Gainful Unemployment
May 16, 2012
Tags: gainful unemployment

Life without a job can be full of profitable ventures.
It was just getting dark the night of November 1st, 1999 as I locked my bike outside my Ithaca apartment, walked inside and learned from my roommate that Bob had been trying to reach me. He was waiting at my parent’s farm for my call. The new house we’d just purchased up the road from my parents, 2 ½ hours away from where I was attending grad school, didn’t yet have a telephone. I went into my room, sat down at my desk and dialed. Bob answered on the first ring.
“Hi sweetie!” His voice was eerily chirpy.
“What’s up?”
“Are you sitting down?”
“Yes.”
“I need you to make a promise to me.”
“What’s that?”
“Promise me that you’re going to stay in school.”
“Huh?”
“Say it. Promise me that you’re going to stay in school.” I was 2 years away from completing my Ph.D.
“Okay. I promise to stay in school,” I said lightly.
“Good. ‘Cuz I got fired today.”

Shock rippled throughout my body. Nobody in my family had ever been fired from a job. Getting fired was the domain of ne’er do wells and criminals. It was not something that happened to the members of my upstanding, hard-working family. My world was suddenly turned upside-down. Bob and I were newly engaged. We’d just bought our home with a bank mortgage granted to us exclusively on the grounds of his income. My graduate stipend merely covered my school and apartment expenses, so my income wasn’t even added into the equation. Even if I quit school and came home to help make ends meet, there weren’t many jobs on offer in our rural community. Our best bet was for me to complete the Ph.D. and hope I’d be able to please the right people and score employment at the local state college.

I finished the Ph.D. But I never got a teaching job. By the time I had my degree in hand, I didn’t need the job. Bob and I had become gainfully unemployed.

Gainful unemployment is slightly different from radical homemaking, although the two strategies used together make for a dynamic synergy. In radical homemaking, someone from the household may have a normal job while someone else in the household works to keep living expenses low by helping the household to produce more than it consumes. Gainful unemployment is a strategy that Bob and I had to figure into the mix in order to survive, as it became clear early on that neither one of us wanted to go out to a job, and we still needed to pay some bills.

Essentially, gainful unemployment is a diversified income strategy. My grandfather loved to talk economics with me, and growing up, I was forever lectured about the importance of having a diversified investment portfolio. He taught me that if all my money was invested in the same place, in the event of a crash or a catastrophe, I would lose everything I had saved. A diversified income strategy is the logical next step. If all one’s time is invested in one venture for one’s livelihood, and that venture fails, then there’s big trouble. We were never more insecure than when we counted on job security for our survival. When Bob and I were relying on his paycheck, we were completely dependent upon the mood of his boss. That, clearly, didn’t pan out well. If we were to support our home by having me get a job teaching, we’d be in the same predicament. That is a dangerous financial situation for a household populated by outspoken personalities.

With gainful unemployment, a livelihood comes from myriad sources. If one income stream fails, it is never more than just a part of the income portfolio, which means it is significantly easier to replace than a full-blown salary. Another attribute of gainful unemployment is that all the different income sources draw upon myriad skills. Some sources of income come from physical work, some from intellectual work, some from skilled craftsmanship or artistic work. Bob and I have found that this reduces boredom, but also provides greater security if an injury or emotional trauma prevents us from doing one particular form of work. – A broken leg may make house painting an inappropriate income stream for a while, but a person could still do web design. A traumatic event in the family may make it difficult to focus on desk work for a spell, but the physical work of tending plants or livestock would be a welcome reprieve.

Over the years, our gainful unemployment portfolio has evolved with our changing needs, resources and interests. In the beginning we mowed lawns, rented out rooms, helped on construction projects, did community development consulting work and graphic design, painted decks, weeded people’s gardens, and worked on two different farms. Today we keep bees, sell meat, make salves, candles and soaps from our animal fats and beeswax, weave baskets, write and publish books, work on the family farm, lecture and teach. Our income portfolio is always changing, and we are always investing a portion of our income in new ventures to replace any we may phase out. Last year we planted an orchard. The year before, we started a small vineyard to support a small organic fruit enterprise. This year we’re experimenting with growing our own willow for baskets and furniture making, and we’re starting a fiber business. We’ve made and sold Christmas ornaments from found objects, catered local food events, and baked for hire, too. Over time, once the house was paid off, we acquired financial capital that we’ve been able to invest according to our values that has helped further diversify our income stream.

