What do we feel when the quest “Find a job” lasts too long? That’s right, we are nervous, we have bad sleep, eat little, have nothing to be glad about, and the level of our self-esteem is poor. Finally, we are desperate and ready to accept any job, even if we know a priori that we will not like it. Today we’ll talk about how to avoid these dire consequences, and not to give up when looking for a job.
1. Find something that will help you to preserve faith in yourself and your strength
It could be anything. Your successful work experience. Education. The group of supporters, consisting of family and friends. Try to remember all of your achievements that you can be proud of: from winning in a school football match to winning a large tender at the place of your previous employment.
If the above mentioned method does not work, remove a kindergarten picture from the depths of your family albums. Look into the eyes of this child and remember how many promises were given to this kid at that time: to become a pilot, a big boss, a happy person, after all. You certainly cannot cheat a child, right?
2. Manage everything
Sometimes we cannot find a job just because we do not know what we are looking for. We mutter something like: “I want to earn at least N thousand a year” or “I want a job connected with my college education.” When the fate so helpfully gives us what we asked it about, we have much discontent and doubt: “Well, the salary is certainly decent, and I have studied it for five years, but I’m not sure if I am able to take on such responsibility / to come to the office on the other side of the city each weekday / to work extra hours and so on.
In order not to get into the trap that is called “you receive what you ask for”, you should not have vague ideas about your future job. Take a piece of paper and give a detailed description of everything that you expect from the work of your lifetime, ranging from the job duties and the salary to the office dress code and a coffee maker.
After you create such a list, you may understand that you want too much. At least at this very moment. It’s not a tragedy, and it does not mean that you have to bury your dreams without even giving them a chance to come to life.
In this case, it is important to remember about your ideal. And to know what you are ready for until you are offered it.
3. Remember that your life is not just a job search
When you have your last $50 in the pocket and when your friends in social networks consider it their moral duty to keep asking you if you have found a job, when you visit websites with vacancies each hour – it is very easy to get a nervous breakdown.
Yes, the search for work is your main priority at the moment. But do not forget that your life is passing. In the cases mentioned above, you live your life in agony. Yes, you are looking for a job, but that does not mean that you should forget about the exercise, hobbies, friends – everything that brings you joy. And it is unlikely that your future employer will want to see a nervous, exhausted, gloomy person in his team. And you will very soon turn into such a person, if you have only one thought about finding a job.
Do not comfort yourself with the thought that you will live at full swing as soon as you find a job. If you cannot be happy every minute of your life, even if these moments come at difficult times, you cannot be happy at all. And once you get the coveted job, you immediately will find a lot of other reasons for suffering.
4. Think of a bypass
Lack of money is the main reason why we agree to the work that will bring income rather than joy. If you feel that not everything is lost and you have the strength to fight, do not give up and do not reconcile with something less meaningful. Make sure your financial background is safe. Try yourself as a freelancer or find a temporary job with a free schedule. You will be able to easily search for what you would like to have without worrying that when you are invited to the next interview, you will not have the money for the trip.
There is another bypass – to return to the previous job, if your position is still free. This method seems a disaster to many people. The thought about returning to the place that you once left is a wild nightmare. It means to take a step back. To surrender. To lose. To demonstrate your weakness.
But do not forget that there is nothing more terrible than the things we can imagine, as John Steinbeck once put it.
In a week’s time, most of your colleagues will not remember that you are away. The earth moves, life goes on, everyone has his/her own problems, and if you do not call yourself a failure, no one else will.
Whichever strategy you choose, the main thing is to know your true worth. It is paralyzing fear rather than inability that most often causes our failures. Be bold enough to work not only because it is needed and you get paid for it, but because you really enjoy what you do.
Was there anything that helped you avoid despair when looking for a job?
