Motivation: Staying Resilient to Power Your Job Search
4 practical tips on how to maximise your motivation during your job search
Over the coming weeks and months, how we develop our resilience to take us through the ups and downs of the post COVID job searching process, will be key.
In our current climate, it’s a reality that those of us furloughed or seeking new job opportunities are operating against a backdrop of governments aiming to strike a balance between protecting public health and easing lockdown to revive the economy. However, whilst the economy recovers, there are companies that are still recruiting and investing in their operations, logistics and supply chains, ecommerce, marketing, web development and other initiatives, to ensure that they can journey safely into the post-COVID world. This gives hope to those looking for their next role.
“Online sales continue to rise far above pre-lockdown levels, food and households goods sales are up slightly, but fuel and clothing sales remain much lower. UK new car registrations increased by 11% in July compared to the same month in 2019, the first annual increase this year.”
Source: https://www2.deloitte.com/uk/en/pages/finance/articles/covid-19-economics-monitor.html
If you run a search on Google for tips on staying motivated during job searching, approximately 262 million results are returned! Amongst this vast landscape of tips and knowledge, as well as recommendations from our own networks, here are a few treasures that we’re applying to our own job searching processes.
“Motivation works a lot better when it is inside us and under our own control.”
Nicholas Bate – Being the Best
The 4 Practical Tips to Maximise Motivation
1. Positive Self-Talk - Check Your State
Find a quiet space, free of distractions. Take a few deep breaths and when you begin to feel a sense of calm, ask yourself the following questions:
Am I focused on obstacles in my job search rather than seeking out new possibilities?
Am I procrastinating by putting things off to another day, when I know I can achieve them today?
Am I reflecting on my achievements to date (career and personal) and showcasing them in the best way I can?
Am I overwhelmed by the job searching process?
How often do I think the following: Once I get <insert>, then I’ll be satisfied?
Once you’ve answered those questions, make note of any form of negative or irrational response and challenge yourself to put a positive spin on it. This practice will give you the tools to develop a more optimistic mindset and if you do happen to experience a setback in your job search, a positive spin will make a huge impact on how you deal with it and perform at the next interview.
“Self-introspection is the way to improve any company, any marriage, any nation and any job-hunt.”Richard N. Bolles, What Color Is Your Parachute? 2012: A Practical Manual for Job-Hunters and Career-Changers
Research on the impacts of positive emotions
Barbara Fredrickson is a positive psychology researcher at the University of North Carolina, U.S.A. In 2004, she published a paper providing insights into how positive emotions impact our skills and our health.
One of her experiments, designed to measure the impact of positive emotions on the brain, caught my attention. She had 5 research groups. Each group was shown different movie clips:
Group 1 were shown clips that created a feeling of joy.
Group 2 were shown clips that created a feeling of contentment.
Group 3 were the control group and they were shown clips that didn’t spark any major emotions.
Group 4 were shown clips that created fearful emotions.
Group 5 were shown clips that created feelings of anger.
Following the showings, the members of each group were asked to imagine what they would do if they found themselves in a situation which brought up similar feelings they experienced, whilst watching the movie clips.
Groups 4 & 5 wrote the fewest responses. The highest number of actions were captured by groups 1 & 2. The research found that experiencing emotions such as joy and contentment, allowed the mind to open up to more possibilities.
Here’s some inspiration if you want to indulge in some feel good classics…
Negative emotions such as anger or fear, engage our survival instinct, as if we were being chased by Freddy Krueger himself! The only thing our minds will focus on is the danger, as per the experience of groups 4 & 5.
Applying the insights from this research, by replacing negative thoughts with a positive spin, gives us the opportunity to get more optimism flowing into the neural network and in turn, broadens our outlook. For our job searching, this may mean that we can start to consider other roles that would be a great match with our transferable skills, thereby increasing the pool of opportunities we can apply for.
“…positive emotions may help people place the events in their lives in broader context, lessening the resonance of any particular negative event.”
