I've noticed a lot of people aren't prepared for a post-job economy. Students are one group. Another consists of people in their forties or fifties who've been laid off and spend quite some time trying to get another job. Some turn to entrepreneurship after a while, but others seem to resign themselves to the situation. They keep writing letters/emails because that's what you're expected to do, even though after a year or two they're at the back of a very long queue of other job seekers.