You haven’t been paid in 4 months, what’s it like?

Until experienced, one cannot fully appreciate the opportunities or challenges that come with living without pay. So what can you expect? At a 50,000 ft level, it’s a roller-coaster of a ride empowering you to learn about yourself and create new experiences. At a 50-foot level, I can nearly promise the following:

An emotional thrill similar to teenage love:
Remember your first real crush. The ‘When’s (s)he going to call ‘ feeling, Followed by the ‘why isn’t (s)he calling?’ Quickly followed by the feelings, ‘What’s wrong with me?’ ‘What did I do?’ And ‘WTF is (s)he with that person?

The feelings are all about the same only not quite so romantically. It’s also important to note that email can be substituted equally for phone calls in creating the thrill.

My advice: Just as you would advise a teenager, stay reasonably grounded and not let these frustrations get the best of you. Though keep in mind, as any teenager would tell you, staying grounded can be awfully hard to do.

An awakening as to how much time makes up a day:
The average person spends 8-10 hours a day producing. In the moment, this can seem like a blink of the eye. Once outside, it takes some creativity to fill this time.

Sure, it’s easy to fill the time by mindlessly surfing thousands of job boards or by measuring your consumption of The Wire by seasons not episodes. And mindless rejuvenation certainly has its place.

My advice: Create a place for mindless rejuvenation, and then balance it with productive growth. Pick up new hobbies, dust off old ones, and build a network. Meet people for coffee and learn about how they spend their 8-10 hours, and what advice they would offer someone. It will certainly lead you to item #3 and is likely to land you your next paycheck.

A surprising amount of work exists:
All be it pro bono, I have been presented with more work than I’d ever care to take on at once. Pro bono, you say? What are you thinking? Well, it’s turned out to be a great way to build a skill-set, learn a new industry, take risks without being fired, and allows an easy answer to the dreaded question, “How’s it going? (aka are you working?)”

Frankly, working pro bono is also extremely empowering. You become the decider. People are extremely excited when you say yes, and a bit disappointed if you turn then down.

My advice: Before you jump on the first paying opportunity that presents itself. Identify something to which you have always been interested. Connect with someone in that industry; ask how you can help with the only payment being a recommendation. You’ll be shocked what you find.