The Positively Focused Job Hunter 

Many people perceive job hunting as a predominantly negative experience, due to its stressful nature. You might be one of those people yourself. Filling out application forms, sending off CVs and dealing with rejection on a day to day bases can be a psychologically and emotionally challenging experience that leave you mentally and physically drained and exhausted. However, the good news is that, it does not have to be this way! I put together a guide for you, as to how to remain focused and positive while job hunting and how to get the job you want. Here it comes:

Finding The Job That Is Right For You

“Do the job you love or love the job you do”

One of the key components to stay positive, focused and motivated is to search for a job or jobs that personally interest you and you would find rewarding.  I hear you say ‘This is obvious’. Well, you would be surprised how many people fall into the trap of desperation and fear and apply for anything that is around, knowing in advance that they would not enjoy that job and would not want to stay in that job for long.  The fact is that you would put extra effort into filling out an application from for a job that you truly wanted thereby increasing your chances of getting an interview, not even mentioning the personal satisfaction you would get out of getting and doing a job you enjoy.

So, these are the things you need to think about:

1. What do I want from a job apart from money?
2. What type of work do I want to do and why?
3. Create a clear intention and vision of the job you want.
4. In order for me to get this job, what employment sectors do I need to focus on?
5. Narrow down the range of options to the ones that are closest to what you are looking for.
6. What qualifications and skills do I need for this job?
7. Do I have the right qualifications and skills?
8. If not, how will I be able to obtain those qualifications? How long will it take?
9. Why am I suited to this position?
10. Based on my skills, experience and qualifications how likely is it that I would get this job?
11. What can I do in order to enhance my chances of getting this job?
12. How am I going to do it? What are my options?

Knowing what you want and how you are going to get it generates hope, optimism, positivism; it motivates you and ultimately put you in control of your own life.

Managing Your Inner Voice Of Doubt

“Change your thoughts, change your life”

Negative, self-defeating thoughts or as it’s commonly know, your inner critic can sabotage you efforts in finding your perfect job in more than one way. You might miss opportunities presented to you because your inner voice convinces you that you would not be able to do that job or even worse, you might start to believe that you would not be able to get any jobs. Keeping a positive frame of mind allows you to fight for what you desire and have the strength to keep going until you succeed.  You can quite the inner critic in you by

Rationalising.

You can ask yourself the following questions:

• How do I know that I won’t get that job? Where is the proof for that?
• Is it certain that I won’t get the job? How do I know for certain?
• Am I assuming or basing my beliefs on facts?
• What makes me think that I am not good enough for that job?
• Are these assumptions historically valid? Are they always true?
• Is my belief realistic?  Would a friend agree with what I am saying?
• Am I exaggerating? Is this belief helping me in attaining a job?

Turning Your Inner Doubt Into Inner Confidence

Make a list of all your accomplishments, strengths, skills and positive traits. These lists you have compiled are your ‘ammunition’ against your inner critic. For example, the thought ‘I won’t get a job’ might pop into your head to which your answer is ‘I think it is more likely that I will get a job because …
(Choose an appropriate ‘defence’ from your list).

Being Self-Aware 

Notice when your inner gremlin raises its ugly head, acknowledge it and then say ‘Clear, Cancel, Delete’ to yourself. By doing this you distract yourself from negativity and you also give yourself a chance to think again. This time round choose a thought that is empowering.  Acknowledgement of your own destructive thought patterns is crucial, as often what you resist, persist, so don’t resist your inner gremlin, just  know that you can send it packing  at any time you wish.  

Positive Self-Talk

Self-talk is an internal dialogue with you.  It is an inner conversation that has a powerful impact on your emotional well being and motivation. Positive self-talk is imperative to maintain positivism and pro-activity and it has the power to shape your decisions and your life. Be aware of what you say to yourself as what you say and think to yourself is where your life will go.   
Examples for positive self-talk:

‘I know that with time and effort I can find a job that is well paid and I enjoy doing’.
‘I am just as capable of getting a good job as anybody else.’
‘I have all the skills and experience to be able to get a well paid job.’
You can use the lists you created, listing your achievements and strength to facilitate your positive mental dialogue.

Handling Rejection

“When you change the way you look at things, the things around you change”

Rejection is a common experience for most job hunters.

1. The first thing to remember here that you are not the only one, your case is not unique and that millions of people are dealing with rejection in one form or another right now, so don’t fall into a victim mentality.

2. Secondly, you need to focus on how you are handling rejection rather than rejection itself.  Make a conscious effort to transform your negative state of mind to a more empowering one.

3. In order to sustain a positive mindset it is essential that you don’t view rejection as a failure but an opportunity to better and reinvent yourself.  Ask for feedback whenever it is possible, so you know what you need to improve on and see it as an opening to get an even better job that is more suited to your skills and personality.

4. Put a positive spin on it. Ask yourself the following, ‘What have I learnt from this experience?’, ‘How can I use it to my advantage?’, ‘What are the positives?’ Remember that every cloud has a silver lining.
5. Remind yourself that rejection can be a blessing in disguise as life might just has something bigger and better in store for you.

Enjoy The Process

“Choosing and not excusing”

Yes, I know it sounds crazy but you do yourself a great favour by enjoying the process instead of stressing about it. Let’s look at it this way; you have two choices, either worry constantly about what is going to happen or stay positively focused and enjoy the ride. Think about it. How does worrying about anything help you?  How does it take your life forward? How does it make you feel? Choosing to remain positive while facing adversity fills you with hope and optimism and most importantly plenty of energy and resilience, so you can dust yourself off and move on.