Dealing With Anxiety In The Job Search

The job search is not something that people particularly enjoy, regardless of where you’re at in your career. Whether you have been laid off or are just in search of a change of scenery, finding a new job can be a daunting and arduous process. Thanks to technology, finding a job across town or across the country is easier than ever. That said, landing those jobs may also be more difficult than ever.

After finetuning your cover letter and resume and finally hitting “submit application,” the nerve-wracking waiting process begins. This may be worse than the job search and application process themselves! If you’re one of the lucky ones to make it through to the interview stage, take pride in “beating” the ATS. More often than not it seems like today’s digital job application process we get lost in the shuffle, which could lead to getting “ghosted.”

Waiting to hear back about your interview, or even just your application status in general, can be a trying time. The logical move would be to follow up, but even then, there is a delicate balance between persistence and annoyance. So begins the dance between applicant and employer.

If you have found yourself playing this waiting game, you’re not alone. In order to ease your anxiety and constant checking of your emails, there are some tips you should consider according to job experts Elizabeth Atcheson and Alexandra E. Dickson. In an article by Weng Cheong, she highlights these tips.

It’s Not About You

When you’re unemployed and looking for a job, it is all too easy to get immersed in the job search. Many people identify with their jobs, and without one, the question becomes “Who am I?” It has been said that looking for a job is a full-time job in itself, but in order to ease your anxiety during this time, it is important to learn how to separate from the job search.

According to Atcheson, “Job seekers wake up in the morning thinking about their job search. Every time you hear the ‘bing’ coming from your email inbox, you think it might be them. But…that recruiter probably has many things going on at the same time.”

While easier said than done, putting yourself in the shoes of the recruiter/hiring manager for the role is a way to realize that the reason you’re hearing back isn’t personal. Even if the hiring timeline, or timeline for when you should expect to hear back, has passed, it likely is not intentional. This is when a timely follow-up and reach out is appropriate.

All things considered, waiting to hear back from a company regarding your hiring status does indeed have an affect on your personal life, but from the company’s side hiring the right candidate is not a dig at you. They want to make the right hire the first time.

Take Care of Yourself

How do you practice self-care? Is it going to the gym for a workout or yoga? Maybe meditation or grabbing drinks with your friends. What ever you find that helps you unwind or relieve stress can help distract you from the job search, even for a little while. It is important to remember that finding a job takes time and the process will be much more tolerable with a positive outlook.

Keep Up the Momentum

Even if you encounter more “no’s” than “yeses,” at least you are hearing back in one way or another. While these denials might feel like a step backwards, they aren’t. As Dickinson says, “Whatever you do, do not stop moving forward.”

A lot of the job search has to do with timing; contacting the right people at the right time, finding the right opportunity, and being in the right place both in your personal life and career. By keeping a positive attitude and “getting back on the horse” after getting denied from a job can make all the difference in your search. Even if you thought you crushed your interview and put all your eggs in that basket only to get denied, you have to brush it off and keep going. The worst thing you can do is halt your momentum and come to a stop.

Finding the motivation and realizing that you will find a job is of upmost importance. Try to keep a positive outlook, surround yourself with a quality support system and consider these tips to ease your anxiety while waiting to hear back.

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Adjusting to a New Job Opportunity

Starting a new job can be the culmination of a long job search. A part of the job search that often is not considered Is the adjustment phase of getting settled in your new role.

The first few months on the job are a rush of emotions: exciting, terrifying and sometimes confusing. Not only do you experience various emotions, sometimes all at once, but these first few months can make or break your tenure at the new company. Some people may adjust quicker than others, but there are a few tips you can follow to make sure you adjust to your new job, whatever that may be.

Relax

In the words of Green Bay Packers quarterback Aaron Rodgers, R-E-L-A-X. Try not to stress so much about being in the new role. While the unknown is a daunting place for most people, this is an exciting time in your life. New opportunities means new challenges ahead. Putting too much stress on yourself could cause you to give a less than favorable first impression on your new coworkers. If you feel yourself starting to stress up, make an effort to breathe deeply and relax.

Remember Why You’re There

You were hired for a reason. If the new employer did not believe you could adequately do the job, you would not have been brought on board. Most employers wouldn’t put you in a position to fail. The cost of losing and rehiring talent can be exponential for companies, so they want to put you in a position to succeed. Focus on what excited you about the new opportunity and when you question your decision, remember what drew you to the position.

