Your Two Best Friends in the Job Interview Process
Searching for a new job is not an easy venture. For most, it is a marathon, not a sprint. It requires patience as you search your personal network, check online listings as well as the many other avenues for finding open positions. It also takes a huge dose of emotional heroism to have that personal “self-talk” conversation allowing you to finally “pull the trigger” and “just do it”!
The best tools to carry in your job-hunt briefcase are massive amounts of persistence and resilience. They are vital for your success. Let’s look at the definitions of these two words:
Resilience: The capacity to recover quickly from difficulties; toughness
Persistence: Firm or obstinate continuance in a course of action in spite of difficulty or opposition
The job search process requires persistence because now, the actual search becomes your “job”, especially if you have lost your job by “right-sizing” or maybe you were terminated. If you are looking for new employment and are currently employed, the job hunt is now your second job.
It helps to schedule time each day to search the internet, work your network, and do something involved in the job hunt, no matter how difficult it seems! Stick to the schedule you’ve set and don’t skip a day. It needs to become a routine. You have made the decision to get a new job, now do the difficult work involved. You must be obstinate, unyielding, and downright stubborn in your pursuit of this new position. The journey to the new job may take many twists and turns, so you must find the endurance to run the marathon each day to achieve your goal.
Resilience goes hand-in-hand with persistence as you search for a new job. Each day of your search, wake up and find the intestinal fortitude to get up and start the process again even when you have been unsuccessful in previous days. Each day is a new day with new possibilities, so don’t let yesterday ruin what is possible today! Your special brand of resilience requires an irrepressible toughness to quickly recover for the “downs” of those really tough days.
Resilience is that intrinsic, rubbery coating that we possess, helping us to bounce back after being repeatedly slammed down. It’s the little voice in our head that says, “come on, you can do it” when we just want to pull the covers back over our heads.
Resilience is the emotional factor that supports the actions of persistence. Resilience gets you up in the morning and supplies the coffee to persistence so it can continue the hunt, searching through your network, locating job opportunities, or preparing for an actual job interview.
Looking for a job is tough, sometimes disappointing work. It’s a daily challenge and may take longer than you thought it would to find the perfect job. Don’t give up. Allow persistence and resilience to become your best friends. They will assist you daily in reaching your new employment goals or any other goals you may have in life.
I offer a free ½ hour introductory job interview coaching session. Contact me today to prepare for your tomorrow!