Job Hunt Support Series #1 - Mindset
Updated: Aug 20
In this post, we'll dive deep into establishing a strong mindset that can help you navigate through the mental barriers and anxieties that plague the process. Grab one of those notebooks you've been hoarding for "when the right time comes" and let's get started!
First time hearing about Job Hunt Support? Check out the first post, here.
Identify Your Starting Point
This is an important first step that no one should skip. Starting job hunting is not the same for everyone. There's a huge difference between looking for jobs while you are employed and looking for jobs after a layoff.
There are circumstances beyond our control that can affect our self-esteem, energy levels and overall headspace. It's key to identify them and set goals that are attainable in context.
Here are some questions you can start with:
Am I ready to go? Or, do I need a few days to recover. (This is especially relevant for people going through a post-layoff low. Maybe you don't have everything you need at the time like an updated resume or portfolio. It's important to take some time to recover before jumping onto searching.)
Do I have savings or any other financial support to fall back on while I look? (This will influence the way you set goals for yourself. Deadlines, volume of applications per day, tolerance to uncertainty, scope of jobs that you consider acceptable and so forth.)
How do I feel overall coming into the process? (Reach out to your support system as you begin this process. People who can cheer you on or even mentor you will become incredibly important as you progress.)
Why do I work? Downtime is a good time to ask yourself why you pursue employment in general. Necessity, career advancement, enablement. All of them equally valid reasons and yet different in the way we strategically respond to them. Necessity and enablement allow us to establish basic requirements like a salary range, benefits, work hours and availability expectations, location, among other things. Career advancement is more targetted. It narrows the options but demands bolder choices in perseverance, outreach and networking.
Use these answers to inform your plan, scope and decisions moving forward.
If you can't do it all in one go, work in increments
The eargerness to get started is normal. So, is the resistence to it. Regardless of how you feel getting started, whether it's the excitement for a new opportunity or the anxiety due to unemployment, taking a moment to be strategic can be beneficial in the long run.
If you've been diligently keeping your resumé and portfolio up to date, that's great! You're ready to start applying. However, if you haven't, establish an MVP to get started applying and work your way up from there. Maybe it's a first version of your resumé, or the first two projects in your portfolio. Look for the jobs that fit this initial version and build upon that as you move forward with higher-stakes jobs.
Start small, maybe one application per day so you can flex the muscle. Then ramp up the amount of effort you put in on a regular basis.
I strongly advise against using your weekend time to apply. Rest is incredibly important when you're trying to manage strong feelings of self doubt, frustration and disappointment. You don't need to also, burn out from unemployment...
Reframing
Once you start actually looking on job sites to find a new position, that's when the reframing portion comes in. Generally, we look at job hunting as us polishing ourselves to be picked out by employers. But, in today's job market, it's not just employers who do the picking. Between ghost job openings, overworked and understaffed TA teams and shotty recruitment pipelines, it's more important than ever for job seekers to take a more active role in picking and choosing the right employers and keeping a record of previous recruitment experiences.
Why this shift is important?
The fact that you're here, following this series, means that you're probably an above-average candidate. You're devoting hours of your day to nailing this whole job seeking thing. You as an individual are most likely not the problem. There are current realities the job market is facing that have thrown off everything we thought we knew about keeping a job, let alone trying to find a new one.
It's important to recognize these challenges so that you can adjust your strategy appropriately, but most importantly, so that you can begin to emotionally detach from the inevitable rejection that comes with finding a job and focus on becoming increasingly more effective, bolder in your choices and a bit more pragmatic.
The truth is, in the initial stage, you will most likely be turned down by a keyword parser, not a person. What that means is that you're trying to overcome a technology/content barrier before you can get to showcase your skills in an interview.
Your Starter Kit - Tool #1 - FREE DOWNLOAD
I created this Job Hunt Readiness Checklist for job seekers to go over what they need to get started. It's a great exercise of self-awareness and also a great To-Do list!
In the next post, we'll dive deep into resumé work, what it means to have an effective outward-facing ecosystem and how to project an image that transcends professionalism and breathes authenticity.
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