Otherwise Employed is a peer-to-peer support group and space for anyone who is unemployed or not working full time and finding it hard.
Lots of things make being ‘Otherwise Employed’ hard. You might be in this position involuntarily, experiencing financial pressures, loss of identity, routine, or purpose, facing rejection in your job search, feeling lonely, or uncertain about the future.
This is an understanding environment shared with others who can relate. Groups are open and non-judgemental, and there is never any pressure to talk if you prefer to attend and listen. We promise that you are not as isolated as you feel.
What this is
- This is a forum for people to share the difficult emotions around not being in full-time employment, which provides not only income but also an identity, structure to your day, social contact, and often a purpose.
What this is not
- A forum to discuss the practicalities of job searches
- A networking opportunity
As a peer support group, this group is for peers to share their personal struggles and support one another.
Attendees are welcome to come and listen but it is not a space to observe. You should attend to engage in peer support for personal reasons only. It is not a space for students to contribute to their studies, for clinicians to observe, or for press unless written agreement from the charity has been obtained.
Our groups were created to give space to comfortably discuss life experiences in an understanding environment, knowing that your experiences are shared with others who have been there.
At the beginning of each group, attendees take turns introducing themselves and explaining why they came. From then on, there is no pressure to speak, and many people attend our meetings to listen. The meeting hosts will then ask the group if anyone has anything they would like to bring to the space. Whatever a person says is relevant, and they are welcome to bring anything to the meeting. All attendees are asked to respect the privacy of the space and treat others and ourselves with kindness throughout.
Who are The New Normal Charity?
We are a Hong Kong S88 registered charity. We provide free peer support groups supporting each other through life’s difficult moments. Our support groups are peer-to-peer, with no professionals, just people sharing their experiences. We feel that one of the best forms of therapy is simply speaking. Nobody should ever feel alone, and there is always somebody who can relate to your story.
