A recent article published in the Los Angeles Times discussed a trend among young adults: funemployment.
According to the Urban Dictionary, funemployment is about taking advantage of
being out of a job in order to have the time of their life. Instead of sending
resumes and actively seeking a job, the “funemployed”, mostly singles in their
20’s and 30’s, are living for today by traveling, going back to school,
volunteering, partying or hitting the beach. Many use social media like
Facebook and Twitter to find “funemployed” partners and make plans.
The L.A. Times quotes Jean Twenge, co-author of " The Narcissism Epidemic: Living in the Age of Entitlement" and an associate professor of psychology
at San Diego State who is an expert in generational surveys. "For many
younger people, work is less central to their lives. These days, more people
than in the 1970s are saying they want jobs with a lot of vacation time.
Younger employees today also are less willing to work overtime.”
Here’s a short video of Mike Van Gorkom, funemployed,
formely Director of User Experience Design at Yahoo! – He shares his epiphany:
how he now enjoys life and realizes how his stressful job affected his
life. He now says he will
eventually seek “a job that won’t
take over my life like this last one did”.
What seems like an epiphany to Mike might not be so for many
Quebeckers – unemployed or employed.
They are generally less likely to let their work or career
take over their lives insisting instead that pleasure be central to their
lives.
Yankelovich asked Canadians ten years ago if they agreed
with the statement “there is too much emphasis on accomplishment and not enough
on pleasure for its own sake”. French Quebeckers were significantly more likely
to agree than Canadians in the ROC.
More recently (2006), Leger Marketing surveyed Canadians
about the relative importance they attach to their work, social and family
life. Again, they are more likely to adopt a balanced approach.
Looking more closely at young Quebeckers working in the
marcomm industry, a recent survey from the Bénévolat d’entraide aux
communicateurs (National Advertising Benevolent Society) shows that 51% of Gen
Y Canadians (18-29) living outside Quebec consider their professional life to
be as important or more important than their personal life while it’s
significantly lower among young Quebeckers (38%).
It looks like “funemployment” in Quebec is as much about
fun and employment than fun while unemployed.
- Posted by Manon
Varin,
Project Manager at Headspace Marketing Inc.
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