| |
| |
|
WebsiteAlways |
|
Job Search: The End of the Line
There is an end to the job search tunnel! It has been a long, hard road: layoff, unemployment, fear, depression, and occasionally panic or despair. Beyond the trauma of losing your job stretches the uncomfortable, stress filled nightmare of looking for work. Emotionally reeling from the blows of joblessness, you picked yourself up and cast yourself out into the mind-numbing, ego-destructive, judgmental world of the job seeker. Now the nightmare is over. The offer has been made and accepted: you are going back to work. Do you feel elated? At times, probably so. Do you also feel deflated? Again, probably so. When we are actively involved in looking for work, we tend to feel that once we are offered a position, all will be right with the world, the long-borne burden will be off our shoulders, and our mental outlook will be bright and positive. Don't be surprised or upset if you don't experience an unalloyed sense of joy and optimism. It is not unusual to encounter feelings of disappointment and apathy, Your family and friends are totally delighted for you, so you develop feelings of guilt for not being as happy and relieved as everyone else appears. Be kind to yourself. Become aware of what you are experiencing so you can accept it for what it is and become your own primary source of support. Consider these events: 1. You have just been through a harrowing ordeal that required you to marshal all your resources to focus on one goal: finding employment. You harnessed your anxiety by pouring out adrenaline to keep yourself active and fighting fit. You buried your concerns about other aspects of your life in order to concentrate on one single priority. Now that you have attained your goal, there is no more focus for your emotional and physiological energies, they simply swirl around in disarray. When such an all-encompassing goal is accomplished, there is suddenly a temporary vacuum. For the moment, you don't know what to do with yourself, a predicament that leads to mood swings, a sense of loss, a vague but powerful restlessness that is as unpleasant as it is unexpected. 2. Although most of us abhor the agonies and drudgery of looking for work, there are emotional elements that are provocative and pleasant. We may hate being jobless and yearn to have a known routine and a specific position, but the unknown with its endless possibilities and immense potential can be seriously seductive. No one job is ever going to fulfill all of our fantasies. It can only circumscribe our limitless dreams. It is rather like planning a major vacation trip. The excitement is in deciding where to go and what to see, as if the whole world were our personal oyster. Once we have selected our destiny and then completed our trip, we look back in enjoyment and treasure the memories but never quite recapture the level of excitement of that initial anticipation. Confronting the unavoidable limitations that any one position will impose on our inner vision leads to a nagging sense of having been cheated out of some of our expectations. No matter how wonderful the Christmas present we receive may be, it never quite matches the thrill of seeing it sitting under the tree, brightly wrapped and incredibly desirable necause it could be absolutely anything. 3. A period of time without work destroys much of the ordinary structure of our lives. Despite the unexpected free time it provides, we tend not to make productive use of much of it. One reason we lose time is our emotional distress which leaves us drained, listless, and disconnected. Another cause is that there are no time pressures or deadlines. If we don't get it done today, there will be time tomorrow. We no longer have to squeeze in extra chores between the demands of work and our everyday lives so we don't fit them in at all. If we reproach ourselves for our lack of action and poor motivation, we rationalize that our energy needs to be conserved for the demands of job search. Once the job hunt ends, we are confronted with the knowledge that we have squandered vast amounts of time and will now have to take action when our available time will be limited by work demands. Guilt and self-disgust further deflate our mood. Give yourself time to gradually wind down. Allow yourself to get rid of the tension by refocusing on relaxation: sleeping, exercising, shopping, walking, meditating, just doing nothing -- whatever seems to work for you. Accept that your intermittent distress is a natural consequence of your unemployment experience. Watch your changing emotions with understanding and affection. View your inner turmoil with patience and compassion and with the sure knowledge that your own industrious efforts led to your success and have earned you a well-deserved period of self-indulgence. As you gradually regain your physical and emotional balance, you can start to truly bask in the enjoyment of reconnecting with the world of work. Virginia Bola operated a rehabilitation company for 20 years, developing innovative job search techniques for disabled workers, while serving as a respected Vocational Expert in Administrative, Civil and Workers' Compensation Courts. Author of an interactive and emotionally supportive workbook, The Wolf at the Door: An Unemployment Survival Manual, and a monthly ezine, The Worker's Edge, she can be reached at http://www.unemploymentblues.com