Gainful unemployment doesn’t make for a glamorously high income. But when partnered with the skills of radical homemaking — growing one’s food, home cooking, making rather than buying gifts and household needs; cooperating with friends, family and neighbors to get work done or care for loved ones, learning how to manage finances in a local life-serving economy, making rather than buying entertainment, etc., the net proceeds can be substantial. These come in the form of increased savings, increased fun, greater economic and emotional security, greater net worth, and tremendous self-worth.
Comments
May 16, 2012 10:34 AM EDT
I love the term “Gainful Unemployment”. I stayed home raising the kids, and learned how to garden, can, sew, and make do. It was great, and the kids are young adults doing very well.
– Rose C.
May 16, 2012 8:57 PM EDT
This is.great! I have had this concept on mind for a while. Seeing so many people out if work and depressed has me scratching my head- yes I understand its a big deal, but is it really the end?! I have a friend who is desperately looking for a job, and is training for a pharmacy position at one if the many drug stores. It made me think if I were in here shoes, would I resort to making money from giving people pharmaceuticals?? I don’t think I coul, I would learn a new way of life, whatever it took. I think more people should learn the gainfully unemployed way of life! What we may see as a horrible situation could actually be the exact thing we need to catapult us forward.
– lala
May 17, 2012 11:27 AM EDT
Gainful unemployment! That’s my goal. Great post. Thanks for continuing to inspire.
– Lucy
May 17, 2012 1:39 PM EDT
Yes! I love this term for a practice that makes so much sense. For us life learners, it’s also a way to keep our minds active, as we continue to develop skills that can be translated into income.
– Teri
May 17, 2012 10:33 PM EDT
One of the most important parts of raising a family while gainfully unemployed is remembering that the most important things we give our children and family are free!
– Jenny
May 18, 2012 2:16 PM EDT
as usual, your post strikes a timely chord with me. i recently fractured my arm. i’m a baker/bakery owner who is decidedly grumpy about not being able to roll out pie dough and such at the moment. luckily, we have a new wonderful staff member who is filling in. i’m filling my time w/ updating our website, marketing and planning new bakery backyard garden adventures (potato tower sunday!). Making dog treats w/ our daughter for a local humane society fundraiser and a fairy garden are welcome diversions.
– Britin @ All Good Bakers
June 16, 2012 11:34 AM EDT
I just found your blog and am lovin’ it!! I too am gainfully unemployed. Have been for probably about 10 years. I’ve just discovered that there are several terms people are using that are gaining more acceptance in the mainstream-unjobbing and micropreneur are the 2 I’ve read about. It brought me great joy to learn there are lots of others out there doing the same as me and giving it a name! I’m hoping as time goes on it will have less of a stigma attached to it at least as far as my own extended family goes 😉 because I love it! Currently I do work as a personal organizer in homes and businesses, I cater & do gluten free baking for my college alma mater, I’m a personal nutrition coach and assist folks in the transition to live gluten free, I’m editing a book that will be self-published by one of my clients and I babysit for date nights for a friend of mine. I love the variety and how seamlessly new opportunities arise when one wraps up. Thanks again for your great posts on the topic!
– Chelsie
June 16, 2012 2:59 PM EDT
I have read your book and am new to the idea of radical homemaking and gainful unemployment. I have been thinking I would like to start to move our family in that direction but it is scary. I found your blog interesting as I come from the mainstream idea of having “a job” and “an occupation” and having those as forms of security versus trying several things ventures. I wold like to find a group of like-minded people in my community as I think community efforts are what make it work.
But it is challenging parenting in this consumer focussed society when there are few like-minded people.
– Erica
Post a comment