An unsuccessful
job hunt is perhaps one of the most frustrating experiences you can have. It’s hard to keep your spirits up, and still feel like you’re hitting brick walls a dozen times a day. Any sane person is going to get a little bit anxious. But don’t let this get to you. You’re going to need your wits about you if you’re going to get through this!
Don’t Make It Worse
Your first instinct when you get stuck in a rut is just to curl up in a ball, and wait there for it to pass. But the feeling is not going to go away on its own, and you’re certainly not going to find a job if you just sit there.
If you sit around all day, you’re going to end up wasting most of the day thinking about the situation you’re in, and you’re bound to blow it out of proportion. You need to get up, get out of the house and do something about it. Stop overanalyzing every little thing, and start focusing on a
viable career path solution.
Spruce Up Your Resume
A good way to take your mind off of your lack of success is to look at your CV again, and make some adjustments. It’s going to keep your mind busy, and it might also help you further on in your search for a job.
Don’t just look at your resume as a long list of things you did in the past. It doesn’t have to be fluffed out to look more impressive. Your CV has to be like a word picture of who you are. So rather than trying to find ways to jam more information in there, it’s better if you tried to make it accurately reflect the sort of person you want to be for your employers.
If you’ve been stuck in a rut for a while, you may want to look at how you can explain this gap period. This is not just for the benefit of your employer. Considering how you ended up taking a break from work can help you realize what you’ve gained during this period, and what you can improve.
This Is an Opportunity to Improve Yourself – Take It
You’ve probably been focusing on finding a job so hard during this period, that you forgot to take a step back and notice the great chance you’ve been offered. Everyone needs some time to reflect, and whether this has been thrust upon you, or you’ve chosen to take some time off, you should use it.
It’s a good time to try out something different. Take a break from job hunting to pursue your hobbies. Take some online courses, or watch tutorials. When was the last time you read a good book just for the sheer fun of it?
If you’ve been focusing on one particular field, it might be a good idea to diversify. This doesn’t mean you’re going to switch tracks. But a job in the retail industry, for example, can provide you with some invaluable skills that are easy to transfer to other work. It can also give you a chance to experiment, and find out more about yourself.
Take Responsibility for What You Can – And Nothing More
When it comes to blaming someone in the quest for a job, there are two extremes you can fall into. You either end up taking all the blame on yourself, and feel like you’re worthless, inexperienced, lacking skills, and just plain awful. The other extreme is that you end up blaming your employers for not noticing what a brilliant candidate you are, and ignoring your invaluable expertise. Either way, you’re going to get stuck in a bubble of negativity. And once you’re there, it’s going to be pretty tough to get out.
First of all, you have to understand that recruiters have a tough job as is. They have to sort through dozens, if not hundreds of resumes for each job. Then, they have to interview tens of, equally qualified, candidates, and out of all those people, they have to choose just one.
So, you should work on the things that you can control, like writing an outstanding resume, polishing your skills, and maybe even adding some new ones to the list.
But likewise, you shouldn’t take all the burden upon your shoulders. There are all sorts of things that can go wrong that are beyond your control, like the recruiter having a bad day, or just sheer bad luck. Trust yourself when it comes to the things you know you’re good at and don’t try to find flaws where there aren’t any. Focus on the things you can change, and accept the fact that some things are beyond your control.
Remember that Rejection Is Part of The Process
People call it job hunting for a reason. It’s a difficult process, and you have to stay focused if you’re going to succeed at it. And rejection is part of this process. Use these rejections as opportunities to better yourself.
Criticism is always hard to listen to, but if you’re going to be a real professional, you have to listen to the good, as well as the bad reviews. If you’ve recently been turned down for a job, ask them for feedback, if they don’t give it to you themselves. Most recruiters don’t bother sending feedback because people don’t want to hear it.
Don’t take feedback personally. This is a work-related conversation between two professionals. You should treat as such. Remember you’re being offered professional career from a human resources expert for free. And sometimes,
negative feedback can be more useful than positive feedback.
In the end, the best solutions are the ones you tailor for yourself. The biggest mistake you can do during this period is to concentrate on the problems, and not on how you could fix them. In might sound like a very slight shift in focus, but it makes a huge difference. When you panic, everything seems abysmal, and set in stone. But once you start figuring out solutions, you’re going to realize that nothing is unfixable, there’s nothing you can’t do if you go about it the right way.
