No more boom and bust

Picture this: you’re out of work and you get up and go to your computer. You look on the job boards and you find a job that is absolutely made for you. You get an email saying that you’ve got an interview for a job you applied for last week. How do you feel? Elated? Optimistic? Full of the joys of spring?

Replay, a couple of weeks later. There’s nothing on the job boards that is even worth applying for. You’ve just had a ‘thanks but no thanks email’ from that interview. You haven’t got any other interviews lined up.  How do you feel? Deflated? Hopeless? Down in the dumps?

This boom and bust cycle is a common experience for full-time job hunters, but it doesn’t have to be this way. Here’s the secret – it all depends on how you measure success.

Most people in this situation measure success by results – did I find some good leads,  get an interview, second interview, job?  The problem with these is that you don’t really have control over them, and they may be in short supply.

The alternative?  Measure success based on what you do have control over. Set yourself ‘input targets’.  For instance, this week I will:

• contact three old colleagues
• search  job sites for two hours on Monday, Wednesday and Friday
• send off at least one application on Monday, Wednesday and Friday – the best of the bunch if nothing is perfect
• attend one networking event
• identify five companies in my field/area who I could approach directly
• Find one new agency and set up a meeting/call with them
• Approach five companies directly
• go for a run three times a week
• meet a contact or old colleague for lunch

These are just examples – you can come up with your own list. Check that it is doable – no point in setting yourself unachievable targets. Make sure that they are all things that you have control over.

Having set yourself some achievable targets, measure success by whether you do them. Keep a log. Tick them off. Give yourself gold stars.

At the end of the day, you can feel good because you have done everything you set out to do.

You are also making consistent progress towards getting a job. You put in the work regardless of the number of interviews you have lined up or rejection emails you have received. You will get there!

PS If you like this approach, you might like C J Hayden’s book ‘Get Hired Now‘

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Sometimes redundancy is just the push you need

When I started coaching people being made redundant, I was surprised to find out how many people saw redundancy as a positive opportunity. Many of them had become stuck in a job that didn’t give them what they really wanted, and redundancy gave them the push in the backside they needed (plus the finanical cushion) to get a better job.

It is really easy to stay in a job because it is secure, safe, easy, pays the mortgage. It is hard to leave all of that and take a step into the unknown, the big scary world out there. Sometimes you need a push.

What messages have you been ignoring? Maybe it’s being passed over for a promotion yet again. Maybe it’s a big birthday. Maybe it’s seeing your friends doing really well in their career while you are stagnating in yours. Maybe it’s just a growing sense of low-grade unhappiness.

Are these signals getting louder?  Are you getting to the point when these niggles and doubts are big enough to push you into doing something about it? Then do something about it!

Start with small steps. Maybe you want to read some books on changing career (there are some recommendations here: books ), read some blogs and websites, do some exercises (there are some links here: exercises ). Maybe you just want to start talking about it with your partner or friends.

More than any of these ‘doing’ things, make a ‘being’ change. Make a commitment to yourself – this is not good enough, you want a job you love. You have loads to offer. You and the world are missing out if you are not fulfilling your potential. Somewhere out there is a job with your name on it. Commit to finding it.

Alternatively, you could wait until you are made redundant.

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