I know what you mean. There are a lot of other good points to it as well - like conversation, exposure to interesting things you wouldn't normally encounter, and Nash equilibria which leave you doing less of the stuff you don't like in exchange for more of the stuff you do.
I wouldn't quite say that unemployment is something that happens to other people, but that's damn near the case for competent engineers if you put even a bit of effort into networking and self-marketing.
> I wouldn't quite say that unemployment is something that happens to other people, but that's damn near the case for competent engineers if you put even a bit of effort into networking and self-marketing.
Either I am not reading it properly, or you probably missed a word or two. But I wanted to confirm the gist of what you are saying here- it's that the vicious cycle of being left alone (after being laid off etc.) is one of the primary reasons why some competent engineers stay unemployed.
I wouldn't quite say that unemployment is something that happens to other people, but that's damn near the case for competent engineers if you put even a bit of effort into networking and self-marketing.