The recession, benefits, the safety net, and the learning curve

fc123

Max_Headroom wrote: »

Ok, IF (big if) I were to start a blog, what should I call it?

You can always PM people if you want a fair critique too.

scrooge2008

Max, I don't have expertise in this area, but Horace on MSE DFW self employed and working from home thread, may be able to advise. I believe it is possible to claim working tax credit on zero income if you register as self employed and work on your business for a number of hours each week.

While you are unemployed, it may be an opportunity to try out Business Gateway, who I found excellent, and look into any free courses on creative writing/web design and marketing etc.

While a blog may not make you a fortune, I believe you could have a sizeable audience and the process would be stimulating and creative.

In my opinion JSA is a soul destroying process which quickly reduces the strongest to insecure wrecks. If a well paid job is not quickly secured you need to have an alternative, escape route planned. A blog would likely throw up other opportunities you hadn't considered.

fc123

dopester wrote: »

Unsuited.

How can you make money from a blog about unemployment (job recruitment agencies ect), and claim unemployment benefits at the same time?

Also I would caution that some of your views would not be views some companies would want to be associated with - for what was previously suggested like job agencies... (and would they be paying any decent referral fees?)

Discussion in this thread is one thing.. but I've read Jobless in Henley and other stuff on the Telegraph and BBC websites. I'm not sure if you're going to get a following for a full-on blog about a from a mortgage free home-owner getting bitter about the system.

fc123 hinted at it.. but for successful business-generating purposes.. whacky stories but from position of positive creativity, superior knowledge, power, expertise, events you wouldn't otherwise hear of from an insider..... despite this thread.. I don't believe an blog about life in the system of unemployment is a winner.

Also, do you want to go mad, by constantly delving into and mulling on all the deepest nasty stuff you don't like about the system?

Get a job, even minimum wage, or set up for yourself, for your own sanity.

Awww Dopestar ..don't be sooo Neg.....

He could sell the house, bank the cash and rent his life away....OR...he could keep on job hunting...OK, that's sensible....or..he could turn around a bad situation with a natural skill (engaging written words) and turn it into something that generates an income for a while.....google ads.


I just had a thought...I wonder if the Job Centre would fund you going to a creative writing course? Get the old syntax skills honed etc?

PasturesNew

I've earnt a full-time (if frugal) living from my online stuff for 2½ years now.

I wrote it, they came, they clicked, I banked. Scared the hell out of me. I have about 20,000 members ... and I never asked them to join specifically as such. No big sales letter etc etc... they just did it ... which scared me.

Blimey ... write the right stuff and they come.

Haven't been able to replicate that since though with subsequent incarnations. Maybe "this time".

dopester

fc123 wrote: »

I just had a thought...I wonder if the Job Centre would fund you going to a creative writing course? Get the old syntax skills honed etc?

I'm not anti-blog. If it were a different subject (not unemployment and about the benefits system ) I'd agree with you, and with the google ad revenue.

Where does the income from a blog about unemployment/benefits come from? Can he accept that revenue and still claim job-seekers?

Also.. you said yourself... for your line of work readers would prefer to read zippy zany positive, and creative tales with a successful air about them. Image matters a lot with some sectors, and blog stories can have association with real-world business... good and bad.

For people asking Max to submerge himself in unemployment and benefits life, to write about them in a blog from his perspective... to generate an income from... I think he'd be a lot happier overall with a job or some other form of self-employment income.

Here is one unemployment-blog... with links to many more.

fc123

dopester wrote: »

I'm not anti-blog. If it were a different subject (not unemployment and about the benefits system ) I'd agree with you, and with the google ad revenue.

Where does the income from a blog about unemployment/benefits come from? Can he accept that revenue and still claim job-seekers?

Also.. you said yourself... for your line of work readers would prefer to read zippy zany positive, and creative tales with a successful air about them. Image matters a lot with some sectors, and blog stories can have association with real-world business... good and bad.

For people asking Max to submerge himself in unemployment and benefits life, to write about them in a blog from his perspective... to generate an income from... I think he'd be a lot happier overall with a job or some other form of self-employment income.

Here is one unemployment-blog... with links to many more.

:rotfl:I am going to get BA done tonight now...looked at the link and Bob is Bankrupt caught my eye......mmmm wonder what that is about? I can't wait to read now.;)

We aren't saying Max should 'submerge himself' in some shady, UB40 world of cash in hand blogging. More, he has a talent for writing in an engaging chat style way..but, I guess, doesn't have any relevant work experience.

So, if Heat, Nuts, Take a Break or Racing Post want a writer, he wouldn't have the quals. But, if he had written a blog that became a bit noteworthy, then he could link it to the application...you never know? A jobs a job.

If ad revenue did come in, just fess up to the Job Centre, declare an estimate income and get a tax credit instead.
G Brown thought of everything.;)

Wish there had been tax credits when we started out years ago.

fc123

Dam Bob is bankrupt deleted his blog.....hope he didn't lose the faith.

PasturesNew

Just checked, my main blog that I've spent hours/days/weeks on, that has about 258 entries on it ... in the last six months has made me a massive $150.



Damn, I spent WEEKS on that!

fc123

PasturesNew wrote: »

Just checked, my main blog that I've spent hours/days/weeks on, that has about 258 entries on it ... in the last six months has made me a massive $150.



Damn, I spent WEEKS on that!

Here's me trying to be all upbeat to Max about shed loads of magical £££ from google ads .......but the above is going to put him off now. :rolleyes:

He'll have to flog the house instead...........and casserole his pet.

OK, Creative Writing course.....and one that gets you lots of letters and symbols after your name...wonder if The Job Centre do those?

PasturesNew

fc123 wrote: »

Here's me trying to be all upbeat to Max about shed loads of magical £££ from google ads .......but the above is going to put him off now. :rolleyes:

He'll have to flog the house instead...........and casserole his pet.

OK, Creative Writing course.....and one that gets you lots of letters and symbols after your name...wonder if The Job Centre do those?

Job Centres don't do that sort of course. No.

They will do basic literacy if you can't spell your own name, basic maths if you think 2+2=22 and basic introductions to computers ... "This is a mouse ..."

Nothing actually useful.

But, you can get some free online courses to do it.

Or maybe look to see if Vision2Learn have a course doing that - you're linked to a local college and you do it from home online. I did try that once when I lived in England, but there was a massive c0ck up with the paperwork and it never happened... so I tried again a bit later and the same happened again. Also, the "local college" was actually 60 miles from me. They're low level courses, but I just tried to do one because they were there and I could.

Just looked, no writing ones at all. But here's the list: http://www.vision2learn.net/channels/courses.aspx

There is this enterprise thing: http://www.vision2learn.net/channels/courses/enterprise-skills.aspx

No idea if that's any good. Probably he knows all that already.