Change is often like a roller coaster. Remembering these keys to success will help you navigate through the ups and downs.
How to Handle C-H-A-N-G-E
There aren’t a lot of guarantees in life. One guarantee though, is that our current situation will change. Life changes: people change, times change, relationships change, and of course, jobs change. Regardless of how resilient we are, change can be hard.
What can you learn to allow change to make you stronger? How can you make the best of change?
Let’s look closely at the word “change” and ask reflective questions as we examine ways to make the most of job uncertainty in order to move ahead.
C – Control is Gone
When you experience job loss, you often feel that you’ve lost control. Sometimes you feel your dreams are crushed. It’s easy to feel powerless when the schedule, budget, and progress you once maintained are minimized or gone.
You actually have a new level of control over your future. This is your opportunity to do something new – to be someone you perhaps only imagined yourself to be.
Question for reflection: How have I been affected by a loss of control in your life? What will I do to regain control?
H – How Do I Move On?
Moving on after losing a job is often easier said than done. So how do you move on?
You must rally the help that already surrounds you. Who do you trust in your personal and professional lives? Those are the first people to ask for help. Those trusted people all have networks of people who can offer direction and advice.
It’s important to surround yourself with support as this can be a very lonely and challenging time. It may also be necessary to take small steps toward your main goal, such as taking a lower-paying or lower-level job, in order to work your way to a new position.
Question for reflection: What is one step I need to take so I can move on?
A – Ask for Help
Asking for help is one of the hardest things to do, but is also one of the most important things you can do. How can others help? To name just a few ideas…
- Introduce you to new contacts and networking groups
- Serve as “soundingboards” for ideas
- Provide accountability
- Teach you about new tools, programs, and social media navigation
- Ask tough questions that will make you grow and invest your time wisely
Question for reflection: What is preventing you from asking for help?
N – Need Patience and Persistence
The job search process can be painfully slow. Often you wait for days, weeks, even months, to hear feedback from a company, an interview, or a contact. Repeatedly hearing “no” can be tiresome, even traumatic.
When you feel like quitting, take one more step, because every “no” leads you closer to a “yes!” As challenging as it is to remember, don’t take rejection personally. Consider talking to people or taking risks you never before considered. Sometimes taking a lower-paying position or a “detour” to where you want to end up makes the most sense.
Question for reflection: What along your journey makes it hard to be patient?
G – Give, Give, Give!
While it is always important to look outside ourselves, it is especially important during career transition. Why?
Giving to others helps to take the focus off of you. It helps to remember others in need – perhaps greater need – and gives you the opportunity to help them even in your time of loss.
If you are not volunteering several hours a week, consider finding an organization that could use your assistance. It could change your life! Remember you always have something to give…even if it is a smile and a handshake.
Question for reflection: What is one new way you can give to others?
E – Eat, Breathe, Sleep Healthy Living
Staying healthy is one of the most important things to do while between jobs. Stay spiritually and emotionally healthy by surrounding yourself with positive people and settings. Stay physically healthy by finding an exercise routine that works well for you and by balancing your work and your rest. Stay mentally healthy by finding books that challenge you and help you to grow intellectually during this time.
Question for reflection: What one thing can you change to become a healthier person?
You are not alone on this journey. Change is often like a roller coaster. Remembering these keys to success will help you navigate through the ups and downs. Change is never easy…but it is possible to survive!