Trust the Process

Trusting the process isn’t reserved for the Philadelphia 76ers rebuild to prominence. Understand that there will be a learning curve in any new opportunity you have. Sure, there is pressure to perform right away, but your employer will understand that you are still learning the ropes. The important thing to remember is that you are not expected to have all the answers right away. While you may hesitate to ask questions in fear of being annoying, it is better to get more information as you learn the ropes than make mistakes and lose confidence.

Wrap Up

The average worker will have 10 jobs before he or she turns 40. Assuming you enter the work force right out of college at the age of 22, that means you may have a new job every 1.8 years or so. Adjusting to new opportunities may get easier as you progress throughout your career and get more comfortable in your industry. However, the most important thing to remember during this stressful and often overwhelming time is to take things one step at a time. For some more resources on getting used to a new role, check out these articles.

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Are You Guilty of These Career Killers?

As we’ve mentioned and you have no doubt seen before, there is so much career advice available to job seekers these days; some of it beneficial and some of it not so much. What works for some may not work for your career situation, and vice versa. The key is figuring out how to navigate the sea of career advice and figure out what best applies to your own life and career.

In order to do this, it is important to separate the good from the bad and avoid making certain behaviors. These “career killers” may derail your career, even though they have every intention of helping you along your journey. Believe it or not, not everything you hear about career success will work for everyone. If you truly want to advance your career and are seeking advice, learning where NOT to look can help you find what will work.

Here are a few “career killers” you should avoid:

Multitasking

While many people view multitasking as one of their strongest and most transferrable skills, doing so may actually be hindering your productivity. Studies have shown that dividing your attention among many tasks instead of focusing on one can actually reduce productivity by up to 40 percent. Not only will your productivity dwindle, but your efficiency and quality of work will follow suit.

To counter these affects, slow down. It sounds crazy, especially in today’s society, but slowing down and focusing on the task at hand will do wonders for your productivity and effectivity.

Work More

Early career professionals are especially guilty of this. Common advice says that in order to catch the eye of your supervisor and prove your worth, you should work longer. After all, working longer means working harder, right? Wrong.

Studies show that the most effective and productive managers actually work fewer hours than their counterparts. Not only can these long hours have a brutal effect on your mental health (see: burnout) but it can also be detrimental to your physical health. According to British researchers, working more than 11 hours a day puts you at a 67 percent higher risk of having a cardiac event (heart attack) than those who work fewer hours.

Instead of burning yourself out, follow the common advice “work smarter, not harder.” You can still work hard, but figuring out ways to be more productive will help you in the long run both mentally and physically.

Fear Failure

Most people are so afraid of failing that when they inevitably do so, they beat themselves up over it and lose confidence. The only way to learn is to experience failure, so fearing it actually leads to fearing success.

If you go through your day to day afraid to make a mistake, you are more likely to do so, hindering any chances at ever experiencing success. When you begin to accept that failing is part of a growth mindset you will realize that the temporary feeling of failure will lead to success. Instead of fearing it, welcome it.

Wrap Up

There is so much advice out there that it can become difficult to realize what is good and what is bad. When you learn what advice can actually hinder your career development, that is when you can truly experience career growth. To read the rest of these “career killers,” click here.

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Struggling For Inspiration At Work?

Over the course of your career, there are times you may stop and wonder if what you’re doing is meaningful or beneficial for the company and even your own career. Once you start having negative thoughts about your work, your productivity is likely to follow suit and plummet. Whether this leads to falling into a funk or beginning the search for a new job, figuring out how to regain that inspiration can make all the difference.

LeadershipIQ conducted a study of 13,771 employees and “asked whether their bosses have explained how their work fits into the department or organization’s strategy or goals.” The results proved that if you have felt these feelings of being lost, you are certainly not alone. Only 21 percent of bosses were “always” connecting their employees’ work to a larger, long-term strategy or goal. Of that 21 percent, these people are nearly five times more likely to be inspired in their roles.

If you’re in that 79 percent struggling to find some inspiration or lacking direction, all hope is not lost. According to Forbes Contributor and LeadershipIQ founder, Mark Murphy, you can find some clarity in this situation by having a discussion with your boss. Although this may be awkward, there are four steps you can take to figure out how your work contributes to an overall strategy or goal of the department or company.

