Job Hunting: How to Turn Negative Emotions into Positive Actions

'Toss your dashed hopes not into a trash bin but into a drawer where you are likely to rummage some bright morning.'     Robert Brault


Have you or someone you know been laid off?

Getting laid off can be scary and demoralizing. Unless you take charge of your emotions as you seek new work, the overwhelming sense of fear and failure can immobilize you. What can you do to get yourself on a positive, hopeful job hunting path?

Six Tips for Maintaining Your Sanity and Hope Job Hunting

To get off on the right foot daily, you must begin by dealing with the fear, stress, anxiety, anger, shame--and other negative emotions generated by your layoff.

Take steps to transform your negative emotions into positive actions each and every day. Here are six tips for daily actions to help you maintain your sanity and hope during your job hunt.

At the beginning of each day choose to:

1.  Stop and Start over. Consciously center yourself each day. Fear, anger, and anxiety work against you and wastes your energy. Choose to harness your energy and enthusiasm.

2.  Concentrate on Facts, not Fears. Decide on one active step to take each day rather than letting fear immobilize you. Approach your job search factually. Take the emotion out.

3.  Be on a Search for the Truth. Take a step--any step--down a path with the potential for a positive outcome without knowing if it is the right path or if you'll get the job. this is the key to 'stepping over the invisible barriers to taking action'.

4.  Make no Judgments & Cast no Blame. Let go of anger or internal judgment about what happened to cause the layoff. It is what it is. If you fail to hear back from someone after you call or send a resume, don't move into self-blame or analyzing what an a-hole the person is. Move on or take the next step.

5.  Envision the Best Possible Future. The key is to see what you want, not what you fear.  Every day, take the first five minutes of your day to describe and focus on your ideal job. If you want to work on it longer, do it.

6.  Plan your work and work your plan. Take the time to list concrete actions that will move you towards landing a new position and find ways to include others who can help you.

'Tough times don't last...tough people do'  Robert H Schuller

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