The captain can show no fear

The captain can show no fear Cover Image

There was this very amusing comedy routine that I heard many years ago. During part of it, the comedian pointed out that when operating on a patient under local anesthetic, surgeons are not allowed to say “oops.” (I know what I mean when I say oops. What did he mean?)In much the same way, ...


Dec 03, 2023

By Matt Bud, The FENG

Reinventing yourself

Reinventing yourself Cover Image

During every recession, there are typically specific industries that experience more declines than others. One of the truths about the job market is that in any piece of time, one or more industries are usually singled out “for punishment” and lots of folks in those industries lose their j...


Mar 28, 2023

By Matt Bud, The FENG

Developing a thick skin

Developing a thick skin Cover Image

As someone who now makes sales calls all day long, it is sometimes hard for me to remember the difficulty I initially had in picking up that 400 pound phone.Back in the dark days of 1991-1992 (the two years I was out of work), I found that my experience doing collection work as a CFO sort ...


Jan 22, 2023

By Matt Bud, The FENG

Asking for and accepting help

Asking for and accepting help Cover Image

Several years ago I got a note from one of our new members that warmed my heart.He forwarded a note to me with a copy of his resume and as I scrolled through his message I smiled to myself in pride at what a remarkable organization we have created for ourselves.I didn’t actually need yet a...


Aug 18, 2022

By Matt Bud, The FENG

A time for reflection

A time for reflection Cover Image

As accountants we know only too well that the time periods into which we divide a year are a little arbitrary. They only mark the passage of time in a logical manner (which is very important to all of us financial types).We also know intuitively that the concept of getting a fresh start wi...


Dec 28, 2021

By Matt Bud, The FENG

Getting from here to there

Getting from here to there Cover Image

Sailing can be a very simple or a very complicated activity. It depends on how you want to approach it.To get from here to there can be planned on a very simple basis or a very complicated basis. For example, if you are sailing across Long Island Sound from North to South to a particular d...


Dec 01, 2021

By Matt Bud, The FENG

Giving up is not really a good idea

Giving up is not really a good idea Cover Image

At some point during a long job search I often get an email from a member in which the primary message is about “the futility of it all.”Having been out of work myself for almost two full years in 1991 and 1992, I guess I can say I’ve been there and done that.Being out of work is never eas...


Nov 29, 2021

By Matt Bud, The FENG

The official change of seasons

The official change of seasons Cover Image

As the days of fall begin to arrive in the Northeast and the trees begin to change colors, it is all very beautiful. (However, yesterday it rained hard all day and today it was very windy.) Earlier this month I mostly finished decommissioning our sailboat for the season. This past weekend ...


Oct 27, 2021

By Matt Bud, The FENG

The usual pack of lies

The usual pack of lies Cover Image

I often wonder to myself how politicians can do so much lying and get away with it. Okay, sometimes we boot them out of office for lying, but we only replace them with new folks who also lie.The truth I suppose is subject to each person’s individual judgment. What one person considers to b...


Oct 25, 2021

By Matt Bud, The FENG

That feeling of incompetence

That feeling of incompetence Cover Image

Have you ever felt you didn’t know anything about computers? I do all the time, and I have been using them since my first Apple IIe.Still, there is just so much to know and so much to learn. And, the rules keep changing. Things that work on one computer don’t work on my next one. (Why Micr...


Sep 30, 2021

By Matt Bud, The FENG

Feelings of helplessness

Feelings of helplessness Cover Image

“They” say (I don’t know who they are) that searching for a job is filled with highs and lows.It doesn’t matter who you may have heard it from or how often you heard these words of consolation, if you have been through a long job search, you know the feelings. I suppose we can find ways to...


Sep 29, 2021

By Matt Bud, The FENG

Keeping a proper attitude

Keeping a proper attitude Cover Image

One of our members wrote me once and asked me about how to keep a proper attitude when your job search stretches into what seems like an eternity. The reason he addressed this question to me is that he noted that I have mentioned on several occasions that beginning in March of 1991 I was u...


Aug 26, 2021

By Matt Bud, The FENG

Taking your temperature too frequently

Taking your temperature too frequently Cover Image

I don’t know if any of you feel as I do, but when I have a cold or the flu, it is at once annoying and thoughtful that those who care about us are constantly checking up on us.Thank goodness I’m not sick very often, but when I am I prefer to be left alone during “the cure.” Human beings va...


Aug 17, 2021

By Matt Bud, The FENG

Do you have allergies?

Do you have allergies? Cover Image

For those of you with allergies, you know only too well that once you have a reaction to something, for some period of time even small amounts of that substance will set you off.As I understand it, what happens is that an allergic reaction triggers elevated histamine levels in your body. I...


Aug 16, 2021

By Matt Bud, The FENG

I will work for food

I will work for food Cover Image

Although the job market appears to be getting better, it is still a sad fact of life these days that most of our members face the prospect of a salary lower than they previously enjoyed.From our perspective as financial folks we struggle with the burden of our hard won escalations in salar...


Aug 12, 2021

By Matt Bud, The FENG

Rejected out of hand

Rejected out of hand Cover Image

If there is one thing that is certain about us financial types, it is that we always know the answer.Ask us a question and it isn’t long before we are well into the “primarily due to’s and partially offset by’s.” Yet, this major strength of ours and important skill set is an impediment to ...


Aug 04, 2021

By Matt Bud, The FENG

Giving up as a concept

Giving up as a concept Cover Image

One of the more interesting ideas floating around these days is giving up. I can’t say I am an expert on this topic, other than to say that I have heard about it at length from others. Not that they have actually bought into the idea; just that they were talking about it.As you all know, I...


Aug 03, 2021

By Matt Bud, The FENG

Good news announcements

Good news announcements Cover Image

I’m not sure if everyone understands the importance of our Good News Announcements, so I thought I would share with you tonight some of my thoughts as to why they are so important.Since the very beginning of our newsletter, the Good News Announcements have always appeared at the very begin...


Aug 02, 2021

By Matt Bud, The FENG

The truth (as retold)

The truth (as retold) Cover Image

I know that many of our members are faced with the unpleasant truth that they have been out of work for a significant period of time. Having been out of work myself for almost two years, I know that this unpleasant question of “Why have you been out so long?” gets asked. Like anything else...


Sep 07, 2023

By Matt Bud, The FENG

Life is a journey

Life is a journey Cover Image

I have often noted to my friends who aren’t into boating that the difference between a power boater and a sail boater is that power boaters usually use their boats to go somewhere, whereas sail boaters are already there once they step onto their boat.In our goal driven, management by objec...


Jul 26, 2021

By Matt Bud, The FENG

Don't go it alone

Don't go it alone Cover Image

Job search is in many ways a unique experience.In contrast to the world of work where we have had folks reporting to us and have had folks that we reported to, the world of job search can tend to be a lonely place.Back in the day, outplacement facilities with their rabbit warren of cubicle...


Jul 25, 2021

By Matt Bud, The FENG