Source: Barbara Fredrickson – The Broaden and Build Theory of Positive Emotions
2. Develop your skills and personal interests with a passion!
Whether you choose to take up a new sport, support a charity/cause close to your heart, learn new skills or update your professional certifications, these initiatives act as a reinforcing agent for your positive attitude. This makes for a great story during interview situations and allows you to share what inspires you!
“I always did something I was a little not ready to do. I think that’s how you grow. When there’s that moment of ‘Wow, I’m not really sure I can do this,’ and you push through those moments, that’s when you have a breakthrough.” – Marissa Mayer
When we’re experiencing stress, procrastination can creep in (let’s not pretend it doesn’t from time to time!) The mind can convince us that we can go for that run or walk ‘tomorrow’ and before you know it, a week has passed.
I’ve used a hack called the 5 Second Rule from Mel Robbins to push myself towards my goals.
“If you have an instinct to act on a goal, you must physically move within 5 seconds or your brain will kill it.
When you feel yourself hesitate before doing something that you know you should do, count 5-4-3-2-1-GO and move towards action.
There is a window that exists between the moment you have an instinct to change and your mind killing it. It’s a 5 second window. And it exists for everyone.”
If you decide to give this a go, I would love to know how it works for you. It regularly shifts me out of bed and into my exercise routine.
Developing New Skills
For those of you considering courses to develop new skills or renew certifications, you’ll find that the training companies are likely to have shifted to online delivery of the courses and some may be offering them at a discounted rate. It pays to shop around.
Budgets may also be tight at present and paid courses may not be an option for everyone. Check out these free tools and resources from the Institute of Leadership and Management
Here are also some recordings of live motivational webinars hosted by Furlearn on the topic of developing resilience and a positive mindset, which I’m sure will give more food for thought.
3. Celebrate the Small Wins
Small wins are uplifting and will get you focusing on the behaviours, habits and milestones that can bring you closer to the outcome of landing your next job.
Here is an example of how you can divide up the overall goal into a series of small wins:
Make your CV ATS compliant
Commit to a routine to search the job sites on a daily basis (build breaks into your routine so you can refresh your mind and uplift your mood).
Devote some time every few days to building your network.
Make a list of your transferable skills and research other roles that would also be a good match. Tailor your CV and covering letters for these roles.
Here’s some great advice from Gary Wills. Make your CV come to life! Record a video intro and upload it onto your YouTube channel explaining the type of role you’re looking for and why you’re a good match for the role. Set the video as private so only those you share the link with can view it. Add the link to your CV so it’s clearly visible.
Celebrate being invited for the interview!
Celebrate landing the job!
4. Don’t take Rejection Personally – Keep Going!
“Be willing to start again. Sometimes, despite your best efforts, a goal will elude you. In that case, start again. With a little more effort, a slight course adjustment and some hard work, you can accomplish your dreams.”
Billy Schwer, Mental Boxing
Source: Billy Schwer www.billyschwer.com
View rejections objectively - hiring managers will also be thinking about what the business needs in these changing times and these needs can alter at short notice. Not getting the job or securing an interview can feel like a huge let down, but it’s important not to view it as a personal failure.
Request feedback – this will develop your ability to handle constructive criticism and use it to make preparations for the next opportunity.
Keep the positive image of your goals front and centre – it’s a great idea to have career as well as personal goals in your line of sight. This will keep you upbeat and enjoying life outside of the job searching. Whether you’ve set yourself a challenge to run 5k, de-clutter or learn how to play the ukulele, pursuing your own interests will give you time to unplug from your devices and a more balanced outlook.
Network - with past colleagues and friends. They may know of opportunities that you can apply for. Check the Furlearn group page on LinkedIn. We’ve noticed more roles being posted in recent weeks.
Pause for your own cause and listen to your gut – if you’ve landed an offer and something doesn’t feel right about it, don’t rush towards the finish line for the sake of securing the role. Shifting your trajectory by considering other options may just be a prerequisite step to feeling happier and fulfilled in your job.
The Furlearn team have been busy preparing an excellent line up of motivational speakers in the coming weeks.
Come and join us and be inspired. Visit Furlearn.com to view our events calendar and sign up!
