Not sure what to do for work

Hi everyone, I worked as an IT contractor for over 2 years at a major hospital. I did all of the iPhone deployments/troubleshooting as well as computer deployments. I did not do that much support so I'm not that proficient in troubleshooting. I was let go due to attendance a few months back. I missed time due to 2 herniated discs I have and could not even stand/walk. My manager was not very happy with this and let me go, had security walk me out non the less. This guy was a friend of my wife's too. Now I am looking to get back to work and I'm not sure what to do. This was my only job in IT and I don't feel that comfortable as to what to say about being let go. And my confidence is very low right now as far as what my skills are. I've studying Python on and off but am no where near proficient. Should I bother trying to get back into IT or should I maybe venture out on my own to do something? I don't have any savings. I've always dreamt of having my own business but not sure what to do. I do love IT and have a sales background as well which is very rusty. I'm at a point where I need to get back to work asap due to financial issues with having a family (can't put food on table) and bills. My wife thinks it's so easy to just get any job but I'm not even sure where to start. I really need some help here and any ideas/advice would be highly appreciated. Thank you!

I would probably start by looking into whether your employment was terminated legally. You say contractor so maybe you were contracted as self-employed, or similar? A direct employee though can't just be fired for absence due to a genuine illness or injury. Contact employment agencies, there are loads of them about nowadays. There's no guaranteed work but you never know, it's worth a shot. I once registered with one and a job popped up the very next day where I was the only person on their books who could start immediately. They're a right faff because they advertise jobs that aren't real, just to get you in to fill in the forms to get you on their books (targets and all that). They'll tell you not to register with other agencies too, ignore them. It's a ploy because some employers advertise through multiple agencies and of course only the agency who provides the accepted candidate gets paid. If you're proficient with computers and have an average or above typing speed, you could get a temporary data entry job, or a clerk/assistant job in finance inputting invoices. A boring job for some but it pays the bills whilst you look for permanent work. Agencies mainly look at your typing speed though for those in/out jobs. If you're desperate for work because of money issues, you need to target employees who could utilise your core strengths and skills. Maybe sales of IT software/hardware? There may be cash-in-hand jobs around, there's no shame in working in a local chippy or pizza shop, it's all money to support your family. As far as what to say about your termination, be honest. If you lie and they find out later, you can be fired again, or at least disciplined, depending on terms of employment. Have you claimed benefits whilst you're out of work? Even as self-employed you may be entitled to tax credits.

I certainly feel your pain as I too was struck by a layoff during the great recession about 8 years ago. So many thousands were laid off in our area west of Chicago, that some people from our church started a career coaching service. We scoured dozens of methods to help people connect with a new career, and finally settled on the program used by Dan Miller, called “48 days to the work you love” which you can purchase on Amazon.com . We held classes in local day care center and a library. It was a blessing to work with people from Christian faith backgrounds, trying to determine what God had planned for our lives. The initial part of the process is looking at your own skills, passion, etc. which I sense you are struggling with in deciding whether to change your career path from IT. Then it gets into the nuts and bolts of the career search, such as resume, searching for possible positions, interviews, etc. Wishing you the best as you start a new chapter in your career life. Let me know what you think about this and how your career search is going.