How Adversity in the Job Search Helps You Grow
Adversity is defined as difficulties or misfortune; like all challenges, they are opportunities for us to expand the way we think about them and how to navigate them. They create resistance, and if you think of a river that comes up against rock (resistance), it flows over it, through it and around it. The opportunity is to be like the river and flow with the adversity that shows up in life. Now I know this is easier said than done, and I know that it is all a state of mind that helps or hinders us being able to keep our flow when adversity arises.
Think of it like an opportunity to expand your thinking and being. If you can hold this thought, you can begin to move through it with more ease and less mental anguish and struggle. Like my previous post on expectations, the key is being able to not have any expectations around the adversity because it creates even more resistance and eventually the feeling of being stuck. If we hold expectations or think the worst, we set ourselves up for disappointment and more negative experiences.
Three ways adversity can show up in a job search:
- No responses from your resume.
- Unable to get an interview.
- Unable to close your interviews to an offer.
I see clients repeatedly justifying the reasons in their mind why they did not get a call back after applying to a job posting: They didn’t have all the requirements, they are too old, or they are critical of the organization for judging them and their experience based solely on their resume even if they are the perfect candidate.
Truth – candidates typically only meet 60% of a job description on average. All the thoughts I observe clients think are assumptions and judgments; they stop before they ever get started and create even more resistance before trying to make their way through the rocks (adversity).
Three key steps for moving through adversity:
- Let go of assumptions and expectations.
- Network your way into the company and find out what is going on “inside.”
- Follow up with the hiring manager and recruiter.
Not getting a response from your resume is not uncommon, and it is standard practice to work your network to see who you know that could introduce you inside the organization. If you don’t know anyone “on the inside,” then be bold and start cultivating relationships with colleagues within the organization to find out who the hiring manager and recruiter are that are best to contact. This supports you in refining your communication skills, your courage and being proactive in navigating the obstacles (adversity) you are experiencing in this part of your search.
Letting go of the expectation that you will hear back after applying for a position is another opportunity to stay in the flow. If you have taken full accountability to make paths into the organization so your resume and name is in the hands of the right people, you have done all that you can do, so now you need to trust. If you are supposed to get an interview, you will get one, and if not, you are that much closer to the right opportunity for you.
In order to not let adversity take you over in your job search, you have to be consistent in flowing over it in how you are thinking and feeling about it. Being persistent in your networking strategy, keeping your funnel full of other opportunities and focusing your attention on your own flow allows adversity to teach you more about your own focus and where you choose to put your attention.
A job search is like casting out a big net as you never know what you will attract back in. The more you can stay connected to your own flow of good, trusting that every action you take creates a reaction closer to your ideal job, the sooner you will pull it in.
Adversity is always a sign for us to grow. How different would it be if we embraced the challenge verses complaining about it or thought of all the excuses of why it is happening? Excuses keep you from taking action and keep you from growing into more of what you are capable of, which is flowing like a river with whatever big rocks come along.
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