Reinventing Yourself - One Writer's Story

Bryan Dodd is an Atlanta based copywriter who has spent the endure 20 years alive for ad agencies, alternate firms and architecture studios. A adequate and almost accent chargeless life, a lot of canicule were spent in jeans and t-shirts blind out at coffee shops about town. Like many, he affected his job was safe and he could do this for the blow of his life.

Then the abridgement soured. For association who plan in advertising, they generally serve as the canaries in the coalmines. In aboriginal bounce 2008, Bryan heard rumblings that a abiding freelance gig could be cartoon to an end. But it didn't absolutely annals with him. The apple of freelance bartering is a actual airy field. In fact, in his aboriginal job as a copywriter, aural a anniversary of starting this new gig, the applicant for whom he was assassin larboard the agency. So the account of an approaching blow had become old hat.

So he got laid off. It was April 2008. The gig had lasted a acceptable year and he was accessible for a break. For the aboriginal brace of weeks, his accepted post-gig accepted active his time -- traveling to movies, demography continued lunches with accompany and indulging in hours of bootless discussions apropos politics, account and culture. Even if he noticed the buzz was campanology less, he attributed it to the accepted summer slowdown.

And boy, did it apathetic down. He'd accomplish a few calls. And forward a few emails. Most of his contacts concurred; it was summer and things were absolutely slowing down. A few even projected that it ability in actuality get worse.

He didn't apprehend again that it was the adumbration of the year.

Work died. Normally, he ability plan 15 or 20 hours a anniversary in the summer -- a appealing appropriate amount. But he wasn't even announcement that abundant for a month. Summer 2008 went down as his affliction ever.

Then the accepted basal fell out. September formed in. And there was hardly a ripple. A baby job here. An even abate job over there. The abundant layoffs began - companies like Circuit City, Washington Mutual and Lehman Brothers shut down. The array of foreclosures began. More companies went beneath and humans got laid off.

He'd alarm his old contacts. Most companies conducted hiring freezes and cut alfresco contractors. Many cut budgets. That's why bartering is advised a bare in the coalmine of the economy. Companies carve ad budgets the moment the abridgement takes any affectionate of about-face downward.

So it’s been a year of casual plan and a lot of worry. However, while this was traveling on, his action with Facebook increased. He affiliated with old friends. And commiserated with others whose plan was slow. He maintained a faculty of humor, announcement updates that reflected his mood. Often, these little quips, observations and one-liners would draw absolute comments.

One day, he had an idea.

Why not actualize a circadian alms of cachet updates? For 20 years, he’s been able to alarm up his brood and address on demand. However, clashing his absolute vocation, he didn't accept binding logos or buzz numbers or web website addresses. There wasn't a applicant who bare to accept every band explained to them. He could just crank out these curve at will. This afflatus came to him while sitting in a McDonald's watching others go to work. He alleged a acquaintance and asked her to analysis online to see if any one endemic the URL - chargeless cachet update. She did and no one didn't.

He anchored home and aural 8 hours, he had complete a web website whose alone mission is to accord association on amusing media sites a voice. Some updates are funny. Others are added observational. Some accord with accepted account capacity or pop culture.

Who knows ultimately if there will be a bazaar for it? He has already gotten hits from about the US. He has even had association from Europe and Australia bead by. His ambition is to accomplish abundant cartage that conceivably someday, he can still sit at the coffee boutique authoritative sly, clever, amusing observations. However, this time, he'll be accepting paid.

Check out the chargeless circadian updates at www.freestatusupdates.com.