MORE RESOURCES:
Careers-Employment - Google News |
|
|
|
RELATED ARTICLES
Top Ten Reasons to Start A Catering Business There is little doubt that Americans still have a deep abiding love for all things eatable. Despite the health craze that has forced Ronald McDonald to sport a jogging suit, Whoppers, Big Mac's, and French Fries is truly why we have fat thighs. Should You Make A Career Decision Based Upon A Career Quiz? Q. I'm about to graduate High School and I don't know what I want to be "when I grow up". A Concept That Could Double Youre Income in Mystery Shopping Do you want to double, or increase significantly you're income in mystery shopping? If yes, I'll be sharing to you an age old concept. Now you might have learned this already or you may consider this common sense. Free Resume Template: The ONLY One Youll Ever Need WARNING: This article is likely to make you mad.In fact, I'm pretty sure it will. Resumes OR CV : Get That Job Your resume is your sales document. It tells the world of your achievements, capabilities and roles you have enjoyed. Rethink Your Career Transition Are you going nowhere in your career? If you've decided it's time to change your career completely, here's a new way of changing!Before you jump ship, think about what's been happening in your career. Have you been making little or no progress for some time? You may be in the throes of what George Leonard, author of Mastery, calls the "plateau". When The Going Gets Tough -- The Tough Keep Going If you've been in a job search for more than a few weeks you may be experiencing the feelings of defeat and despair, not to mention the urge to give up. It's been a tough year, and then some, for those who have lost jobs for whatever reason. Interview Preparation Made Easy: Create An Interview Preparation List Here's a quick way to compare your own job experience and qualifications with those that your prospective employer is looking for in a specific job position. Make an "Interview Preparation List". Career Transitions: Creating Complementary Careers in a Day Down-sized? Outsourced? Burned-out? Wizened up? That's what I said. Wizened up! Now is not the time to be depressed. Handling the Dreaded Why Did You Leave? Question If you left your last job under less-than-ideal circumstances, you probably dread the "Why did you leave?" question that almost always comes up at job interviews. Here's how to handle it. Beat the Crowd with Winning Resume Cover Letters Far too many people underestimate the importance of resume cover letters. In a sense, a well written cover letter works like an agent on your behalf. Common Resume Myths & Misconceptions For the person crafting their first résumé the task can seem a little bit daunting, even a bit frightening. Human Resources [HR] specialists, résumé writing professionals, school advisors, and even friends and family members all have their say. Rekindling Passion for Work Passion comes in many forms. I'm focused on the version of passion that is "boundless enthusiasm". Searching for a Federal Job Many years ago searching for a federal job was a long, complicated and drawn out process. Today, it has been become far less complex and is now just a three-step process. Career Killers to Avoid Many professionals and managers are so involved in day-to-day crises and fighting fires that they forget about a key leadership characteristic: self-management. Effective leaders are first of all effective in managing themselves - their time, their focus, their emotions and their careers. Staying In The Game The message came from Human Resources. There's nothing to worry about with the newly announced organizational changes and pending merger, it reassured. References: Choose Wisely Sophisticated job seekers know and understand that sometime during the interview and hiring process you will be asked to supply references. With this in mind, here are five concepts to focus on in developing your reference list. How To Receive Payment as a Freelance Translator? A problem most freelance translators are facing with is how to receive payment. In particular: How to receive payment for small jobs. Dont Settle Chuck was the best of the twenty-four candidates. Still, he didn't have exactly what I was looking for and my instincts warned me of his unusual personality. Employment Under A Microscope A certain amount of oversight is involved in almost any job. The more important, the more highly skilled, the more successful the position, the lower the degree of oversight.
|
| Interesting articles | Home | site map | Link |
| © 2006 |