What is it about a job search that takes the wind out of a person’s sails?
It should feel like an opportunity to meet new people, to talk about the future, to consider working in new places. Why does it feel instead like tying weights to your feet before running a marathon?
In truth, I have met a number of people over the years who enjoy this process. But as a percentage of the overall group of job seekers, it hasn’t been many. And somehow, it seems, my midcareer job seekers are even less prone to enthusiasm for the prospect of gaining new employment. I suppose by the time we hit our 40s and 50s, we’re just that much more aware of how badly things can turn out.
How did we get so cranky?
I’ll leave that question to the well-trained sociologists and psychologists. My task is to reinspire my bedraggled group of graying job seekers, not hypothesize about how we all got this way.
A recent burst of springlike weather has provided an abundance of metaphors and images to help me in my task, but one in particular made me laugh out loud the other day. Kneeling on the damp ground to pull thatched grass and leaves away from green shoots and bulbs, I had a sudden visual of uncovering older job seekers who had been hibernating in the dirt, waiting for warmer days before popping their silvery-gray heads out into the sunshine. Maybe you had to be there, but it did make me laugh.
If you’ve been lying low for any reason, or even if you’ve been trying hard but getting discouraged at your job search, now’s the time to start fresh. Here are a few thoughts to help get you going.
● Stop focusing on what could go wrong in your search or in a new job, and start thinking of all the ways this could go well.
● Don’t hold yourself back by worrying about age bias. Yes, of course employers may discriminate. But what if that’s the furthest thing from their minds and you come in with a chip on your shoulder? You need to start each conversation with optimism.
● Don’t hold onto past jobs as the model for the next one. So much has changed in just the last couple of years. One of the changes may have been a decline in wages for your industry. If so, that’s bad news, but it won’t help to stay out of the game waiting for someone who pays more.
● Allow yourself to consider jobs that just pay the bills, and a lifestyle that is centered on something other than work. It’s hard to say this, but for some people, the career-building stage of life may need to go on hold.
● Play this game to win. Don’t dabble at a job search and then get discouraged when the results are lackluster. Decide: Are you going to get a job or aren’t you? If no, then stop searching and spend your time more fruitfully. But if yes, then get this task done so you can go on with your life.
● Re-energize yourself. Maybe you need better skills, a better set of contacts or a better image. Whether it’s a new degree or just a new haircut, figure out what’s going to give you fresh energy for this process.
● Embrace the future. Sound like a cliché? Many good ideas do. If embracing the future means choosing a strategic path away from what you used to think was your destiny, so be it. The recent economic situation has turned a lot of plans upside down. You’ll be in good company if you have to reinvent your career or the place your career holds in your life.
Remember: You don’t get to choose whether the future arrives — just what you’re going to do with it. Choose, plan and regain control. Then move forward with confidence to enjoy this next stage of your life, whatever it holds.
Amy Lindgren owns Prototype Career Service, a career consulting firm in St. Paul. She can be reached at alindgren@prototypecareerservice.com or at 626 Armstrong Ave., St. Paul, MN 55102.
