| |
| |
|
Careers & Employment Information |
|
|
|
Surviving Unemployment Through Emotional Damage Control
Looking for work is a roller-coaster ride: high with elation when you think you've found a great position, low with discouragement when you realize that someone else was offered a job you wanted. Most of the time, you fall somewhere in between, your mood cycling from cautious optimism to keen disappointment. You try to conceal the inner turmoil, turning a brave face to the world, trying to convince everyone that you are "just fine." For the sake of your health and your sanity, try these approaches: 1. Identify someone who is willing to be a sounding board for you: your significant other, a fellow job seeker, a career counselor, a good friend. Explain that you need someone to help you express the feelings inside and gain a better understanding of what is happening to you emotionally. Then talk to them, for a few minutes. You don't want to become a burden and your listener is not a paid therapist. Ten minutes of honest revelation and analysis a few times per week can help you avoid ulcers, family fights growing out of your frustration, self-isolation, and will free up the energy it takes to hold everything in. That is energy you need to conserve for job search. 2. Start a journal, if you don't already have one. Chronicle your activities, how you feel while doing them, and how you feel afterwards. Watch the patterns of your emotions so that you can start to predict when something is going to be stressful and uncomfortable. Schedule a fun activity afterwards to help you regain your balance. If certain activities make you feel buoyant and hopeful, concentrate on increasing such activities throughout the week. 3. Approach interviews with the thought that each one is really only practice for the perfect position you will eventually find. Perform as well as you can without investing your sense of worth in one person's decision. If it takes a hundred interviews to secure a job, each "No" you receive brings you one step closer to that final "Yes" you are seeking and therefore every step on the road to unemployment is worthwhile and "rejection" no longer belongs in your vocabulary. Acknowledging the pressures and emotional swings of unemployment and job search will help you look at the situation more objectively and allow you to continue to function in other important areas of your life, those not connected with work or income. Virginia Bola operated a rehabilitation company for 20 years, developing innovative job search techniques for disabled workers, while serving as a respected Vocational Expert in Administrative, Civil and Workers' Compensation Courts. Author of an interactive and emotionally supportive workbook, The Wolf at the Door: An Unemployment Survival Manual, and a monthly ezine, The Worker's Edge, she can be reached at http://www.virginiabola.com
MORE RESOURCES:
Employment - Google News |
|
|
|
RELATED ARTICLES
7 Tips for Writing Winning Resume Cover Letters Writing a good resume cover letter is something you should seriously consider when preparing to send off your resume to potential employers.Here are seven important cover letter writing tips:Address the individual by name. 10 Keys to Getting Paid What You're Worth! Asking for money is so taboo in our culture that most of us shake in our shoes when we think about negotiating salary. It conjures up our insecurities about not being good enough, not knowing enough, or not being considered valuable enough. Seminars: Why Are They Popular, and What Advantages/Disadvantages Are There to Attending One? Seminars dealing with "special topics" have actually been around for decades, and are an older form of marketing and information exchanges, that have seen quite a resurgence of interest in the past ten years.Seminars are simply a group of people coming together for the discussion and learning of specific techniques and topics. What is Contract Programming? An Alternative to the Conformity of Everyday Employment What is contract programming, you ask? Well, when companies need specific computer programming expertise, for temporary periods of time, they generally hire a contract programmer or an employee of a consulting firm. Contractors almost always have a higher hourly wage than a salaried employee and are often paid for overtime. Moving From A Weekend Hobby To Career In The Arts Building a career as an artist takes hard work. Because the field attracts so many talented people, jobs in this field remain competitive. Take Charge of Your Job Search: 12 Steps to Success Despite what many people may say, a job search does not have to be an unpleasant experience. There are those people who choose to take charge of the process, who actually find the process to be very rewarding and stimulating. How to Work Effectively With Recruiters "R-E-S-P-E-C-T / find out what it means to me" is a line made famous by Aretha Franklin, and one that recruiters have adopted as their mantra. This is probably because there is a love-hate relationship between candidates and recruiters. A Day in the Life of a Freelance Copywriter Ever wanted a job where you could spend all day, every day, writing clever and inspiring prose? Yes? Well don't become a freelance copywriter!Don't get me wrong, it's a great job, and for some of us it's a calling that won't be denied. And you definitely do get to write clever and inspiring prose. Want to Work for Yourself? Those Dream Jobs Dont Just Happen, Theyre Created While traveling in northern California last October, I happened to tune into a local newscast. The newscaster was telling his co-anchor that the speaker at that morning's Rotary Club meeting had to cut his presentation short because he was being flown down to Disneyland to carve elaborate Halloween pumpkins for the park festivities. How To Tap Into the Invisible Job Market Is there a company in your area that you'd love to work for? Do you assume that, because you don't see them advertising in the classifieds or posting jobs on their website, they have no openings? That may or may not be the case. That truth is, only about one-fifth of job openings are actually advertised!Here's how to tap into the huge "invisible" job market. How To Conduct A Successful Job Search Campaign 1.Define your objective: Know what kind of work you most enjoy and perform the best. What Every Employee Should Know About How to Overcome Boredom Do you find yourself easily becoming bored or tired at work for no apparent reason? If that's the case, then pay close attention. Research has shown that fatigue and a worn-out feeling are often caused by unproductive mental attitudes. Skills Make Labor More Valuable As you know by now, if you have been a long time subscriber to our weekly E-zine, I'm a very big proponent of activity, labor and discipline. In fact I devoted one of the five major pieces to the life puzzle (in my book under the same name) to the subject of activity and labor. Job Tips For The Frustrated Job Seeker There is nothing more frustrating and depressing when you are out of work and trying to find a job and your job search is going no where. Don't feel bad, you are not alone and there is a good reason why searching for a new job can be so difficult. Career Strategy When Your Boss is a Bully Q. Right after I accepted my new position, the manager who hired me quit. 5 Proven Steps To Easily Master The Art Of The Interview And Get The Bartending Job Of Your Dreams! Your mouth is dry, your palms are sweaty, your heart is beating so fast it feels like it is going to pop out of your chest!Sound familiar?For most people, interviews are uncomfortable. The mere thought of them causes anxiety and nervousness. Six of the Best for a Winning Resume 1. Be CompleteMake sure that your resume includes EVERYTHING your prospective employer would need to know to be able to offer you an interview. Are You Living Your Career Dreams? Inherent within the human spirit is a desire for fulfillment, a longing to carry out our creative aspirations by reaching new heights of accomplishment. Yet often the yearning for fulfillment can be suppressed by fear and apprehension. Job Search Techniques: Smashing The Gray Ceiling For decades, women have chaffed at the invisible glass ceiling which prevents their moving into the high executive brackets that their competence, knowledge and skills have earned. The same amorphous barrier confronts older workers both in terms of advancement within a company and, most especially, when a job change is required. Job Search Secret #1 The job search secret that is so powerful it will blow your socks off is simple - if you think you want or need a Career Change all you have to do is understand this Job Search Secret:It's simple - Change your Thinking.When you're looking for the new job or career move it's easy to think that 'they' hold all the cards.
|
| home | site map |
| © 2006 |
