Top 10 Ways to Cope with Job Transition

Job transitions can be stressful—whether they’re due to layoff, a new job or working extra hours because others workers were laid off.  If you’re facing one, consider the following.

1. Take an honest look at yourself.  What are your strengths, weaknesses, skills?  How did those influence, positively or negatively, your transition?

2. Step up your self-care.  Major changes are physically and emotionally taxing.  You need self-care now more than ever.

3. Engage your curiosity.  What went wrong, or right?  What could you have done better?  What worked really well?

4. Focus on what you want… and less on what you don’t want.  Keep your eye on the prize.

5. Find support.  Since your transition affects your family as well, it may be better to seek the outside support of friends or professionals.

6. Work on your thoughts.  Calm your fears and reinforce your sense of hope and happiness.

7. Reassure (or avoid) those who are threatened by, or jealous of, the change.

8. Create your own rite of passage.  Ceremony and ritual, religious services and communing with those of similar faith, all can help with transitions.

9. Let go of how things were “supposed to be” and accept “how things are.”  Find appreciation for what is and where you are going with your career.

10. Keep things in perspective. Or try on a new perspective. Don’t get stuck. Remember, the only constant is change.

Author’s content used with permission, © Claire Communications

Changing Careers: Is it really the career causing the problem?

Before you change careers assess why you might want a change.  Often it isn't a change of career that is necessary.  Here are some questions you can ask about where the dissatisfaction exists:

--Do you like your current company?

--Do you like your current boss?

--Do you like your current fellow employees?

--Is there an issue in your home life affecting your work?

--Do you like your daily work?

--Do you like the potential of working at a job related to your current career?

--Do you prefer to work alone, in a team, or a bit of both?

Frequently a person wants to change careers when the issue is the company the work for, the boss (one of the most common reasons), or fellow employees and their actions.  You must first analyze whether your unhappiness is truly with the career or another reason.  Sometimes the motivation has nothing to do with work, and is something happening in your personal life.  If, after evaluating the above, you determine the reason is still the work, then you need to ask yourself if you might like a related career,  something different within your current company (maybe you aren't challenged anymore in your current role), or if you are working within an environment that isn't ideal?  Too many people have changed careers when the real issue was something else entirely.  Make sure you investigate all the possibilities before reaching a decision.  To your career success!

Networking 101: It Isn’t About You!

Networking is already a difficult task for jobseekers and those merely wanting to stay connected to their network while already employed.  Finding networking events, asking the right questions, introducing yourself to someone new, exchanging business cards, and following up can be downright daunting.  Today, I would like to discuss a way to take some of the pressure out of networking:  remember it isn’t about you! 

We tend to look at networking as that opportunity to meet, hopefully impress, and ultimately get something from engaging a new contact.  I am here to say that is too much pressure, and not the way to look at your interactions, and that instead you should always network with the intent of helping the other person.  By taking the burden off of yourself to “perform” and as an alternative learning how you can help others, you will reap better quality contacts, individuals will be more likely to help you, and you will appreciate or even enjoy networking to a much greater extent. 

When having a conversation with a potential contact, ask questions that help you discover more about them and what they are wanting from the interaction.  Those questions can include:

--What brought you here today?

--Where do you (or did you) work?

--What do you like most about your current job (or recent job)?

--What does your job entail?  (This is a much better question then just asking “what do you do?”)

--Are you working on any interesting projects?

--How long have you been in your current field?

Now you can discern important information to offer some help.  Are they looking for a job – perhaps you can tell them of a company that is hiring in their field?   Are they new to LinkedIn – perhaps you can tell them about how to use the tool more effectively in a job search or for overall career management?  Are they new to the area – perhaps you can tell them more about the companies and industries in your city? 

When you help others, they tend to return the favor, but if they don’t you haven’t lost anything, just move on to another person.  Try this approach and you will find yourself less stressed about networking in general, and people will very likely offer you some important referrals and leads that can help your career.  To your job search and career management success!