico and Louisiana enacted tax credit legislation to lure production away from California and they've done a damn good job of it. California's legislature has been incapable of protecting jobs that employ over a quarter of a million workers and suppliers in Los Angeles alone. This week Panavision announced it was having financial difficulties. It's a sorry sign of the state of our industry when the leading camera supplier almost goes belly up. Next thing you know we'll be shooting TV series on our iPhones.

I've adapted to the current situation by working for several employers, a day here a day there, Saturdays, Sundays, whenever work is available. Whereas before I was a full time employee with union benefits and federal and state taxes paid by my employer, now I am a freelance worker with no benefits (my insurance is running out soon) and it is up to me to pay my own taxes. Unfortunately I am not earning enough to make my monthly commitments and pay taxes unless I give up the important things like a roof over my head, my car, medical care or food.

During this past year of underemployment I have learned some survival techniques that have helped me keep my sanity. Over the next month, I'd like to share them with you. Not all of my ideas are money makers, but at least they give me something to do with my time. There are a lot of things that you can do to make the most of your unemployment/underemployment. Cleaning out your closets is one of them. I started with my bedroom closet. I had no idea how many items I had in my closet, clothing that I hadn't worn in years, jewelry, shoes, handbags that I had spent good hard earned money on and rarely used.

I made myself try on every item in my closet. Over the past few years I have lost a considerable amount of weight, so over half the items were way too large for me to wear. I tried having a few pieces taken in, but the tailor charged me nearly as much as the items original cost and a few weeks later they were too large again. I sorted them by sizes and then into piles for each of my friends and family. They were struggling, too. Why should they waste money on new clothes? I outfitted a few friends with suitable business attire and then asked them to clean out their closets and pass on the results to someone else. This pay it forward closet cleaning is something all of us can do. Of course you can donate your used clothes to charity, and some of my rejects ended up as donations, but I enjoyed seeing the smiles on my friends' faces as they tried on my barely used items.

Now some of you are thinking, maybe I should take the tax deduction or sell my stuff on EBay and make some cash. There are people out there who have created rental services for evening wear and high end handbags. Be creative, there are a lot of ways to benefit yourself and others with the items you already have.

Tomorrow: More Ways to Make Money Cleaning Your Home