Sometimes there are no words; no clever quotes, encouraging comments, or inspiring verses to neatly sum up what’s happened that day. Nothing extraordinarily terrible has taken place and you haven’t experienced a loss that can’t be recovered, yet when you leave work and head home there is an emptiness that you can’t explain.
You realize you need a change, so you’ve sent out resumes, applied to jobs, and connected with recruiters, yet nothing has worked…and you don’t know what to do next.
In almost every workplace in America, this is a forbidden topic to openly discuss. The secret conversations about hating your job, applying for new roles, and looking for a way out go unspoken. Yet research shows that as many as 70% of the workforce lacks engagement or fails to like their job. People simply don’t care about their work. At a more granular level, in the past week I’ve had former colleagues and past classmates reach out to me to discuss what they need to do to overcome their frustrations at work when no one will call them back for an interview.
Beyond the obvious need to network with friends, colleagues, classmates, and alumni, build your professional brand, use job search apps and tools, and join professional organizations, taking care of yourself is also imperative.
Having been down this path previously, here are 5 specific actions you need to take to maintain your sanity while looking for a new opportunity:
- Maintain a Healthy Lifestyle: It is very easy to just go home, grab a bottle of booze, and drink your problems away. A former classmate revealed that there were times she had a bottle of wine in one hand and bucket of ice cream in the other as she sulked after getting rejection letters from numerous companies. While letting emotions out is healthy and having days that end with a drink or ice cream are enjoyable, habitually drowning your sorrows is not the way to get ahead nor does it solve the problem. Avoid the pitfalls of a destructive vice that will only lead to more challenges. Eat healthy, exercise, and take the necessary steps to live a healthy lifestyle while you look for a new opportunity.
- Get as many Small Wins as you can: Quite often, the need to change jobs comes from a lack of success, happiness, or fulfillment in your current role. This can lead to the loss of confidence or failure to believe that things will ever change. Small wins help you regain all the confidence lost and enables you to find happiness in other areas of your life. Having been rejected from job after job and feeling that nothing good will ever surface again, you need a spark in your life that will enable you to remember how remarkable you are while allowing you to escape the daily issues that are burdening you. Join a new club, take a class, or get a part-time job. In the midst of my struggles, I took salsa dance lessons to allow myself to forget about all the negativity that surrounded me.
- Audit Your Surroundings: There are certain triggers that cause everyone to hit rough patches. These triggers could involve specific functions of your job, people who continually bring you down, or activities in your personal life that cause you frustration. Audit your surroundings and avoid challenges that cause you unnecessary anxiety. This is especially important if you are in an environment that is volatile. So often, stressful (and unsuccessful) job searches create extraordinary tension. Identify what your triggers are and avoid them at all costs. Remove yourself from toxic environments, consistently audit your surroundings, and create strong boundaries. This will enable you to put your best foot forward.
- Be Obsessed with What you can Control- So many times in life our actions are scripted outside of our control. This lack of control quite often makes us feel powerless. We must fall in line with what other people tell us to do, take orders from our supervisor, and do whatever is necessary to make sure the customer is happy. Maintaining autonomy in certain parts of your life enable you to preserve a sense of ownership and empowerment. Autonomy is a proven motivator in work and life, and creates a sense of happiness and fulfillment. Whether it is going back to school, eating healthy, or picking up a new hobby, find something in your life that you can control and hold onto that autonomy. It will bring a sense of ownership and empowerment.
- Stay Focused: Staying focused is a pivotal part of keeping your sanity. Lack of focus will enable your mind to wander, often times leading you down a dark path that has you reflecting on the bad memories, failed job applications, and despair you feel at work. Lock into what you are trying to accomplish and immerse yourself in this objective. Further, find activities that will keep you busy while improving your prospects of landing future employment. One friend who had no luck with his job search became so busy improving himself, he stopped searching for a job. Working full-time, being a full-time grad student, and serving as a volunteer firefighter enabled him to forget the frustrations of not having luck with his search. He later found the perfect job due to all the hard work he put in. Stay focused (and busy) to ensure you are putting out good energy. This will increase the prospect of landing a new position.