In my last post we discussed how easy it is to get side swiped by all the negativity regarding the job search, unemployment, the economy, etc. So just how do you stay on track and not let everything around you knock you down? Over the years as an introvert I’ve developed three steps to maintain balance and a positive perspective.
1. BELIEVE IN YOUSELF
Now you might be thinking – yea yea I’ve read that a million times (or something like it) and it hasn’t helped. STOP I want you to read it again and really think about it. Do you believe in yourself right now or are you feeling overwhelmed, frustrated. tired of the effort, maybe drained? Do you start out the day “ok” but as it wears on do your energy levels decrease and your negative thinking increase? Or do you just wake up irritated at the whole ordeal. It’s common for introverts to struggle in these ways. So when was the last time you truly believed in yourself and what you could accomplish?
Remember when you woke up each day with enthusiasm for the day ahead? What about projects that excited you because it gave your brain something to wrap around? Or potential new clients, sales leads, products, articles, or anything in your line of work or business that got your blood pumping because you couldn’t wait to tackle it. Of course not everything at work was positive but regardless it kept your brain busy and occupied which is critical for introverts. Most importantly let’s not forget the power of positive feedback – many introverts don’t like “showy” praise but truly appreciate a simple compliment; nice job, good idea, great service. But whether you were named employee of the year or got a well deserved compliment from a customer or client we all want to know how we are doing, it’s human nature, and work often provided that essential feedback.
The job search wears you down for one very important reason – you are getting no feedback. You are hanging in the dark without a clue as to whether you resume is effectively marketing you, your cover letter is well written, or your interview skills adept. No one is telling you what you are doing right and no one is telling you what you are doing wrong. Generally the only way to find out if your job search is successful is to get a job! If you don’t get positive feedback (a job) you don’t feel successful. Eventually you begin to lose faith in your accomplishments and finally in yourself. So how does believing in yourself change that?
By believing in yourself you allow yourself to see the possibilities of what you can accomplish – now. By believing in yourself you harness the power of your mind. By believing in yourself you are able to to stay focused on a task and see it through to completion. By completing something you feel good about yourself and will possibly receive positive feedback – and feeling good about what we accomplish along with positive feedback encourages us to do it again. Let me give you an example. As an introvert I faced all the same struggles I’ve been writing about and found myself quickly going downhill. Then I read a book about making a career comeback (more on that in a future post). The author encouraged writing a blog, something I wasn’t the least bit interested in. A few weeks later I randomly started thinking about a blog for introverts – and now I am passionately writing about a subject near to my heart and reading your wonderful comments has encouraged me more than I can say.
So believing in yourself means putting thought into action. Starting right now what can you do to start the ball rolling? How about starting a little garden or finding free dance lessons. Search out some new networking events (and actually attend) or take a neighbor to lunch. You could join a meetup group (Meetup.com) on any topic that interests you (cooking, hiking, you name it they’ve got it). Write a blog! Volunteering is always great. You can think of something – I know you can – no matter how small take that first step to do something……anything…….that interests you. You never know where it’s going to take you but first you have to start!
Stayed tuned for the next installment of The Job Search. Your comments are always appreciated as are your ideas for future posts. If this post has encouraged you to take action please share it with us!
