I found perception and attitude are more important than circumstance. I got laid off in march like a lot of people. I've been working continually in this industry since I graduated college 10 years ago, so this was my first time not having a job, much less not having an industry. Plus I've got a wife and 3 kids and I'm the sole breadwinner. Unlike a lot of people on this board who bemoan the lack of government response, I tend to think they responded too much. Its one thing if people are scared of getting sick and stop buying tickets, its another thing when the government says "nah you can't have a job anymore, you're not essential". So there was a solid month of confusion and depression and lots of anger and lots of vodka.
Fortunately for my family and a lot of others some people up on capitol hill decided that if they're going to prohibit me from earning money they should take some responsibility for it. So between state unemployment and the pandemic relief bonus and lots of personal fiscal clean living, we kept the bills paid and decided to view this like a protracted vacation. So I got lots of hang out time with my wife and kids, planted another couple veggie beds in the garden. Finally had time to move our house renovation forward. Took a road trip out to Colorado and did a 3 day 30 mile hike in the wilderness, skinny dipped in a mountain river. Drove down to AMI on the gulf coast (those godless freedom loving Floridians) Visited 27 states last year, had a ton of new experiences because the government told my nonessential ass to stay home.
All that to say, in hindsight I could easily have spent 2020 wrapped up in a cozy cocoon of indignant resentfulness and self pity, and I was trending in that direction. Feels good when you view yourself as the victim, it takes away any responsibility to deal with your own circumstance or do anything difficult. Luckily for me I've got a great wife who yanked me out of my woe-is-me mentality and told me to do something worth while.
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