Find the Right Time

You don’t want to just pop into your bosses office and take him or her by surprise with this conversation. Reach out in advance and make him or her somewhat aware of the topic. For example, Murphy mentions that you can ask “Would you be willing to have a conversation with me about this new assignment? I find it really interesting and I’d love to learn more.” This is disarming and shows your interest in the work you’re doing.

Ask About Strategy

Now that you’ve initiated the conversation, you can ask where it came from and what the goal is.  Murphy mentions the importance of reinforcing your interest and curiosity in the project first and foremost. Once you’ve done this, you can connect the dots. It is important to not skip this step, unless your relationship with your boss is well established.

“How Will This Be Used?”

You don’t want to come out and just ask why you’re working on this project. Instead ask for more information and how it will be used towards the department or company’s overall goal. It is beneficial to ask this because by giving your boss the option to divulge more information, he or she may actually feel more inclined given your interest.

Ask About the Future

Is this a one-off project, or part of something bigger down the line? The only way you will know the answer to these questions is to ask. One way to figure out the direction and strategy of your company is by figuring out how things you’re working on play into the grand scheme of things. Asking these questions is a great start and look into that strategy.

Wrap Up

Not every day at work will be the most exciting. That is just the unfortunate truth of our careers. However, it is important for the good days to outnumber the boring or bad days. When you know that the work you’re doing is meaningful you will be more inspired to contribute. If your inspiration is lacking, take these four steps and have that conversation with your boss.

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Are You Overqualified?

Even though it is easier than ever to find open jobs around the world, it still remains difficult to find one for your next career move. Today’s unemployment rate is hovering around 3.7 percent, which means more people are currently employed than ever before. That said, new jobs are created every month thanks to the need for top talent and even technological advancements. Last month, according to the Bureau of Labor Statistics, approximately 164,000 jobs were created in various industries.

While it is great for our country that unemployment is so low, it may not be so great for your career trajectory. Finding your next career opportunity may be more difficult and you might find yourself underqualified for some opportunities, but overqualified for others. Being underqualified is one thing; the answer to meeting qualifications is more experience or education. When you’re overqualified, you might find yourself in a difficult situation.

You would think that the more experience you have, the better chance you have at getting a job, especially one with high pay. However, having too much experience may actually hinder your job search. On the employer side, potential employers might hesitate to extend an offer because they worry you will demand a higher salary or even be bored in the role and move on quickly.

Have you found yourself in this situation? If so, there are some things you can do to show an employer that you are still the ideal candidate, even if you have more experience than the rest of the competition.

Do A Self-Assessment Before Applying

If you’re considering applying to a role, you must ask yourself if the position is one that you would really want. Are you applying for the sake of doing so, or are would you actually accept the position if offered? If you can answer “yes” to the latter, you should apply.

Pitch Yourself

Most job applications still require both a resume and cover letter for consideration. While it is usually optional, you should use the cover letter as the opportunity to pitch yourself as the best candidate for the job. If the position you’re applying to has a lesser title than your previous role, your cover letter should explain why you want the role. According to Kelly Donovan of Kelly Donovan & Associates, you could say “Although I’m proud of my work managing a marketing department, I’d like to be able to focus once again on my favorite aspect of this field – executing digital marketing campaigns.”

Don’t Oversell Your Resume

This may be counterintuitive to all other career advice you have heard, but if you’re overqualified for a job, you have to tailor your resume accordingly. To do this, highlight the roles you have done that align the best with the new opportunity. Your resume must absolutely be an accurate representation of your career, but you can sort of pick and choose what to emphasize.

“Why Do You Want This Job?”

An interviewer will most likely ask you why you are applying to the role, especially if it is lesser in title than your lost job. If you know that you are overqualified for the role, you can expect to be asked this question at some point in the interview process. According to Laura MacLeod, HR expert and consultant:

“This is the first question the employer will ask…[the] worker needs to be prepared with a strong and credible answer. Consider the employer’s concerns: You are only taking the job until you find something better; you’ll be difficult to manage because you’ll feel superior to team members and maybe even your supervisor; your attitude will be poor…and you’ll eventually become lazy – dragging others down with you.”

Once you address the fact that you know you are overqualified, you can then show why hiring you will benefit the company.

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